School principals’ perceptions of generative AI as a decision-support tool: implications for decisional capital

Purpose This study examines how generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) is perceived as a decision-support mechanism in school principals’ decision-making, focusing on its perceived implications for decisional capital within a centralized education system. Design/methodology/approach Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 public school principals across different school levels in Türkiye. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis to identify how GenAI is interpreted and positioned within principals’ decision-making processes. Findings Principals reported decision-making challenges driven by bureaucratic procedures, restricted autonomy and competing stakeholder demands. Within these constraints, GenAI was seen not as a substitute for professional judgment but as cognitive support that may improve access to information, facilitate scenario-based reasoning and inform evidence-based judgments. Principals reported varying levels of readiness to integrate GenAI into organizational decision-making, with this variation associated with digital competence, institutional support and ethical awareness. Originality/value The study extends discussions of principals’ decision-making by linking GenAI-enabled decision support to the exercise of decisional capital under centralized governance constraints, highlighting conditions under which GenAI may contribute to human-centered and ethically grounded organizational decision-making processes.