Indepth studies of micropolitics at the school level are presented in this book, which includes nine qualitative studies of school politics conducted by different researchers. Chapters 2 through 10 examine the formal and informal processes and structures that constitute everyday political life in the schools. The studies explore how individuals and groups use power to achieve goals and the consequences of its use for others. Different theoretical perspectives and methodologies are used to examine a range of political issues in a variety of school settings in the United States, Great Britain, and Canada. The first chapter describes some of the important empirical and theoretical work in micropolitics completed during the last 30 years and presents a working definition of micropolitics. The final chapter assesses findings from the previous chapters in terms of four analytical themes--macro- and micro-level politics, interrelationships and effects, conflictive and cohesive factors, and political strategies and purposes. Implications of these data for further research and school-based leadership are discussed. A recommendation is made to give greater attention to the cooperative rather than conflictive dynamics of micropolitics. References accompany each chapter. (LMI)