Psychometric properties of a Swedish instrument measuring pedagogical leadership : a Rasch analysis

The Swedish Pedagogical and Social Climate in School (PESOC) instrument is intended for studies on school effectiveness. Based on the theoretical framework from the early stages of international school effectiveness research, the instrument has been widely used for school improvement efforts using teachers as respondents. Rasch analysis was used to examine whether the PESOC-PLP scale shows sound psychometric properties for measuring pedagogical leadership. The study included 344 teachers. The Rasch analysis indicated two subdimensions and qualitative analysis of the content of the items in these subdimensions revealed two types of leadership: direct pedagogical leadership and indirect pedagogical leadership. Additional Rasch analysis of these subdimensions showed sound psychometric properties for measuring pedagogical leadership. Considering the global need for new measurement instruments that assess effective and successful leadership, researchers and educators outside Sweden may have interest in adapting this scale