Transformational leadership in education and military organizations

¶ … Transformational Leaders: Service and Technology

Quantitative research

The quantitative research considered here seeks to show the amount of variance in teacher job satisfaction and organizational commitment which can be clarified by not only the transactional behaviors but also the transformational leadership behaviors. The research used the hierarchical linear modeling to measure the added value of transformational leadership behaviors.

In the research, the author expresses limited scope of the research as one of the main challenges he had. The research was based on only five high schools within Pennsylvania and it is data obtained from these schools that was used to draw conclusions, a fact that limits the replicability of these conclusions and recommendations. The limitation of the geographical area was also a factor that was a challenge to the author, since he used only Eastern Pennsylvania region. This limits the findings and the generalization of the findings may not be acceptable. These were the factors that threatened the validity of the method used and also the sampling method and the subsequent data that was collected.

In order to address these challenges, the author engaged in thorough literature review that presented data and findings that came from researches previously done in other regions within the U.S. He also engaged the use of various theories on transformational lead ship that helped in the shaping of the conclusions drawn in the research and these theories, used together with the collected gave a consistent data and information that was reliable at the end. To have a comparative data, the author also carried out literature review on transformational leadership outside education sector, this would give a better grasp of the facts around the application of the transformational leadership in education sector as a whole, not just in Eastern Pennsylvania alone (Kieres C.H., 2012).

Qualitative research

The qualitative research that was utilized herein is on the place of transformational leadership in the army and how it has, over the years, changed with technology. The author displays deep understanding of the aspects of transformational leadership and the various types or methods of leadership that can contribute to the transformational leadership. He also analyzes how the transformational leadership is passed down from one generation to another and how new crop of transformational leaders are trained to successfully take over the leadership of the U.S. military. In his research design, the author uses biographical information to collect his data, he also uses interviews and observation of current affairs in presenting his data. These methods are prone to various challenges that would cast doubts on the internal validity of the research design. The information collected from various primary sources and interviews could be distorted to suit the prevailing historical time. The respondents may also give skewed views depending on their stand towards the government of the day and the leadership of the military at the moment. The sample may also not be significantly representative due to the secrecy that comes with being in the military, in this case, the few respondents who may volunteer take part in the research, may give incomplete information or doctored information for personal objectives.