Fulltext:
Volume & Issue:
Article Type :
Abstract:
Purpose
Scant empirical research has explored the perceived practices of Confucian ethics and values in educational
management and leadership in China. Based on a conceptual framework, this study compared the personal values of a
group of Chinese educational leaders and those espoused by their working institutions. This study aimed to determine
whether the Confucian ethics and values of hierarchical relationships, collectivism, humanism, and selfcultivation
continue to be emphasized in contemporary Chinese educational institutions.
Design/methodology/approach
A standardized instrument, the Institutional Values Inventory, with 53 value statements, was used to assess educational
leaders’ value orientations in their respective institutions. The subjects of the study were a group of 67 Chinese
educational leaders enrolled in an Australian transnational leadership program in Zhejiang Province, China.
Findings
The major findings show that the educational leaders had a higher regard for collectivism, humanism, and self-cultivation
than their institutions in how an education institution should be operated. Interestingly, hierarchical relationship was the
most important institutionally espoused value which also constituted the least favored value held by the individual
educational leaders.
Originality/value
This study sheds light on leadership roles in enhancing productivity, effectiveness, and performance, and contributes to
the field of educational leadership and effectiveness research through exploring the existence of Confucian ethics and
values in leadership practices, especially in Chinese cultural contexts.
Author:
Author Description:
Professor, Department of Educational Administration and Policy, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong; Professor, Department of International Education, Leadership and Development, University of Canberra, Canberra, Australia.
Keywords:
APA:
Pang, N. S.-K., & Wang, T. (2017). Investigating Chinese educational leaders’ Confucian ethics and value orientations in a transnational leadership program. Contemporary Educational Research Quarterly, 25(1), 45-78.
Full Text:
