Estimate of the Validity of the Leadership Practices Inventory Scale for Self-Rating School Business Officials

Secondary Education    Managers/Executives/Administrators

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TITLE: Estimate of the Validity of the Leadership Practices Inventory Scale for Self-Rating School Business Officials
 
RESEARCHER: Wayne A. Ruman, Jr.
School of Education
University of Akron
Doctoral Dissertation: December 2004

OBJECTIVE
This study was designed to estimate the validity of the Leadership Practices Inventory as a self-predicting tool for school business officials.

METHODOLOGY
The 41 subjects came from public school districts in the most populated counties in North-Central Ohio, and represent 76 percent of the target population. In addition to completing the LPI-Self, each respondent asked four colleagues (superior, direct reporting subordinate, coworker/peer, and other manager) to complete the LPI-Observer. Participation rate by observer category were all above 71 percent, although in only 40 percent of the cases did all five members of the school district return their surveys.

KEY FINDINGS
The LPI was not supported as a self-rating tool for business officials in North-central Ohio during 2003-2004 because the collected data was not the same between the self scores and those from the various constituents. Generally, there were no significant interactions between the LPI responses and demographic data (i.e., years of education, age, work experience or school size).

The LPI was not supported as a self-rating tool for business officials in North-central Ohio during 2003-2004 because the collected data was not the same between the self scores and those from the various constituents. Generally, there were no significant interactions between the LPI responses and demographic data (i.e., years of education, age, work experience or school size).

A final note (from Barry Posner): Some confounding data is offered in this dissertation but not discussed. Consider the results from Table 5.6 (p. 173) of mean scores of the five practices by respondent category turned into rank orderings:

Respondent CTP ISV EOA MTW ETH
Self 4 5 1 2 3
Superior 4 5 1 2 3
Direct Report 4 5 1 3 2
Co-worker/Peer 4 5 1 2 3
Other Manager 3 5 1 2 3

Looked at from this perspective the data reveals considerable agreement between all of the respondents about which leadership practices are used most to least frequently by school business officials.