Women High School Principals: Perspectives on Role Conflict, Role Commitment, and Job Satisfaction

Abstract

This study is an investigation of women high school principals in terms of the challenges they face, role conflicts they experience, their role commitment, and their job satisfaction. The purpose is to describe women high school principals addressing the issue of the continued underrepresentation of women in the high school principalship. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected from women high school principals in Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. The findings indicate that role conflict impacts career decisions—respondents delayed entering the high school principalship until the demands of raising their children had lessened. Role conflict is inversely related to job satisfaction; the more role conflict, the lower the level of job satisfaction. The number of students in the school affects job satisfaction and role conflict. Women today may have more career mobility than in the past. Encouragement and mentoring are key factors in enabling women to become high school principals.