Exploring Leadership Through Individual Differences, Culture, and Global Perspectives

From the Editor

Dail Fields

This issue focuses on a range of individual differences such as one's emotions and cultural intelligence, as well as the consideration of alternative leadership models in light of new insights about cultural differences and similarities. The papers in this issue also continue our tradition of targeting international settings including the transitioning countries of Eastern Europe and Asia. I believe the topic variety illustrates a range of possible ways of looking at leadership that we hope to continue to cultivate in this professional research journal, which is available online and free of charge.

[read the full editorial]

Practitioner's Corner

The Frustration Phenomenon: Exploring Leader–Follower Relationships in the Information Age

William J. Shirey

This article highlights a study that explored the extent to which leaders and followers perceived that their relationships were compromised by the use of hi-tech communication instruments. Using phenomenological methods, the study concluded that within the U.S. Department of Defense sample examined, leaders and followers often perceived their relationships were compromised by distractions associated with e-mail communication and the use of instruments such as computers, Blackberrys, and cell phones. When the leader–follower relationship was compromised, lack of respect and commitment were primary factors. Body language and workload were also significant.

[read more of Practitioner's Corner]

Please note: Views and opinions expressed in the articles published in the International Journal of Leadership Studies (IJLS) represent each author's research and viewpoint and do not necessarily represent IJLS or its sponsors. IJLS and its sponsors make no representations about the accuracy of the information contained in published manuscripts and disclaims any and all responsibility or liability resulting from the information contained in the IJLS.

Intersectionality and Leadership

Agnes Richardson & Cynthia Loubier

The overall body of existing leadership diversity studies has focused only on one or two diversity attributes, missing the effects of multiple intersecting attributes. This study uses intersectionality theory to examine the interactions of surface level diversity attributes to dissect leader identity. Based on qualitative narratives and a substantial literature review, this study examines phenomenological and intersectional analyses of the perceptions of leadership style and efficacy of two successive university presidents—one male and one female. The results showed that the perceived differences in leadership were attributable to an interaction between multiple factors, and they affected surface level and deep level attributes when describing leaders. However, in this study, it was the leaders' business and education backgrounds as well as their approach to moving the university forward that respondents emphasized as the differences between the leaders.

[read the full article: "Intersectionality and Leadership"]

Emotional Disposition and Leadership Preferences of American and Chinese MBA Students

John Humphreys, Nan Jiao, & Theresa Sadler

This article reports results from an exploratory study examining the relationship between American and Chinese MBA students' emotional intelligence, constructive thinking ability, emotional creativity, and leader behavioral preference. Data analyses indicated a significant, positive correlation between emotional intelligence and the desirability of transformational leadership. No such relationship was found with constructive thinking ability, and emotional creativity actually exhibited a negative association. Moreover, there were significant differences found between the American and Chinese samples on emotional intellect and emotional creativity, with Americans scoring higher on the emotional intelligence scale but the Chinese exhibiting higher scores on the emotional creativity measure. Further, significant differences were found as to the desirability of transformational leadership. The American sample exhibited a higher mean preference score for transformational leadership as compared to the Chinese students, while the Chinese sample perceived passive leadership as more acceptable as compared to the American students.

[read the full article from John Humphreys, Nan Jiao, & Theresa Sadler]

A Qualitative Evaluation on the Role of Cultural Intelligence in Cross-Cultural Leadership Effectiveness

Ling Deng & Paul Gibson

Most cross-cultural leadership research has been conducted and based upon various dimensions of culture (Hofstede, 2001; House, Hanges, Javidan, Dorfman, & Gupta, 2004; A. Trompenaars & Hampden-Turner, 2002). We argue that an understanding of cultural differences and cultural dimensions in a general sense is not enough on its own to achieve cross-cultural leadership effectiveness. This study aims to investigate the importance of, and the implementation of, cultural intelligence (CQ) as a key component of cross-cultural leadership capabilities within the context of Western–Chinese cultural differences...

[read the full article: "A Qualitative Evaluation on the Role of Cultural Intelligence in Cross-Cultural Leadership Effectiveness"]

Edifying the New Man: Romanian Communist Leadership's Mythopoeia

Mihai C. Bocarnea & Bramwell Osula

Totalitarian regimes struggle to justify and support their actions by myths symbolizing their power. Such regimes employ state mythopoeia to transmit their philosophical truths to the people. Ideological control is achieved by means of new or remastered old myths...

[read the full article: "Edifying the New Man: Romanian Communist Leadership's Mythopoeia"]

Servant Leadership as a Humane Orientation: Using the GLOBE Study Construct of Humane Orientation to Show that Servant Leadership is More Global than Western

Bruce E. Winston & Barry Ryan

This article suggests that servant leadership, as a model, is more global than Western in nature. Support for this premise comes from the use of the Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness Research Program's (GLOBE) humane orientation construct and how this occurs in the cultural concepts from African (Ubuntu, Harambee); East Asian (Taoist, Confucianism); Mediterranean (Jewish); and Indian (Hindu) value systems. By illustrating that servant leadership is appropriate in various global cultures, this article recommends that not only is servant leadership a global leadership style but that servant leadership should be included in leadership development programs in Africa, Asia, and the Mediterranean as a means of producing humane leaders.

[read the full article on Servant Leadership]

IN THIS ISSUE