Leading with Care: Individualized Consideration and Teachers’ Job Satisfaction in Public Secondary Schools of Rusizi District, Rwanda.

Purpose: The purpose of the study was to examine how headteachers ’individualized consideration shapes teachers’ job satisfaction in public secondary schools in Rusizi District, Rwanda. Methodology: The study adopted a convergent parallel mixed-methods design. Data were collected through structured questionnaire and semi-structured interviews from 145 teachers and 17 headteacher across 17 public secondary schools in Rusizi District. Quantitative analysis included descriptive statistics, correlation, and regression, while qualitative data were analyzed thematically. Findings: The study reveals that teachers perceive high levels of individualized consideration (M=4.03, SD=1.16), accompanied by positive levels of job satisfaction (M=3.88, SD=1.09). There is a strong positive relationship between individualized consideration and satisfaction (r = 0.558, p < 0.01), and approximately 31% of the variation in teachers’ job satisfaction is explained by personalized leadership practices. The study demonstrates that equitable and consistent individualized consideration is essential for fostering teacher motivation, engagement, and professional commitment. It recommends that there is need for relational leadership training, structured mentorship, fair recognition, and policy integration to enhance teachers’ job satisfaction. Unique Contribution To Theory, Policy, and Practice: Theoretically, results clearly show that how headteachers relate to teachers deeply shapes teachers’ satisfaction with their work. Thereby revealing that Transformational leadership theory is not an abstract model but a lived experience that influences teachers’ motivation, well-being, and commitment to the profession. At the policy level, there is need to integrate transformational leadership competencies into headteacher training, appraisal, and promotion frameworks. Leadership development programs should emphasize ethical leadership and emotional intelligence. Policy initiatives should provide teachers with structured support for professional development, and mentoring systems. From a practical perspective, the strong influence of individualized consideration suggests that effective headteachers must combine professional support, and genuine care for teachers as individuals. Teachers should also communicate openly with school leaders about their professional needs and challenges.