‘Can I Last the Distance?’ Stress and School Leadership

This research study investigated how principals in a national, Christian independent school system cope with stress. Using a doublephased, mixed-methods approach combining questionnaires and in-depth interviews, school principals’ stressors and their reactions to these stressors were examined. Coping strategies used by principals to reduce or manage their stress were also explored. Fortyseven principals participated in the study and of these, 23 indicated a serious level of stress. The study highlighted a preference for using stress managers (a secondary approach), rather than stress reducers (a primary approach). Specifi c grouping of stressors into ten clusters suggested particular areas to be targeted for professional development and systemic reform. Introduction Stress is part of people’s daily lives in our fast-paced and ever-changing environment in the Western world. Within the education scene, stress has become a serious issue in recent years as school principals attempt to cope with frequent change, increased demands from parents and employing authorities, and students from dysfunctional homes. Stress in the teaching profession is also a focus for teacher unions as they seek to support educators in their attempts to cope with work-related stress. In this context, a research study was conducted during 2005 and 2006 within Adventist Schools Australia (ASA) to determine stress and satisfaction levels of principals, causes of their stress, and preferred coping strategies. Rationale for the study in the context of the literature Gold and Roth describe stress as a condition of disequilibrium within the intellectual, emotional and physical state of the individual; it is generated by one’s perceptions of a situation, which result in physical and emotional reactions. It can be either positive or negative, depending on one’s interpretations (1993, p. 17). Stress in the principalship is a serious issue in western education systems (Green et al., 2001). Important areas affected by the extent to which the principal of a school experiences work-related stress include health, welfare, fi nancial and educational issues. Both the health of the principal and the health of staff members may be negatively affected by a principal experiencing serious work-related stress. Westman and Etzion, (1999) in their study of 83 primary school principals and 340 of their teaching staff in Israel, found that work-related stress crossed over to teachers, from principals with whom they worked. The study also found that a ‘ping pong’ effect existed where the teachers’ stress then rebounded onto the principal, causing further stress. Lane (2000) noted that for stressed principals there was a negative correlation between stress and productivity, and that subjects experienced diffi culty in using intellectual skills in management and in dealing with subordinates. Principals’ stress is contributing to an enormous rise in indirect fi nancial costs associated with education (Brown et al., 2002). This occurs on account of high levels of stress-related sick leave for the principal as well as affected staff members, premature resignation, and subsequent training of new staff. Further, the core business of schools is to facilitate good quality educational outcomes for students in a safe, secure learning environment (Victorian Dept of Education, 2005); unfortunately schools with seriously stressed principals and affected staff are less likely to maintain high educational standards and achieve quality outcomes (Alison, 1997, Lane, 2000). There is a lack of data on stress and coping within the principalship of ASA, and it is unknown whether the fi ndings of existing studies apply to them. Neither is it known whether similar coping mechanisms to those described by Allison in his 1997 Canadian-based study of school principals are used. Further, the ASA principals’ own perceptions of causes and possibilities of reducing stress have not been explored previously in any empirical research. ‘Can I last the distance? ’ Stress and school leadership Marion Shields Director of Education, Seventh-day Adventist Schools, SA “ ” Principals’ stress is contributing to an enormous rise in the fi nancial cost of education