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Purpose: The current study seeks to explore the links between principal self-efficacy, openness to change, well-being, and transformational leadership. Specifically, we tested a mediated-effects model where principal self-efficacy and openness to change were treated as independent variables, well-being as mediator, and transformational leadership as dependent variable. Design/methodology/approach: Survey data were collected from 351 principals employed in Turkish schools and analysed using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling. Findings: The results suggested the direct empirical relationship of principal self-efficacy and openness to change with transformational leadership, and indirect through professional well-being. Originality/value: Our study enriched our understanding of school leadership by elucidating the potential mechanisms that underpin the implementation of transformational leadership practices.

This study tested a moderated mediation model of transformational leadership's effects on teacher innovative practices, with teacher commitment as mediator and trust in principal as moderator. Implementing a cross-sectional survey design and using data from 611 teachers working in 56 schools in Turkey, we employed multilevel structural equation modelling with Bayesian estimation to estimate the structural links between our variables. The results provided evidence of the indirect effects of transformational leadership on teacher innovative practices through the significant mediator role of teacher commitment. We also found evidence that trust in principal acted as a significant moderator of the indirect effect of transformational leadership on teacher innovative practice through teacher commitment. This study adds nuanced evidence to the global literature by concluding that the effect of transformational leadership on teacher commitment and innovative practice is contingent upon the extent to which teachers trust their principals. We conclude with key implications for policy and practice.

This study investigated the relationship between principal job satisfaction, distributed leadership, teacher-student relationships, and student reading achievement in Turkey. Using school- and teacher-level data from the PISA 2018 and TALIS 2018, we conducted a mediated-effect with antecedent effect model, in which the construct of teacher-student relationships was proposed as the mediator of the effects of distributed leadership on student achievement, while principal job satisfaction was included as the antecedent of distributed leadership. The results confirmed the indirect effect of distributed leadership on student achievement through teacher-student relationships. We also found that principal job satisfaction exercised a positive and significant effect on the enactment of distributed leadership practices. This study adds evidence to the international literature suggesting that principal job satisfaction is an important mechanism for distributed leadership practices and that the execution of such practices improves student achievement by promoting teacher-student relationships. Implications for policy, practice, and research are discussed.