Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify the leadership strategies school psychologists use when responding to crises in the schools. This study examined the extent to which the strategies reported by experts in this field align with Kouzes and Posner's (2012) five practices of exemplary leadership.Theoretical Framework. The theoretical framework for this study was based on the work of Kouzes and Posner (2012) in The Leadership Challenge. Their work identifies five practices of exemplary leadership that articulate effective leadership behaviors that can be utilized to help leaders achieve great things. This framework is built upon the traditions of transformational and servant leadership which has been shown to be closely associated with the practice of school psychology.Methodology. The design of the current study was a qualitative inquiry utilizing the dynamic narrative approach. This method utilizes technology to survey participants from across the United States and co-construction of a written narrative to identify and document effective leadership practices. The participants in the study met several criteria establishing their expertise in this field.Findings and Conclusions. The study identified 11 strategies used by school psychologist crisis response experts. Guided by the five practices of exemplary leadership, the study participants reported those strategies they have found effective when leading crisis response teams. Participant responses were organized by the five practices of exemplary leadership which ask, "In what ways do you model the way, inspire a shared vision, challenge the process, enable others to act, and encourage the heart" when leading crisis response efforts in schools.Recommendations. Crisis response is an essential practice following traumatic events that impact schools. Literature has focused primarily on school crisis plans designed to be implemented by crisis response teams. There has been an absence of literature dedicated to guiding those who lead the crisis response teams who animate those practices. Modern leadership theories report that effective leadership can be studied, practiced, and taught to others. Utilizing effective leadership practices, leaders are better positioned to provide effective crisis response.