scholarly journals Perceptions about Authentic Leadership Development: South African Occupational Therapy Students’ Camp Experience

2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Fatima Hendricks ◽  
Susan Toth-Cohen
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Leadership Development ◽  
Occupational Therapy ◽  
Authentic Leadership ◽  
Student Leadership ◽  
Self Control ◽  
Self Awareness ◽  
Diversity And Inclusion ◽  
Moral Crisis ◽  
Authentic Leadership Development

Background. Twenty-three years into democracy, concern is deepening regarding the slow progress of Occupational Therapy (OT) in South Africa, especially with regard to diversity and inclusion within OT. Methods. This study explores authentic leadership development primarily among Black OT students attending a pilot Occupational Therapy Association of South Africa (OTASA) National Student Leadership Camp. It seeks to ascertain their perceptions on leadership and leadership development. This descriptive pilot study employs in-depth interviews and subsequent content analysis, with 12 OT students from six university OT programs in South Africa. Findings. Four categories of participant perceptions on authentic leadership development emerged from the analysis: (1) perceptions about oneself as a leader based on personal narrative, self-awareness, self-control, and psychological capital; (2) perceptions about others, specifically current leaders, with regard to their moral crisis, including continuing inequality, insincerity, greed, and selfishness; (3) goals and aspirations for leadership development via student camps; and (4) effects of leadership on the system. Conclusions. Recommendations for future practice include promotion of storytelling as a means of personal reflection for authentic leadership development and focused investment in camps for developing student leadership skills and building authentic leadership knowledge.

Authentic leadership development: scrutiny of an apparent paradox

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
António Calheiros
Keyword(s):  
Leadership Development ◽  
Authentic Leadership ◽  
Organizational Context ◽  
Social Identification ◽  
Self Awareness ◽  
True Self ◽  
Apparent Paradox ◽  
Positive Behaviors ◽  
Individual Self ◽  
Authentic Leadership Development

Leadership has long been a topic of interest for both academics (Hiller, DeChurch, Murase, & Doty, 2011; Sanders & Davey, 2011) and practitioners (Bennis, 2007; George, 2003). Academics have tried to understand the concept and identify its consequences and determinants. Practitioners have focused their efforts in its training and development hoping to reap its promised benefits. Over the last decade, authentic leadership has emerged as the fashionable leadership theory. More than just promising impacts on performance and subordinates’ work satisfaction, authentic leadership addresses management’s long term demand for and ethic and moral commitment (Ghoshal, 2005; Rosenthal et al., 2007). Authentic leadership is “a process that draws from both positive psychological capacities and a highly developed organizational context, which results in both greater self-awareness and self-regulated positive behaviors on the part of leaders and associates, fostering positive self-development” (Luthans and Avolio, 2003). The components of authentic leadership’s self-regulated authentic positive behaviours are balanced (non-prejudice) processing, relational orientation and internalized moral perspetive. One key point of authentic leadership is the authenticity of leaders, which can be defined as “knowing, accepting, and remaining true to one’s self” (Avolio et al., 2004). Recent research (Ford & Harding, 2011) have argued that this demand for one’s true self privileges a collective (organizational) self over an individual self and thereby hampers subjectivity to both leaders and followers, and could lead to destructive dynamics within organizations. This paper discusses the seeming paradox of developing authenticity in leaders, (namely addressing the issues raised by Ford & Harding) and clarifies the aim of authentic leadership development. It also assesses the suitability of traditional leadership development methodologies in meeting the challenges posed by a process-based approach to leadership with a focus on individual and social identification.

