Social and Motivational Antecedents of Perceptions of Transformational Leadership: A Self-Determination Theory Perspective

The purpose of the study was to gain a better understanding of the social and motivational antecedents of transformational leadership perceptions. Drawing on self-determination theory, a model was proposed in which perceptions of quality of relationships predict perceptions of transformational leadership behaviour through autonomous motivation and self-efficacy. Data were collected from 568 school principals. Results from SEM analyses provide support for the proposed model. Specifically, results indicate that the more principals perceive their workplace relationships as positive, the greater are their autonomous motivation and self-efficacy in managerial abilities, which in turn contribute to self-reported transformational leadership behaviour. Implications for theories of leadership and management practice are discussed.