PRINCIPALS' CONFLICT MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES AND TEACHERS' JOB PERFORMANCE IN PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN AKWA IBOM STATE, NIGERIA

AbstractThis study examined the relationship between principals' conflict management techniques and teachers' job performance in public secondary schools in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. To achieve this purpose, one research objective, one research question, and one null hypothesis were formulated. A correlational research design was adopted. The study population comprised 762 principals and 7,607 teachers across 254 public secondary schools. A sample of 381 principals (50% of the population) and 1,481 teachers (30% of the teaching population), totalling 1,862 respondents, was selected using a multistage sampling technique that combined purposive and stratified approaches. Two researcher-developed instruments—the Principals' Conflict Management Techniques Questionnaire (PCTQ) and the Teachers' Job Performance Questionnaire (TJPQ)—were used for data collection.Instrument validity was established through expert face validation, while reliability, tested with Cronbach's alpha, yielded coefficients of 0.81 and 0.90 for the independent and dependent variables, respectively. Regression coefficients were used to answer the research question, and simple linear regression analysis was employed to test the hypothesis at the 0.05 level of significance. Findings revealed a significant relationship between principals' conflict management techniques and teachers' job performance. It was recommended that principals adopt routine conflict resolution strategies to foster a conducive teaching and learning environment, thereby enhancing teachers' job performance.