PRESENTATION OF SELF BY EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATORS: A STUDY IN SELF‐MONITORING
| Date | 01 February 1982 |
| Published date | 01 February 1982 |
| Pages | 127-137 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/eb009857 |
| Author | NATHIR G. SARA,FREDERICK A. RODGERS |
| Subject Matter | Education |
JOURNAL
OF
EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION
VOLUME XX, NUMBER 2 SUMMER
1982
PRESENTATION
OF
SELF
BY
EDUCATIONAL
ADMINISTRATORS:
A
STUDY IN SELF-MONITORING1
NATHIR
G.
SARA
AND
FREDERICK
A.
RODGERS
This study
is
aimed
at
testing hypotheses regarding relationships between
self-
monitoring
of
educational administrators
and a
number
of
personal, organizational,
and community
variables.
Using the Self-Monitoring Scale, data were collected from
a random sample
of
superintendents
and
principals
of
schools
in
Illinois. After
establishing discriminant validity
of
the S-M Scale, multiple regression was used
for
data analysis.
The
central finding
is
that urbanity
of
the community, cost
per
pupil,
and
age of the
administrator
are
significant predictors
of
self-monitoring.
An
important implication
is
that behaviour
of
high self-monitoring administrators
may
be viewed
as
having both positive
and
negative effects
in
regard
to the
extent
to
which they
can
exercise personal judgment
and
follow their
own
convictions.
A
couple
of
issues
are
raised
for
which further research
is
needed.
INTRODUCTION
Like other administrators
and
public figures, educational administrators
occupy positions that
are
highly visible.
As
they
go
about
the
business
of
administering schools, they interact with
a
large number
of
individuals
and
groups from within
the
education organization
and
from
the
community
at
large. During such interaction they
are
closely observed
and
their
behaviour is critically examined.
On the
other hand, interaction with others
is
a
means through which they
can
achieve support from,
and by
which
they
can
influence
the
thoughts, feelings
and
actions
of
their
staff,
fellow
administrators, board members
and the
various publics that make
up the
community which they serve.
To
achieve this influence
and to
receive this
support, educational administrators must display professional competence
in
the
performance
of
their duties. Professional competence, substantively,
is assessed through rational measures such
as
consistency
and
relevance
of
one's philosophy
of
education, adequacy
of the
decision-making process,
viability
of
educational programs, effectiveness
of
monitoring
and
assessment systems;
in
short,
the
overall effectiveness
of the
organization.
The impact administrators make
on
their schools
and
communities,
however,
is not
purely
the
result
of
professional competence
as
defined
above. Board members, teachers
and
parents
do not use
purely technical
and rational evaluation systems
to
determine when
and how to
lend
or
with-hold support, although
a
degree
of
rationality
is
generally presumed
NATHIR
G.
SARA
is
Associate Professor
of
Education
at the
American University
of
Beirut, Lebanon. FREDERICK A. RODGERS is Professor
of
Education
at
the University
of Illinois, Champaign—Urbana.
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