Headmistress Style Of Leadership - The Case Study Of Guangzhou City, An Ordinary Secondary School Headmistress,

The research adopts the qualitative research method which is more and more popular in social sciences studies. The object of the research is a female principal of a secondary school in Guangzhou. She is called "W" in the paper.Materials were collected for the paper from August 12 to December 15,2003.The exact methods used are on-the-spot observation, in-depth talking and samples collecting.The result of the research shows that the way adopted by female principals is different from that adopted by male leaders concluded from the literature. The characteristics of female principal's leading way are as these: (1) collaborative decision-making; (2) knitting liaison network for school; (3) empowering others; (4) cultivating teachers; (5) analytical listening; (6) sharing information with others; (7) positive learning, bringing new ideas to teachers; (8) seeking the characteristics of instruction and management in school.The research analyzes the elements which influence the way adopted by female principals. They are: (1) the gender characteristics women have in the process of socialization; (2) the values women have in the process of socialization; (3) the various roles women take in daily life such as mother, wife, daughter-in-law, sister and housewife etc.; (4) the subsidiary position to men; (5) the organizational environment of school; (6) the public opinion; (7) the female principal's growth experience.Lastly, the paper discusses the way female principal adopts according with the trend through analyzing the trend of school administration reformation.