TY - JOUR AB - Purpose Understanding the relationship between distributed leadership and teachers commitment to change in the Chinese urban primary school context was the purpose of this study.Design/methodology/approach Quantitative research method is used in this study. For ensuring comprehensiveness, this research employed a random sampling method. This study took place in Chinese urban primary schools. A total of 350 questionnaires were circulated, 318 questionnaires were returned, and 291 questionnaires were valid, with a response rate of 90.9 per cent and a validity rate of 91.5 per cent.Findings The results of path analysis indicated that various dimensions of distributed leadership, including collaboration and cooperation, responsibility and accountability, and values and beliefs, had significant effects on group competence. Collaboration and cooperation and decision making had significant relationships with task analysis. Collaboration and cooperation, responsibility and accountability, and values and beliefs had significant effects on collective teacher efficacy as a single variable.Originality/value These findings contribute to the understanding of educational management in the Chinese context and advance knowledge about distributed leadership theories in an East Asian context. VL - 34 IS - 7 SN - 0951-354X DO - 10.1108/IJEM-12-2019-0431 UR - https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEM-12-2019-0431 AU - Liu Peng PY - 2020 Y1 - 2020/01/01 TI - Motivating teachers’ commitment to change through distributed leadership in Chinese urban primary schools T2 - International Journal of Educational Management PB - Emerald Publishing Limited SP - 1171 EP - 1183 Y2 - 2024/05/11 ER -