Evolutionary characteristics of educational leadership theories: Evidence from grounded theory

Abstract

This study develops an explanatory account of how educational leadership theories have evolved since the 1950s by applying document-based grounded theory to seminal and representative theoretical texts. Drawing on a purposively constructed corpus and proposition-level coding, we inductively derive a three-dimensional model that captures internal theoretical reconfiguration across time rather than shifts in research attention alone. Across the corpus, leadership goals evolve from instrumental rationality focused on organisational efficiency towards value rationality grounded in ethical and moral purposes; organisational forms move from individual, role-based control to collective, networked and distributed practice; and leader–follower relationships shift from positional authority and compliance towards collaboration and value-based resonance. These trajectories are not simple replacements but reflect dialectical transformations driven by recurring tensions between control and professional autonomy, performance accountability and moral purpose, and positional authority and relational legitimacy. Unlike bibliometric or thematic mapping studies that primarily trace topic prominence, our grounded synthesis specifies how theories change structurally and integrates fragmented traditions into a comparable diagnostic framework. The resulting model supports more context-sensitive theorising and enables educational leaders to examine underlying assumptions when selecting and combining leadership approaches.