The Influence of Leadership, Emotional Intelligence and Organizational Culture on the Performance of State Junior High School Teachers in East Kutai Regency

This research is motivated by the phenomenon of teacher performance that is still varied, less-than-optimal leadership, emotional intelligence that has not been honed evenly, and a school organizational culture that does not fully support teacher professionalism. The purpose of this study is to analyze the influence of principal leadership, emotional intelligence, and organizational culture on teacher performance in public junior high schools in East Kutai Regency. This study uses a quantitative approach with a survey method of 137 teachers from six public junior high schools in the North Sangatta District as a sample. The research instrument was developed based on the theory of transformational leadership, Goleman's emotional intelligence, Schein's organizational culture, and Bernardin & Russell's performance theory. Data were analyzed statistically using multiple linear regression and path analysis. The research findings indicate that principal leadership has a positive and significant effect on teacher performance (β = 0.410). Emotional intelligence is also proven to have a significant effect on teacher performance (β = 0.298). In addition, organizational culture has a significant positive effect both directly on teacher performance (β = 0.267) and acts as a mediator in the relationship between leadership and teacher performance, with an indirect effect value of 0.842 (Sobel z test = 7.338; p = 0.000). Overall, this research model is able to explain 67.1% of the variation in teacher performance. The results of this study confirm that effective leadership, high emotional intelligence, and a positive organizational culture are the main factors driving improved teacher performance. Based on these findings, it is recommended that a professional school culture be strengthened, principals' leadership capacity continuously increased, and emotional intelligence development programs for educators be developed.