Leadership and leadership development in academic libraries: a review

Abstract

PurposeThe article highlights academic librarians' understanding of leadership and leadership development, with the aim to shed light on further research that can inform and improve practices.

Library directors’ concerns and attitudes towards going green and sustainability in China: An unexplored area

“…However, sustainability concerns have become a major agenda for every organization, and research and development activities. Furthermore, a number of studies of administrators of libraries have been conducted on effective leadership (Aslam, 2018; Fagan, 2012; Fought and Misawa, 2016; Wong, 2017): emotional intelligence (Hernon and Rossiter, 2006; Kreitz, 2009): managerial skills (Hernon, 2011; Jordan, 2012; Martin, 2018; Sabzwari et al, 2017): and in all these studies the results show a similar pattern: library leadership skills and qualities can be developed such as creativity, flexibility and the ability to adapt to change, awareness and engage in all activities of professional practice, and develop concrete action plans. While these studies are useful to understand library administrators’ roles, duties, behavior and willingness to change, in addition, a recent study by Balog and Siber (2016) ascertained law students’ attitudes towards environmental protection; the result shows that students are fairly concerned about the protection of the environment but do not feel adequately informed about the issue.…”

Leadership and innovation within a complex adaptive system: Public libraries

“…Leadership is a multifaceted concept with no universally agreed upon framework or definition (Wong, 2017). There have been several good reviews of library leadership (Gilstrap, 2009; Phillips, 2014; Wong, 2017).…”

“…Leadership is a multifaceted concept with no universally agreed upon framework or definition (Wong, 2017). There have been several good reviews of library leadership (Gilstrap, 2009; Phillips, 2014; Wong, 2017). Studies of leadership in librarianship have considered the general lack of training (Feldmann et al, 2013), the response of professional associations to the need for new library leaders (Hicks and Given, 2013), and librarians’ perceptions of a priori leadership types within their libraries (Martin, 2016).…”

“…It has a “humanistic flavor” (Bowen and Lawler, 1992)—one that Tom Peters suggested is an attempt to move away from “policies and procedures that treat [workers] like thieves and bandits” (as cited in Zemke and Schaaf, 1989: 68). In this sense, leadership itself is conferred on all library staff: “Librarians conceive leadership as a process of influence that can happen in all levels of the organization” (Wong, 2017: 162).…”

From Women-Staffed to Women-Led: Gender and Leadership in Academic Libraries, 1974-2018

“…This article reviews post-1974 scholarly literature on women's leadership in academic libraries, with the emphasis on the United States. Gender was only briefly mentioned in Weiner's (2003) overview of trends in academic library leadership; two recent reviews of library leadership literature (Stewart 2017;Wong, 2017) do not address gender at all. The purpose of this synthesis, then, is to highlight research areas and themes that have significantly expanded the profession's knowledge about gender and its impact at the top administrative level.…”