A Question of Trust: Predictive Conditions for Adaptive and Technical Leadership in Educational Contexts

Recent studies have suggested that educational leaders enacting a balance of technical and adaptive leadership have an effect on increasing student achievement. Technical leadership focuses on problem-solving or first-order changes within existing structures and paradigms. Adaptive leadership involves deep or second-order changes that alter existing values and norms in an organization. Empirical evidence has also shown that several aspects of trust—benevolence, reliability, competence, integrity, openness, and respect—are strongly connected with school performance and student outcomes. However, the connections between trust and leadership are areas that are ripe for deeper study. In this article, we present the hypothesis that the multifaceted construct of trust has a predictive relationship with both adaptive and technical leadership. We tested this hypothesis by using an originally designed instrument that measures each facet of trust and the leadership behaviors of school and district central office administrators. A total of 292 site and district administrators and teachers were surveyed in four school districts in California to learn their perceptions of their site and district leaders. Results of multiple linear regression models indicate that trust, particularly the specific aspects of respect, risk, and competence, are significant predictors of adaptive and technical leadership.

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