Abstract
The purpose of this research was to determine if there was a relationship between the leadership style of the nursing department head and the level of professional satisfaction and organizational commitment by nursing faculty members. The survey instrument was designed to measure the department heads' leadership style as perceived by the nursing faculty and assess the nursing faculty members' level of professional satisfaction and organizational commitment. Five schools of nursing in 2 Midwestern states, with a total of 52 full-time baccalaureate nursing faculty, were the focus of the inquiry. Findings support statistically significant relationships between the 3 variables of department head leadership, organizational commitment, and professional satisfaction. Implications for leadership style exhibited by the nursing department head are discussed.