The Expansion, Fragmentation, and Cliquishness of the Theoretical Foundation of Educational Leadership in the 2010s
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| Title: | The Expansion, Fragmentation, and Cliquishness of the Theoretical Foundation of Educational Leadership in the 2010s |
|---|---|
| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Yinying Wang (ORCID |
| Source: | European Journal of Educational Management. 2026 9(1):17-32. |
| Availability: | Eurasian Society of Educational Research. 7321 Parkway Drive South, Hanover, MD 21076. e-mail: publisher@eujem.com; Web site: https://www.eujem.com/ |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 16 |
| Publication Date: | 2026 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Research |
| Descriptors: | Educational Theories, Educational Administration, Educational Research, Social Justice, Organizational Theories, Networks, Transformational Leadership, Instructional Leadership, Participative Decision Making |
| ISSN: | 2642-2344 |
| Abstract: | Theories provide explanations for what, when, how, and why of particular phenomena. This study investigates the evolution of educational leadership's theoretical foundation in the 2010s, its main pillars, and dominant theories. This study is theoretically grounded in the functions of theory in empirical research and the history of theory development in educational leadership. Using a theory co-occurrence network as a proxy for the theoretical foundation, we conducted a network analysis of 1,767 empirical articles on educational leadership published in 11 top-tier journals. The network consisted of 515 theories and 1,243 co-occurrence ties. Despite the expansion during the 2010s, the theoretical foundation became more fragmented, with stronger connections within clusters. Among seven main clusters, social justice-oriented theories emerged as a newly dominant theoretical lens in the 2010s. To advance theory development, we recommend addressing theory proliferation through theory pruning to enhance explanatory power and prevent the accumulation of ostensibly different but potentially identical theories. The gap between social justice-oriented theories and organizational theory signals a critical area for future theory development. |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Entry Date: | 2026 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1504654 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| FullText | Text: Availability: 0 CustomLinks: – Url: https://eric.ed.gov/contentdelivery/servlet/ERICServlet?accno=EJ1504654 Name: ERIC Full Text Category: fullText Text: Full Text from ERIC |
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| Header | DbId: eric DbLabel: ERIC An: EJ1504654 AccessLevel: 3 PubType: Academic Journal PubTypeId: academicJournal PreciseRelevancyScore: 0 |
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| Items | – Name: Title Label: Title Group: Ti Data: The Expansion, Fragmentation, and Cliquishness of the Theoretical Foundation of Educational Leadership in the 2010s – Name: Language Label: Language Group: Lang Data: English – Name: Author Label: Authors Group: Au Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Yinying+Wang%22">Yinying Wang</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9005-9641">0000-0002-9005-9641</externalLink>)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Qurrat+ul+Ain+Rashe%22">Qurrat ul Ain Rashe</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0009-0003-0800-7821">0009-0003-0800-7821</externalLink>) – Name: TitleSource Label: Source Group: Src Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22European+Journal+of+Educational+Management%22"><i>European Journal of Educational Management</i></searchLink>. 2026 9(1):17-32. – Name: Avail Label: Availability Group: Avail Data: Eurasian Society of Educational Research. 7321 Parkway Drive South, Hanover, MD 21076. e-mail: publisher@eujem.com; Web site: https://www.eujem.com/ – Name: PeerReviewed Label: Peer Reviewed Group: SrcInfo Data: Y – Name: Pages Label: Page Count Group: Src Data: 16 – Name: DatePubCY Label: Publication Date Group: Date Data: 2026 – Name: TypeDocument Label: Document Type Group: TypDoc Data: Journal Articles<br />Reports - Research – Name: Subject Label: Descriptors Group: Su Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Educational+Theories%22">Educational Theories</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Educational+Administration%22">Educational Administration</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Educational+Research%22">Educational Research</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Social+Justice%22">Social Justice</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Organizational+Theories%22">Organizational Theories</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Networks%22">Networks</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Transformational+Leadership%22">Transformational Leadership</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Instructional+Leadership%22">Instructional Leadership</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Participative+Decision+Making%22">Participative Decision Making</searchLink> – Name: ISSN Label: ISSN Group: ISSN Data: 2642-2344 – Name: Abstract Label: Abstract Group: Ab Data: Theories provide explanations for what, when, how, and why of particular phenomena. This study investigates the evolution of educational leadership's theoretical foundation in the 2010s, its main pillars, and dominant theories. This study is theoretically grounded in the functions of theory in empirical research and the history of theory development in educational leadership. Using a theory co-occurrence network as a proxy for the theoretical foundation, we conducted a network analysis of 1,767 empirical articles on educational leadership published in 11 top-tier journals. The network consisted of 515 theories and 1,243 co-occurrence ties. Despite the expansion during the 2010s, the theoretical foundation became more fragmented, with stronger connections within clusters. Among seven main clusters, social justice-oriented theories emerged as a newly dominant theoretical lens in the 2010s. To advance theory development, we recommend addressing theory proliferation through theory pruning to enhance explanatory power and prevent the accumulation of ostensibly different but potentially identical theories. The gap between social justice-oriented theories and organizational theory signals a critical area for future theory development. – Name: AbstractInfo Label: Abstractor Group: Ab Data: As Provided – Name: DateEntry Label: Entry Date Group: Date Data: 2026 – Name: AN Label: Accession Number Group: ID Data: EJ1504654 |
| PLink | https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=eric&AN=EJ1504654 |
| RecordInfo | BibRecord: BibEntity: Languages: – Text: English PhysicalDescription: Pagination: PageCount: 16 StartPage: 17 Subjects: – SubjectFull: Educational Theories Type: general – SubjectFull: Educational Administration Type: general – SubjectFull: Educational Research Type: general – SubjectFull: Social Justice Type: general – SubjectFull: Organizational Theories Type: general – SubjectFull: Networks Type: general – SubjectFull: Transformational Leadership Type: general – SubjectFull: Instructional Leadership Type: general – SubjectFull: Participative Decision Making Type: general Titles: – TitleFull: The Expansion, Fragmentation, and Cliquishness of the Theoretical Foundation of Educational Leadership in the 2010s Type: main BibRelationships: HasContributorRelationships: – PersonEntity: Name: NameFull: Yinying Wang – PersonEntity: Name: NameFull: Qurrat ul Ain Rashe IsPartOfRelationships: – BibEntity: Dates: – D: 01 M: 01 Type: published Y: 2026 Identifiers: – Type: issn-electronic Value: 2642-2344 Numbering: – Type: volume Value: 9 – Type: issue Value: 1 Titles: – TitleFull: European Journal of Educational Management Type: main |
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