Principals’ participative leadership and teachers’ burnout and job satisfaction, before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic: A trend study

Purpose – The COVID-19 pandemic had a detrimental effect on educational systems around the world, transferring millions of students and teachers to remote learning overnight. Moreover, it affected the relationships of principals and teachers to their job routines. The current research aims to explore differences in the relationship of principals’ participative leadership to teachers’ job satisfaction and burnout before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Design/methodology/approach – This research was carried out from 2016 until 2023 inclusive (2021 and 2022 were the years during which the COVID-19 pandemic was predominant in Israel). The sample included 3,052 Israeli teachers: of them, 779 before, 622 during and 1,651 after the COVID-19 pandemic – participated in the present study. 

Findings – General linear model analysis showed a significant difference in the relationship between principals’ participative leadership and teachers’ burnout; no relationship was shown before the pandemic, but a growing negative relationship was demonstrated during and after the pandemic. Additionally, there is a significant difference between the three points across the COVID-19 timeline, showing an increasing positive relationship between principals’ participative leadership and teachers’ job satisfaction. 

Originality/value – The research emphasizes the long-term positive effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on principal–teacher interaction and calls for supporting further implementation of participative leadership in schools.