The purpose of this quantitative, nonexperimental, ex post facto research study
was to examine the relationship between key dimensions of ethical, transactional and
transformational leadership styles (Bass & Avolio, 2004; Brown et al., 2005) among
public school administrators in one southwestern state in the United States. The aim was
to inform theory and practice within the field of organization and management by testing
a potential relationship between the leadership theories using the Multifactor Leadership
Questionnaire ([MLQ 5X]) (Bass & Avolio, 2004) and the ethical leadership behavior
theory using Ethics Leadership Scale ([ELS] (Brown et al., 2005). In transformational
leadership, the leader is described as “charismatic” and is linked with motivating
associates to move beyond his or her self-interests to the interests of others within a
group, corporation, or society. Components of transformational leadership include:
idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized
consideration