Identifying the components of teachers' intellectual capital: A phenomenological study

The aim of this study was to design and present a model to identify the components of intellectual capital of selected primary school teachers in Qom province. The success of the education system, like any other human system, depends on a balanced attention to material and intellectual capital. Identifying intellectual property as a hidden and intangible aspect is important in organizational success. For this purpose, due to the tremendous capacity of qualitative approaches, especially the phenomenological method, a semi-structured interview was used. After the twentieth interview with teachers who were purposefully selected, data saturation was achieved, and the data were analyzed based on a Colaizzi's process. In addition, the data validation process was performed using member review, external audit, triangulation, and long-term involvement of the researcher in the research process. The research findings indicate that teachers' intellectual capital is more concerned with the desired situation rather than their current situation. Teachers' intellectual capital was classified in 3 main themes and a number of sub-themes including communication capital (communication with elements inside and outside the school), structural capital (managerial structure, teaching-learning structure, motivational structure) and personality capital (behavioral, verbal-nonverbal). Finally, by using the calculated intellectual capital, a step forward can be taken for the attraction, preparation, and enhancement of teachers in teacher training universities. The results of the present study indicate that teachers' intellectual capital is not in a good condition, and is sometimes associated with adverse effects.