The influence of social support and work engagement on transformational leadership in Swiss schools in privileged and socially disadvantaged settings - Findings from a national survey of school administrators

Abstract

This study investigates the influence of social support and work engagement on transformational leadership among 2,011 school principals in Swiss schools, located in socially disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged settings. The results indicate that work engagement and social support are linked to transformational leadership, regardless of school location. However, principals in socially disadvantaged schools show lower work engagement, which leads to less pronounced transformational leadership. Social support is positively related to the principals' work engagement. That is, principals who experience stronger support from their colleagues show higher work engagement and thus more pronounced transformational leadership.