The role of ethical leadership in the relationship between ethical climate and organizational commitment in primary and secondary education institutions

In this research, the role of ethical leadership in the relationship between ethical climate and organizational commitment was examined through teacher perceptions. In the research using a relational scanning model, data was obtained from 416 randomly selected teachers in the central districts of Ankara in 2022-2023 academic year. Three scales, whose validity and reliability were tested, were used in the study. Among these, The Ethical Leadership Scale is related to honesty, reliability and justice aspects of ethical leadership. The Ethical Climate Scale is aimed at ethical codes, organizational policies and practices that determine ethical climate. The Organizational Commitment Scale is about teachers' emotional, attendance and normative commitments to school. The prepared survey was applied online. Research data were analyzed with Jamovi 2.2. program. Considering the research findings, general ethical leadership perceptions of the teachers towards their school principals are at a high level. The ethical climate and organizational commitment perception averages for the schools are at a medium level. There are significant differences in teachers' perceptions of ethical climate and organizational commitment according to their education and marital status. School type, gender and branch factors do not create a significant difference in teacher perceptions. It was determined that there was a positive significant relationship between teachers' ethical leadership and ethical climate perceptions. Likewise, significant relationships were observed between ethical leadership and organizational commitment. There is also a significant relationship between teachers' ethical climate perceptions and their organizational commitment. According to the findings, ethical climate is a significant predictor of organizational commitment. In this context, ethical leadership has a mediating role in the relationship between teachers' perceptions of ethical climate and organizational commitment. As a result it is recommended to produce and implement more effective institutional policies to increase the quality of the ethical climate in schools and to develop the ethical leadership skills of administrators.