Although the empirical relationship between principal leadership and teacher performance has garnered extensive attention, there remains limited research on how distributed leadership impacts teacher performance. This study aimed to address this gap by exploring the relationship between distributed leadership and teacher work performance in Egyptian schools, with a focus on the mediating role of teacher collaboration.
The study utilized structural equation modelling to analyse data collected from 536 teachers in primary public schools in Egypt.
The findings revealed that distributed leadership had both significant direct and indirect effects on teacher work performance, with teacher collaboration serving as a positive mediator in this relationship.
While this study yielded encouraging results, it is essential to acknowledge certain limitations related to data collection and analysis methods. First, the study employed a cross-sectional survey design, collecting data at a single point in time, which limits the ability to establish causality between variables. Future studies should consider longitudinal designs – these designs provide a more comprehensive analysis of changes over time. Second, data were collected from one governorate in Egypt, which may limit the applicability of the findings to other regions in the country. Expanding future studies to include multiple regions would offer a broader understanding of these processes across different schools. Third, the use of cross-sectional data in our mediation model may lead to biased coefficient estimates. To address these biases, the Bayesian method was employed. Fourth, this study used convenience sampling to recruit the participants, which might limit the generalizability of the results. Future studies should utilize more robust sampling methods to better represent the population of the study. Additionally, the study relied on teachers’ self-reported perceptions, which can provide valuable insights into school principals’ distributive practices, teacher collaboration levels and teacher performance evaluation. However, self-reports may be biased, particularly when assessing work performance. To address this, various techniques suggested by quantitative scholars were used. Future researchers should consider gathering data from multiple resources. Despite these limitations, this study is anticipated to contribute to a better understanding of the relationship between distributed leadership and teacher work performance.
This study introduces a new dimension to the literature by exploring the potential influence of distributed leadership on fostering teacher work performance, which is crucial for enhancing student learning. The findings are particularly relevant as school systems increasingly seek ways to improve teacher performance. Furthermore, since much of the existing research focused on Western contexts, this study contributes valuable insights from the Arab world, thereby enhancing the diversity of perspectives within the international scholarship on distributed leadership.
