Teacher Transformational Leadership and Student Innovative Work Behaviour: A Multi-Level Integrative Review of Psychological Safety as a Mediating Cultural Mechanism

Abstract

This integrative review synthesises research on teacher transformational leadership (TTL), psychological safety and student innovative work behaviour (SIWB) in school and higher education contexts worldwide. It conceptualises TTL as a relational, meaning-making practice through which teachers articulate compelling visions, demonstrate an openness to learning and provide personalised support that changes how students perceive authority, risk and innovation. Psychological safety is redefined as a multi-level cultural mechanism that organises power, voice, and interpersonal risk in classrooms and schools, rather than as a private feeling. By mapping studies from Global North and Global South settings, the review identifies common quantitative pathways through which TTL primarily predicts SIWB via class- or school-level climates of psychological safety, alongside mediators such as engagement and identification. Qualitative and mixed-methods studies demonstrate how language, assessment regimes and everyday interaction rituals influence which innovative actions are legitimised or silenced. The review concludes with an agenda for de-Eurocentring that highlights inequality, marginalised student groups, and context-sensitive leadership practices that treat innovation as a form of participation in social and educational change that is specific to a given culture. Implications for teachers, leaders and policymakers are outlined to facilitate transformation.