The mediating role of schools as learning institutions in the relationship between psychological capital and innovative behavior among preschool teachers in West Hararghe Zone, Ethiopia

The current study aimed to investigate the mediating role of schools as learning institutions in the relationship between psychological capital and innovative behavior among preschool teachers in West Hararghe Zone, Ethiopia. The primary objective was to determine whether schools significantly mediate the connection between psychological capital and innovative behavior among preschool teachers of West Hararge Zone. The research design employed was a mixed-methods approach, specifically an explanatory sequential research design. Descriptive statistics mainly percentage and frequency were used to summarize the demographic characteristics of the study participants. The study used mediation analysis, incorporating regression coefficients and the Sobel test to assess the indirect effect of psychological capital on innovative behavior through the mediating role of schools. The study’s key research questions in this regard were: 1) What is the demographic profile of the pre-school teachers in the West Hararghe Zone, in terms of gender, age, education level, and years of teaching experience? 2) What are the mean scores of psychological capital and teachers' innovative behavior in the West Hararghe Zone pre-schools? and 3) Do schools significantly mediate the relationship between psychological capital and teachers’ innovative behavior in preschools of the West Hararghe Zone towns administration? The study included 222 preschool teachers from selected schools in the towns administration of West Hararghe Zone. These teachers were selected using a combination of stratified random sampling and purposive sampling. The mediation analysis revealed that schools significantly mediate the relationship between psychological capital and innovative behavior, suggesting that a supportive school environment enhances the influence of teachers' psychological capital on their innovative practices in the classroom.