An examination of K-12 music educators' skills with micropolitical literacy in relation to job satisfaction

Researchers often argue that music educators need to understand the micropolitical complexities of their educational environments to maximize job satisfaction and emphasize that overall job satisfaction and career success are related to the development and execution of political skills. Such skills in turn might influence micropolitical interactions with others to better navigate landscapes of their environments. The purpose of this study was to examine K-12 vocal and instrumental music educators’ (n=352) micropolitical literacies within four dimensions of perceived political skill (social astuteness, networking ability, interpersonal influence, and apparent sincerity) and how these dimensions and demographic characteristics (gender, years of experience, building assignment, grade level taught, school setting, and full- vs. part-time teaching) related to four facets of satisfaction (role expectations, perception of self, human relations, and job composure).

Results revealed that perceptions of political skill both together and individually strongly predicted all facets of job satisfaction except for job composure. Among demographic variables, years of teaching experience was the best predictor of satisfaction, but these variables on whole explained considerably less variance in job satisfaction than did perceptions of political skill. Taken collectively, these results serve to inform music teacher academicians about micropolitics and practices and possibilities of professional development activities to promote micropolitical literacy. By raising awareness and development of such skills, music educators may have the agency to question themselves, their actions, and their responses while confronting the micropolitical realities that take place within the landscape of their school environments.