Determinants of middle leaders' career aspirations: principalship support, organisational arrangements and efficacy beliefs in Italy

Purpose This article engages with three sources of middle leaders' aspirations for school leadership: support from principals, organisational arrangements and perceptions of competencies and efficacy beliefs. Design/methodology/approach Formal leadership positions, related competencies and efficacy beliefs are investigated on the background of school arrangements in a low school autonomy system. Stepwise logistic regressive models have been used from a large dataset of 9,324 teachers in 519 schools in five Italian regions. Findings Two positions increase the likelihood of aspiring to become a principal, i.e. acting as a vice principal and serving as fundraising leader. Collective efficacy is negatively correlated to aspirations, which can be mainly explained by the reduced principal responsibilities in Italy. Practical implications Principals' support is essential for adequate preparation and nurturing aspirations. Despite systemic barriers, Italian leaders show an inclination for leadership practices. Originality/value Since scholarship has not yet significantly addressed supportive leadership practices or efficacy beliefs, this article focuses on the organisational factors that fuel principalship aspirations. Additionally, the findings are based on a large national dataset.