Date Approved

2-27-2013

Date Posted

5-9-2013

Degree Type

Open Access Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Department or School

Leadership and Counseling

Committee Member

Dr. David Anderson

Committee Member

Dr. Robert Carpenter

Committee Member

Dr. Ronald Williamson

Committee Member

Dr. Eboni Zamani-Gallagher

Abstract

This quantitative study examines the relationship of philosophical beliefs of administrators of Lutheran schools and the influence of those beliefs on discipline decision-making styles, job satisfaction, and other factors. The study patterns the survey work from William Perry (1999) and other theorists regarding philosophy and ethics. A theoretical framework postulates a positive relationship of objectivist philosophy with directed decision-making style and interpretivist philosophy with participative decision-making style.

The administrators from two Lutheran education organization’s listserves, through invitation, participated in the qualitative online survey. The investigation uses path analysis, factor analysis, and regressions to explore survey and descriptive data. Some contextual variables such as gender and training have statistically significant relationships to decision-making styles and decision actions. Objectivist philosophy correlates to the selection of directive decision-making styles, while interpretivist philosophy correlates to participative decision-making style. There did not seem to be a strong relationship to religious faith and the selection of the objectivist philosophy, but data allow for a new category of visionary educators. Factors of the student did not influence satisfaction and self-reported effectiveness of administrators. Included are limitations and future study suggestions.

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