Leadership Styles of Middle Managers in a Higher Education Institution in Laguna, Philippines

This study aimed to explore and assess the leadership styles of middle managers in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Laguna. A descriptive research design was utilized, employing the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ5) to collect data from 75 faculty members. The MLQ5 survey, consisting of 45 questions, assessed transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire leadership styles using a Likert scale. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics to identify the prevalence of different leadership styles and understand faculty perceptions, with results categorized according to the three leadership styles. Findings indicate a predominantly middle-aged, highly educated workforce, with a gender distribution favoring females. Most respondents are employed full-time, suggesting a stable employment structure. Transformational leadership is the predominant style perceived by faculty, with idealized behaviors (3.87, fairly often) and inspirational motivation (3.21, fairly often) rated highly, suggesting leaders as role models who inspire enthusiasm and vision. Other transformational components like idealized attributes (2.79, sometimes), intellectual stimulation (2.22, sometimes), and individual consideration (2.97, sometimes) scored lower, indicating areas for improvement. Transactional leadership, particularly contingent reward (3.13, fairly often), also plays a significant role, while management-by-exception: active (2.06, sometimes) is less frequently observed. Passive-avoidant behaviors such as management-by-exception: passive (1.46, once in a while) and laissez-faire (1.21, once in a while) are infrequent, reflecting effective leadership practices. Leadership outcomes reveal that faculty perceive extra effort (2.43, sometimes) and effectiveness (3.14, fairly often) moderately, with overall satisfaction (3.18, fairly often) indicating general effectiveness but highlighting opportunities for enhancement. Recommendations include prioritizing transformational leadership skills enhancement, integrating transactional leadership into development programs, seeking feedback from faculty and conducting regular assessments of leadership effectiveness. In conclusion, the study highlights the importance of transformational and transactional leadership in HEIs, recommending strategies to enhance leadership effectiveness and institutional success.