Relational dynamics in schools: how principal–teacher relationship profiles are related to teachers’ citizenship and counterproductive work behaviors

Relationships are the key resources for leadership influence yet the nature and impact of relationships on teachers is often ignored in educational literature. Using a person-centered latent profile analysis on data collected from 471 teachers in Türkiye, this study identified distinct profiles of principal–teacher relational patterns and examined their associations with teacher organizational citizenship and counterproductive work behaviors. Our analysis identified three relationship profiles: Conflicting relationships (11%) who reported high conflict and low closeness with principals; Cohesive relationships (36%) characterized by high closeness and low conflict; and Balancing relationships (53%) who displayed moderate closeness and low conflict, suggesting disengagement or neutrality. Members of the cohesive and balancing relationships profiles reported significantly higher levels of organizational citizenship behaviors than those in the conflicting relationships profile. Conversely, these more positive relationships profiles were associated with significantly lower levels of counterproductive work behaviors. These findings highlight the importance of a high-quality relationship between leaders and teachers for promoting positive teacher work behaviors and eliminating counterproductive behaviors.