From 2016, all Western Australian schools were mandated to implement the National Quality Standard (NQS) in Kindergarten through to Year 2. Over the first year of implementation, this mandate had varying degrees of success in adoption. This study examined four schools which were identified as having implemented the NQS. A qualitative methodology was employed to examine those factors that supported implementation. A key finding was the integral role played by distributed leadership in adopting new initiatives. Using Activity Theory to conceptualise the data, it was found that psychological ownership was a key factor in enabling distributed leadership. Ownership was enabled when community differences were acknowledged, and time was given for the NQS tool to be reassessed and reconfigured as one’s own. Once staff had psychological ownership, they were more likely to support implementation of the NQS. This study has implications for leaders and those implementing the NQS or other initiatives in schools.

从2016年开始，所有西澳大利亚州的学校都被要求在幼儿园实施国家质量标准（NQS）直至第二年级。在实施的第一年，这项任务在采纳方面取得了不同程度的成功。这项研究检查了四所被确定实施了NQS的学校。采用定性方法来研究那些支持实施的因素。一个关键的发现是分布式领导者在采用新计划中发挥了不可或缺的作用。使用活动理论将数据概念化，发现心理所有权是实现分布式领导的关键因素。当社区的差异得到承认时，所有权就被启用，并且有时间重新评估和配置NQS工具为自己的工具。一旦员工有了心理归属感，他们更有可能支持NQS的实施。这项研究对领导者以及在学校实施NQS或其他倡议的人有影响。