What Motivates Principals?

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the relevancy of the "motivation-hygiene theory" for a population of principals. A semi-structured interview was used to obtain data from a sample of twenty secondary school principals and twenty elementary school principals. Results indicated that the job-related factors (motivators), achievement and recognition, were significantly mentioned in periods of principals’ job satisfactions. Five context-related factors (hygienes), interpersonal relations with subordinates, interpersonal relations with peers, interpersonal relations with supervisors, supervision-technical, and school district policy and administration were found to be significantly mentioned in periods of principals’ job satisfactions and dissatisfactions. It was concluded that some of the factors mentioned by principals as contributing to their job satisfactions and dissatisfactions were unidirectional.