The Lived Experiences of Authentic Leaders

2017 ◽  
pp. 287-309
Author(s):  
Sandra J. Aguirre
Keyword(s):  
Leadership Development ◽  
Authentic Leadership ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Self Awareness ◽  
Complex Environments ◽  
Emerging Leadership ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Virtuous Cycle ◽  
Authentic Leadership Development

Globalization presents an array of challenges and opportunities for today's leaders. Recurring corporate and government malfeasance on a global scale as well as the morally complex environments of organizations are imposing more significant demands on organizational actors. Authentic leadership is an emerging leadership category that is gaining much interest due to the demand for more authentic leaders. Authentic leaders attain greater performance from their followers and this is considered a leadership multiplier that produces a virtuous cycle of performance and learning for leaders, followers, and organizations. This chapter discusses a completed study that addresses the following research question: How do experiences inform authentic leadership development across the 4 dimensions of the authentic leadership multidimensional construct of self-awareness, balanced processing, relational transparency, and internalized moral/ethical perspectives?

(Dis)Ableing Notions of Authentic Leadership Through the Lens of Critical Disability Theory

2017 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 362-377 ◽  
Author(s):  
Greg Procknow ◽  
Tonette S. Rocco ◽  
Sunny L. Munn
Keyword(s):  
Leadership Development ◽  
Human Resource Development ◽  
Interpersonal Relationships ◽  
Leadership Style ◽  
Authentic Leadership ◽  
Belief Systems ◽  
Self Awareness ◽  
Persons With Disabilities ◽  
Deficit Model ◽  
The Disabled

The Problem Persons with disabilities (PWD) are regarded as “the Other” and are sequestered from “normative” society because of their “Otherness.” “Othering” results in discrimination and the systemic preclusion of PWD. Ableism is the belief that being without a disability, impairment, or chronic illness is the norm. The notion that people without disabilities are the norm and are inherently superior is accepted without critique by those that advocate for authentic leadership. This privileges ableism and furthers the “Othering” of PWD within a leadership style intended to promote self-awareness, beliefs and ethics, and interpersonal relationships. The Solution The disabled experience and differently abled voice must be restored through relationally “being” with others and authentic dialogue. What is needed is a shift from the deficit model of authentic leadership to a social paradigm of authentic leadership, welcoming of bodily and psychic difference. This will better enable both leaders and employees to craft an authentic profile in the workplace. The Stakeholders Leaders and those who seek to become leaders following an authentic leadership approach can benefit from a better understanding of how their ingrained belief systems impact those that they lead who are both “able-bodied” and “disabled.” Human resource development (HRD) practitioners and leadership development practitioners can use this information to deconstruct and reconstruct leadership development opportunities to be inclusive as an authentic leader.

A small initiative in the journey of making leaders with the help of authentic leadership model

Kybernetes ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 47 (10) ◽  
pp. 1956-1972 ◽  
Author(s):  
Archana Shrivastava
Keyword(s):  
Leadership Development ◽  
Process Model ◽  
Authentic Leadership ◽  
Research Study ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Main Stream ◽  
Self Awareness ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Effective Manner ◽  
Mind Maps

Purpose This research study uses authentic leadership (AL) model for leadership development. The purpose of this paper is to focus on the developmental perspective where the attention is on the processes. As the authenticity involves both owing one’s personal experiences and acting in accordance with one’s true self, the emphasis is on self-awareness and self-regulation. The influence of the person’s personal history and trigger events are considered as significant antecedents for generating AL. As the research was facilitated by the participation and collaboration of the number of individuals with the researcher for common purpose, i.e. developing AL, action research methodology is adopted. Design/methodology/approach The methodology used was based on the self-assessment exercises in the controlled environment. The programme used intensive counselling sessions, Neuro Linguistics programming (NLP), career autobiographies, mind maps, workshops and storytelling sessions as tools. Certified counsellors and trainers were out-sourced for conducting such sessions. With the information generated through various sources, detailed career autobiographies of students’ self-image were generated. These reports were then critically analysed on “Nvivo”, a software that supports qualitative and mixed research methods. Comprehensive data analysis was done to pull the information together and make sense of it. The development process model of AL began with how individuals interpret their accumulated life experiences with the “Who I am?” approach. NLP was used as a research instrument which involved question-based discussions, value elicitation exercise and “Anchoring and Mentor table”. The results that came after the exercises were reported by the students in a one-page autobiography. Findings The students learnt to live by their inner compass. They were finally able to relate themselves and their identity with their beliefs, thereby, understanding the term, “Who Am I”; the intentions closely related with the components of AL. Students realized that each one of them was unique. What lied beneath were exposed and the students were more at ease once they realized that they were able to balance these emotions and use them towards behaving congruently. The research concluded that doing such kind of exercises along with the main stream subjects is definitely going to help students emerge as a better person, employee and an authentic leader in the future. Practical implications The approach helped students become self-aware and self-confident and therefore enhanced their capacity to adapt positively to social set ups personally and professionally. The results suggest that such leadership development programmes along with the main stream subjects can foster AL giving students new abilities and embodied skills to deal with the practical challenges of life in a more effective manner. Originality/value This research study supports new emerging strategy of educating managers to become effective leaders and demonstrate that the development of AL can be fostered by such interventions during their journey of becoming leaders. Further, researches on whether AL can be developed through planned interventions can be certified through longitudinal studies in this area.

