Date

4-29-2026

Department

School of Education

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy in Education (PhD)

Chair

Frank Bailey

Keywords

educational leadership pathways, female high school principals, social cognitive theory, structured mentorship program, triadic reciprocal determinism

Disciplines

Educational Leadership

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to describe the lived experiences of public high school (PHS) female principals across 12 PHSs in southern California. The lived experiences were generally defined as educational leadership career paths. The theory guiding this study was social cognitive theory. This theory guided the study by providing a framework to explore how intrapersonal, workplace, and job factors influence PHS female principals’ career paths. The central research question was: What are the lived experiences of PHS female principals on their leadership career paths? Data were collected through interviews, focus group interviews, and observations of 12 purposefully sampled female principals within PHSs to capture personal narratives and perspectives. This study may contribute to understanding what impacts women’s advancement to PHS principalship, inform policies and practices that promote female educational leadership, and inspire aspiring PHS female principals to pursue leadership roles with confidence. Data analysis included in vivo coding and an annotated checklist to identify significant patterns. The results showed the following themes: intrapersonal factors, with two subthemes: self-efficacy and motivation. The second theme was workplace factors, which included two subthemes: mentorship and teacher support. The third theme was job factors, which had two subthemes: promotion and advancement and roles.

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