Enhancing Teacher Credibility: What We Can Learn from the Justice and Leadership Literature

Enhanced perceptions of instructor credibility are related to positive outcomes in the classroom, including participation and learning (Chory, 2007; Frymier & Thompson, 1992; McCroskey & Teven, 1999; Myers, 2004; Teven & McCroskey, 1997). We contend that student perceptions of instructor credibility can be directly impacted by applying management research to classroom practices. In other words, actionable management research is useful in the classroom not just to share with students because it may make them better managers, but also to improve teaching practices and related outcomes. The present article explores this tenet, first discussing why we believe applied research findings can and should be transferred to the classroom and then using Implicit Leadership Theory (ILT) and organizational justice literature to demonstrate how these concepts can be generalized to the classroom environment to ultimately enhance instructor credibility.