The power of empowerment: Meditating the relationship between teachers' participation in decision making and their professional commitment

This study examines the mediating effect of teacher empowerment on the relationship between teachers’ participation in decision making and their professional commitment. The data were collected through quantitative questionnaires from a sample of 983 teachers in 25 junior high schools and 27 high schools in Israel. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that teacher empowerment mediated the effect of teachers’ participation in decision making (technical domain) on teacher commitment, thus demonstrating the critical role of empowerment in enhancing teacher commitment. The teachers’ sense of empowerment is also related to their desire to be leaders. Implications are drawn regarding the important role that principals and other school administrators need to play in enhancing the teachers’ sense of empowerment.