Investigating the Relationship between Digital Leadership and Artificial Intelligence Literacy with Teachers' Teaching Effectiveness Through the Mediation of Career Motivation and Cognitive Flexibility

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 M.A. in Educational Management, Department of Educational Sciences, Islamic Azad University , Ardabil Branch, Ardabil, Iran

2 Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Sciences, Farhangian University, PO Box 889-14665, Tehran, Iran

3 M.A. in Educational Psychology, Department of Psychology and Counseling, Farhangian University, Tehran, Iran

10.22091/jrim.2026.14574.1439

Abstract

The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between digital leadership and artificial intelligence (AI) literacy with teachers’ teaching effectiveness, mediated by job motivation and cognitive flexibility. To achieve this objective, a descriptive-correlational method utilizing structural equation modeling was employed. The research population consisted of sixth-grade teachers in Ardabil city, totaling approximately 550 individuals. A sample of 229 teachers was determined using the Krejcie and Morgan table through quota sampling. The research instruments included five questionnaires: the Digital Leadership Questionnaire developed by Kokkonos et al. (2025), the AI Literacy Scale by Ng et al. (2023), the Job Motivation Questionnaire by Mohammadi Aghajeri (1996), the Cognitive Flexibility Scale by Dennis and Vander Wal (2010), and the Teaching Effectiveness Questionnaire by Mahmoudi et al. (2019). Data analysis was conducted using SPSS 26 and Smart PLS 3 software. The findings revealed that teachers’ AI literacy (path coefficient = 0.189, t = 2.157), job motivation (path coefficient = 0.258, t = 2.441), and cognitive flexibility (path coefficient = 0.271, t = 3.704) had significant relationships with teaching effectiveness at the 95% confidence level. In contrast, the relationship between digital leadership and teaching effectiveness (path coefficient = 0.072, t = 0.804) was not significant. Moreover, results indicated that digital leadership had a significant indirect effect on teaching effectiveness through the mediation of job motivation (path coefficient = 0.168, t = 2.328), whereas other indirect pathways—including mediations of job motivation and cognitive flexibility in the relationships between digital leadership and AI literacy with teaching effectiveness—were not significant. These findings highlight the importance of directly enhancing components such as AI literacy, job motivation, and cognitive flexibility to improve teaching quality. They also suggest that teachers’ professional development should be strategically designed to focus on these dimensions.

Keywords

References

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  • Receive Date: 18 November 2025
  • Revise Date: 07 January 2026
  • Accept Date: 07 January 2026

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