Trigger events and crucibles in authentic leaders' development

2020 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 324-333 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark R. Shannon ◽  
Maurice Buford ◽  
Bruce E. Winston ◽  
James Andy Wood
Keyword(s):  
Leadership Development ◽  
Critical Incident ◽  
Authentic Leadership ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Leadership Theory ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Moral Perspective ◽  
Authentic Leadership Theory ◽  
Authentic Leadership Development ◽  
Trigger Events

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the role of trigger events and leadership crucibles in the lives of authentic leaders. The study was based on two theories: authentic leadership theory and born versus made theory.Design/methodology/approachParticipants were included in the study if they scored between 64 and 80 on the Authentic Leadership Questionnaire (ALQ). The qualified leaders were then asked to participate in a qualitative interview utilizing an interview guide born out of the relevant literature. The interview followed the guidelines of the Critical Incident Technique (CIT).FindingsThe data indicated that trigger events and leadership crucibles play a significant role in authentic leadership development.Practical implicationsPractitioners should emphasize the prominent themes of self-awareness, relational transparency, balanced processing and moral perspective and the connection with other themes that emerged from the current study when developing or training leaders. Furthermore, practitioners concerned with creating an authentic leadership culture may consider the findings of the current study to develop and employ hiring and promotion strategies that increase the probabilities of hiring and promoting leaders that exhibit authentic leadership behaviors.Originality/valueThe findings of the research indicate that trigger events and crucibles both affect authentic leadership development. The research findings confirm characteristics associated with authentic leadership theory were predominant in the participants. However, one theme that prevailed was that of spirituality, which may or may not be considered to be part of an authentic leader's moral perspective

scholarly journals Putting the leader back into authentic leadership: Reconceptualising and rethinking leaders

2019 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 114-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph A Crawford ◽  
Sarah Dawkins ◽  
Angela Martin ◽  
Gemma Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Leadership Development ◽  
Authentic Leadership ◽  
Jel Classification ◽  
Demographic Challenges ◽  
Moral Perspective ◽  
Cricket Ball ◽  
Conceptual Clarity ◽  
Unethical Decision Making ◽  
Unethical Leadership ◽  
Authentic Leadership Development

Increasingly poor and unethical decision-making on the part of leaders across the globe, such as the recent Australian Cricket Ball Tampering Scandal, pose a significant challenge for society and for organisations. Authentic leadership development is one strategy that has been positioned as an antidote to unethical leadership behaviours. However, despite growing interest in authentic leadership, the construct still embodies several criticisms including conceptual clarity; leader-centricity; bias towards the person, not the leader; philosophical ambiguity; and demographic challenges. Each of these criticisms will be explored in depth to inform a reconceptualisation of the authentic leader construct, comprising indicators of awareness, sincerity, balanced processing, positive moral perspective and informal influence. Importantly, this revised conceptualisation considers how researchers can conceptually distinguish between authentic leaders, followers and individuals. To conclude, we propose a research agenda for authentic leaders, encouraging the pursuit of further construct clarity, including the development of rigorous authentic leader behaviour measures, expanding the psychometric profile of the authentic leader construct, increasing the focus on authentic followers and enhancing leader development programmes.JEL Classification: M12

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document