Leadership and Conflicts in Serbian Primary Schools
Abstract
The present study investigates how transformational, transactional and ethical leadership and leader–member exchange relate to task, relationship and process conflicts in Serbian primary schools, and examines whether organisational commitment and power distance moderate these relationships. Survey data were collected from 380 teachers. The results show that most leadership dimensions reduce conflict: core transformational leadership lowers task conflict, whereas leader–member exchange most strongly decreases relationship and process conflict. Contingent punishment behaviour, however, increases conflict, and supportive leadership may raise relationship conflict in certain contexts. Moderation analyses reveal that high organisational commitment and low power distance strengthen the conflict-reducing effects of leadership. Organisational commitment enhances effects on task and process conflict, while low power distance strengthens effects on relationship conflict. These findings highlight the interplay of leadership style and organisational context in understanding conflict dynamics in schools and offer practical guidance for fostering healthy interpersonal and work environments.
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