Elementary School Principals’ Perceptions of Self-Fulfillment: Enablers, Constraints, and Consequences

Self-fulfillment, though widely studied in workplace contexts, is underexplored in educational leadership, despite its unique challenges and moral dimensions. This study investigates how elementary school principals perceive the enablers, constraints, and outcomes of self-fulfillment in their roles. Using a grounded theory approach, 19 Israeli principals participated in semi-structured interviews. The findings identify three key themes influencing self-fulfillment: encouragement and partnership versus criticism and lack of validation, achievement and acknowledgment versus constant struggle, and autonomy versus dependency and restriction. Principals highlighted outcomes such as value and pride, meaning and motivation, and school improvement. These insights underscore the complex dynamics shaping principals’ fulfillment, with practical implications for fostering sustainable educational leadership.