عادل زاهدبابلان

Professional learning networks (PLNs) are an emerging research area that requires further exploration. We need more information about the basic processes of teachers' learning in these networks. The present study aimed to identify and validate the dimensions and components of the professional learning network model of elementary school teachers in Tabriz. In this study, a mixed method (qualitative-quantitative) of sequential exploratory type was used. In the qualitative part of the research, the required data was collected using the meta-synthesis method, and in this regard, 35 articles were purposefully selected and included in the analysis. Also, the fuzzy Delphi method was used to confirm and screen the findings, and the final weight of the desired dimensions and components was obtained using the SWARA method. In the quantitative part, to examine the fit of the identified model, the research components were collected in a questionnaire and distributed among elementary school teachers in Tabriz using cluster and stratified sampling methods. The data in this section were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis in SPSS26 and AMOS26 software. In total, 308 codes were extracted from the studied sources. These codes were included in 15 concepts and 3 main categories: individual, group, and organizational, and a model of teachers' professional learning networks was formed. The concepts of valuing people, the occurrence of change, and progress were introduced as the most important. The fit indices of the measurement model show that the identified dimensions and components had a good fit.

Despite research on the destructive consequences of toxic leadership, existing studies have predominantly focused on industrial settings and relied on quantitative, outcome-oriented approaches. Consequently, the processes through which toxic leadership emerges and persists within educational organizations, particularly from the perspective of employees’ lived experiences, remain insufficiently theorized. This research was conducted with the aim of addressing this gap. This study adopted a qualitative grounded theory approach following Strauss and Corbin’s (1998) procedures. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 24 employees and subject-matter experts who had direct experience with toxic leadership. Participants were selected using purposive and theoretical sampling, and data collection continued until theoretical saturation was reached. Data analysis involved open, axial, and selective coding. Trustworthiness was ensured through peer debriefing, member checking, and intra-coder consistency via re-analysis. Findings reveal that toxic leadership is not a static or purely behavioral phenomenon but a dynamic, multi-layered, and context-dependent process. It emerges and is sustained through the interaction of leaders’ motivations and power resources with dysfunctional organizational structures, toxic cultures, and employees’ cognitive–behavioral responses. The analysis generated 359 concepts, 55 components, and 16 core categories, which were integrated into a paradigmatic model encompassing causal, contextual, and intervening conditions, and action/interaction strategies and consequences. This study contributes by conceptualizing toxic leadership as a processual and institutionalized phenomenon embedded in the interplay between leaders, followers, and organizational contexts. The proposed model offers both theoretical advancement and practical insights for preventing, managing, and mitigating toxic leadership.