Transformational Leadership in the Classroom: The Development and Validation of the Student Intellectual Stimulation Scale

The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a measure of intellectual stimulation in the college classroom. Based on the notion of transformational leadership articulated by Bass (1985 Bass , B. M. ( 1985 ). Leadership and performance beyond expectations . New York : Free Press .[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]) and the operationalization of teacher behaviors reported by Bolkan and Goodboy (in press Bolkan , S. , & Goodboy , A. K. ( 2009 ). Transformational leadership in the classroom: Fostering student learning, student participation, and teacher credibility . Journal of Instructional Psychology , 36 , 296 – 306 . [Google Scholar]), we created a quantitative measure for which no alternative existed. Results suggest that the Student Intellectual Stimulation Scale (SISS) has a stable factor structure, high internal reliability, and convergent and concurrent validity. Findings are discussed in relation to students' expectations of class workloads, demanding courses, and the culture of “college lite.”