ERIC Number: EJ1133478
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2015
Pages: 16
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1552-9045
EISSN: N/A
Building on the Concept of Leadership: An Individual-Focused Perspective
Banerjee, Dina
Journal of Leadership Education, v14 n2 p1-16 Spr 2015
Very little is known about leadership at an individual level in the scholarship of leadership and social change. In this study using institutional ethnography as a research method, I survey graduate students of the Organizational Development and Leadership program of a mid-Atlantic university. Qualitative data analyses reveal that majority of the respondents believe that leadership has a micro perspective and can be practiced at individual level. Literature defines leadership primarily as a group dynamic. Literature also suggests that one of the functions of leadership is to facilitate positive social changes. Via the data analyses in this study, I propose that any attempt or idea that makes positive differences at an individual level (and not necessarily at the group level) can also be regarded as an effective leadership. Thus, I intend to build on the traditional concepts of leadership by underpinning leadership at an individual level. Future research should further explore this definition of leadership in enhancing the well-being of individuals.
Descriptors: Social Change, Leadership, Organizational Development, Graduate Students, Student Surveys, Qualitative Research, Individual Characteristics, Online Surveys, Interviews, Student Attitudes, Theory Practice Relationship, Concept Teaching, Ethnography, Case Studies
Association of Leadership Educators. e-mail: Jole@aged.tamu.edu; Web site: http://leadershipeducators.org/page-1014283
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A