Ping-Man Wong

Effect of Middle-level Leader and Teacher Emotional Intelligence on School Teachers’ Job Satisfaction The Case of Hong Kong

Emotional intelligence (EI) has been an emerging topic for educational, psychological and management researchers and consultants in recent years. Despite the emerging consensus of its definition and evidence reported in business organizations, relatively little empirical evidence have been reported in the education literature. We conducted two studies to investigate the impact of middle-level leader and teacher EI on teachers’ job outcomes. In Study 1, 107 teachers were asked to list the attributes of successful middle-level leaders in their schools. In Study 2, 3866 school teachers and middle-level leaders were surveyed on their EI and job satisfaction level. Results provide supports concerning the impact of teacher and middle-level leader EI on school teachers’ job satisfaction. Implications are discussed.

Promotion Criteria and Satisfaction of School Teachers in Hong Kong

Teacher promotion is an important issue in school administration that deserves more academic attention. In business management a commonly used tool for employee motivation, aside from promotion, is the compensation system, which can be flexibly and frequently adjusted with the performance of individual staff members. However, in the existing education system, pay levels and structure are relatively fixed and it is difficult for principals to use the compensation system as a tool to motivate teachers. Promotion is therefore the most important reward that principals can use. Using Hong Kong as an example, and with a sample of 210 principals and teachers from both primary and secondary schools, this article attempts to find answers and make suggestions to improve the current promotion system. It is hoped that this study will provide a better understanding of teacher promotion in general, and in Hong Kong in particular.

Validation of Wong’s Career Interest Assessment Questionnaire and Holland’s Revised Hexagonal Model of Occupational Interests in Four Chinese Societies

Recent research has advanced our understanding of the modifications needed for Holland’s hexagonal model of occupational interests when applied to Hong Kong Chinese. This study continues this line of research in testing the validity of Wong’s Career Interest Assessment Questionnaire (WCIAQ) and the revised hexagonal model developed in Hong Kong to three other Chinese societies, namely Macau, Mainland China, and Taiwan. Samples of undergraduate students were obtained in these three Chinese societies and Hong Kong. Results indicated that the WCIAQ and the revised hexagonal model developed in Hong Kong are more applicable to these three Chinese societies than Holland’s original model developed in Western societies. Implications for career counseling and education and further research in these Chinese societies are discussed.