School aspects that influence the principals’ job-satisfaction
This article aims to analyze how different school relations can influence principals’ job satisfaction. Our analysis is based on TALIS survey data from 162 Norwegian principals. We have used Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) to analyze statistical relations between several potential explaining variables and principals’ professional and individual job satisfaction. The main findings show that innovation support and stress are statistically related to principals’ job satisfaction with school. On the other hand, principals’ teaching support is not related to their job satisfaction with school. In addition, principals’ perception of stress is negatively related to several positively charged characteristics of school as an organization (innovation support, teaching support, and job satisfaction with school). Possible interpretations of the findings are that innovation support contributes to job satisfaction with school but that stress can be perceived as an inhibitory factor in principals’ work. This article focuses on stress that involves a work overload from following up on teachers’ professional development, having too much administrative work, as well as having extra work due to staff absence. This stress is primarily related to a connection between principals’ working capacity and their ambitions to execute their leadership goals. Implications for practice and further research are discussed.