The Influence of Selected Personal and Environmental Variables on the Quality of Elementary Principals' Administrative Internships

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships among selected personal and environmental variables and the quality of elementary principals' administrative internships. Two research questions were used to investigate the influence of the variables on the quality of the internships. Procedural and experiential internship characteristics as identified by previous research were used as the basis for the dependent variable. Personal and environmental variables were identified from a review of the literature and through anecdotal experiences. Surveys were sent to 400 elementary school principals across the United States. The dependent variable involvement was regressed on 17 personal and environmental independent variables using a stepwise regression procedure. Results of the stepwise multiple regression for total quality performed in this study indicated that 39% of the variation in overall internship quality was explained by the intern's belief that the internship was worthwhile, the intern's level of work-related responsibility, whether or not the intern was a part of a cohort during their principal preparation program, and the length of the administrative internship. This study should be beneficial to colleges, universities, and other entities and individuals who are interested in the development of effective administrative internships in principal preparation programs.