Relying on the similarity attraction paradigm and self-categorisation theories, the current study examines how principal–teacher gender (dis)similarity affects the emergence of paternalistic leadership and the influences of such leadership on teachers’ organisational citizenship behaviour in the Arab minority in Israel. Data were collected from a sample of 180 randomly selected teachers and their principals from elementary schools in the Arab education system in Israel (180 dyads). MANCOVA, ANCOVA, hierarchical regression analyses and structural equation modelling were used to test the proposed relationships. The results of the overall model indicated that principal–teacher gender dissimilarity affected the emergence of paternalistic leadership and its influences on teachers’ organisational citizenship behaviour. Specifically, in the case of principal–teacher gender dissimilarity, paternalistic leadership contributed to improving organisational citizenship behaviour. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

The study suggests a moderator–mediation model: teacher organisational commitment mediates the relationship between the interaction of participative decision-making (PDM) and paternalistic leadership (PL) and a school's cultural attributes to school effectiveness (student academic achievement, teachers’ organisational citizenship behaviour, and teachers’ perceived strain). The data were collected through a questionnaire returned by a two-stage clusters random sampling of 245 teachers in Israeli elementary schools characterised by different cultural attributes. Data were collected from two sources, self-reports and test grades measures to minimise measure error. The structural equation modelling and bootstrap results highlight the intervening role of a school's cultural attributes on the relationship between PL and school effectiveness, implying that the implications of PL are context dependant. The findings also showed positive implications of PDM on school effectiveness regardless of a school's cultural attributes. Implications for theory and practise are discussed.

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