CHAPTER V. CONCLUSIONS, IMPLICATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

CHAPTER V. CONCLUSIONS, IMPLICATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Conclusions

This study aimed to explore the predictors of affective organizational commitment of vocational high schools’ principals in Taiwan. To explore these predictors, research purposes were articulated in order to examine the relationship between (1) personal background characteristics, (2) organizational management and leadership style, and (3) school setting characteristics, and principals’ affective organizational commitment.

Research findings revealed that the most important predictors were perceived fairness, school status, school location, pay satisfaction, experience, and education level. It was found that school status and experience had a negative impact on principals’ affective organizational commitment while there was a positive impact of perceived fairness, school location, pay satisfaction, and education level.

Accordingly with the first purpose (personal background characteristics), it had been found a relationship between education, experience and principals’ level of commitment to their organization. It was found that education is a positive predictor while experience is a negative one.

Accordingly with the second purpose (organizational management and leadership

styles), it had been found a relationship between pay satisfaction, and perceived fairness

and principals’ affective organizational commitment. These two variables are positive

predictors of principals’ commitment. In addition, it was found a strong correlation

between perceived organizational support, perceived autonomy, leadership style and

affective organizational commitment.

Accordingly with the third purpose (school setting characteristics), this study also found a relationship between school status, school location and principals’ affective commitment. School status is a negative predictor of affective commitment while its location is a positive predictor of principals’. Nevertheless, a lack of consistent review of literature did not allowed us to widen the confidence interval of this finding related to school status and location. Further research on the effects of school location on principals’organizational commitment may help confirm this finding.

Implications

The main purpose of this study was to explore the predictors of affective organizational commitment of vocational high school principals in Taiwan. Having assessed these predictors, it is hoped that the findings will be useful in improving vocational high school principals’ commitment to their organization. And, based on the results and discussions presented along the previous chapter, some implications can be mentioned for practical use. These implications are expected to be of utility for school managers, superintendents, central administrators, stakeholders and policy makers.

Education, perceived fairness, pay satisfaction, and school location had found to

be positive predictors of affective organizational commitment of vocational high school

principals in Taiwan. That means that the future efficiency of vocational high schools in

Taiwan depends on a continuous improvement of work conditions based on those

predictors which, as a matter of fact, are an essential asset for the whole educational

system in Taiwan. It is also important that the administrative structures to whom

principal belongs participates in creating, maintaining and consolidating an

environment where these values cited above can be nurtured. The implications for all

the educational partners are the following:

1. It might be of interest for superintendents and central administrators to use the findings of this study to revise and reinforce principals work conditions based on what they value most and less in their job.

As it was mentioned in the previous chapters, principals are the critical line in schools effectiveness. Improving their work conditions is predicting their high level of commitment to their schools and, as a result, improving teachers and students performance which, in a long run, leads to the satisfaction of all those involved in the process and the success of the educational system.

2. This study revealed the importance of personal background characteristics, school management and leadership style, and school setting characteristics in predicting principals’affective organizational commitment.

It would be of interest for superintendents, stakeholders and central administrators who participate in nominating school principals to take into account those variables in the nomination process in order to insure the maximum efficiency of principals in their job.

3. It was also found in this study that experience and school status had a negative relationship with principals’ affective organizational commitment. It means that principals’commitment can be eroded in the future by those two factors.

Principals who have a little experience in teaching, leading and administering will tend to be less effective than those with a long experience. Also, because of some administrative regulations in the public sector which leads to principals’ posting, their commitment level was lower than those in the private schools. Educational and central administrators should examine the results of this study in order to minimize the risks related to principals’administrative instability.

4. Fairness was found in this study to be the most important predictor of principals’

affective organizational commitment.

Because fairness is linked to leadership style, pay satisfaction, organizational support and perceived autonomy, it might be important for administrators, stakeholders and policy makers to put more emphasis on leadership training and development based on extra curricula developed in the manner to fit with the different situations’principals can encounter in their workplace.

Recommendation for Further Studies

This study aimed to assess the predictors of affective organizational commitment of vocational high school principals in Taiwan. Many independent variables have been explored in order to determine whether they predict principals’ commitment to their organization. As a result, this study found that variables such as education, experience, pay satisfaction, perceived fairness, school status and location can predict their commitment. Nevertheless, this study did not explore the outcomes related to principals’ positive commitment to their organization. Outcomes such as principals’

performance, teachers’ performance, and students’ learning achievement might be of interest. Also, this study focused on exploring principals’ affective commitment in vocational high schools. The target was principals. Commitment of teachers and other administrative workers were not explored and principals’ of primary and higher education did not participate in this study. For further studies, it might be of interest:

1. To examine outcomes such as principals’, teachers and students performance in an experimental study on a small sample of vocational high school. Such a study can be useful in collecting more detailed data on the impact of affective commitment on school effectiveness.

2. To conduct a similar study with principals in primary or higher education level in

order to compare the different value commitment in those three levels of education.

Such study might be of interest for central administrators and stakeholders in order to establish more practical policy for school administration.

3. To conduct a study of affective commitment of teachers in order to collect necessary data for decision making in management and curricula revision.

4. To examine the relationship between principals’ affective and professional commitment in order to assess the importance of affective organizational commitment in principals’professional commitment.

5. To conduct a study based on principals’leadership style, teachers’ performance and

students learning achievement in order to determine the most efficient leadership

style in teachers’and students’achievement.