Distributed Leadership in Tehran’s Elementary Schools: A Qualitative Exploration of Cultural Domains

In order to explore the cultural domains of Tehrani elementary schools vis-à-vis distributed leadership, a sample of 16 teachers, 8 assistant principals, and 8 principals was selected purposefully from districts 2, 6, and 11. The informants were interviewed in a  semi-structured fashion. Data analyses revealed 19 main factors upon which a model for the cultural domains of the elementary schools in Tehran was developed. These factors stem from the respondents’ understanding and interpretation of the school cultural aspects. In the selective coding stage a central factor from among all the main factors, namely the dominance of an individualistic atmosphere, was extracted, upon which a theoretical narrative is developed. Finally, in the light of the analyses of the schools’ cultural aspects, the possibilities of implementing distributed leadership in Tehrani elementary schools is discussed.