Leadership and Politics: A Case for a Closer Relationship?

Abstract

In this article I advance the argument that political scientists and students of leadership should engage with each other more extensively. In the first part of the article I look at some of the reasons why political scientists may have treated the phenomenon of leadership with suspicion in the past despite the resurgence of interest in issues associated with leadership in the last 20 years. In the second part of the article I sketch some key dimensions of political leadership and examine a selection of the key political science writings (including some recent ones) on the subject. In the third part of the article I suggest some areas where leadership studies and political science have a mutual research agenda and where gaps in our knowledge might be remedied by collaborative work between the disciplines.

Having Many Irons in the Fire — Finnish Female Leaders’ School Memories

“…Despite its over-hundred-year-long history, leadership research still struggles with finding a universal definition of leadership (Juuti, 2010;Northouse, 2013;Solheim, 2000;Yukl, 2010) -but still the field of leadership research is constantly expanding (Peele, 2005;Syväjärvi & Vakkala, 2012;Uusiautti et al, 2012). The core components of leadership are common to the aforementioned viewpoints: leadership is a process that involves influencing and it occurs in groups and includes general goals (Northouse, 2013).…”

“…However, despite for a past few years, the numbers of female leaders per country have not been very reliable or comparable (Vanhala, 2007). This is challenge also when studying female leaders because it is difficult to know who have been defined as leaders: who are the persons studied (see e.g., Davidson & Burke, 2004;Martelius-Louniala, 2003;Northouse, 2013;Peele, 2005;Vanhala, 2007;Vinnicombe, 2000;Yukl, 2010). According to AML 2010, leaders are responsible and make decisions about the business strategy or organization's operational guidelines, budget, or recruitment of personnel as a whole.…”

What Are Good Leaders Made Of? Finnish School Children’s Descriptions of Leadership

“…Conceptions of good leadership have changed in the past, and the over-100-year-long history of leadership research shows that there is not a common framework or definition to leadership. The field of research is somewhat fragmented (Ladkin, 2010;Northouse, 2013;Peele, 2005;Yukl, 2010).…”

“…Naturally, studies in various organizations and contexts always provide a different description of the ideal leadership (see e.g., Gardner et al, 2011;Gill & Caza, 2015;Ladkin, 2010;Northouse, 2013;Peele, 2005;Yukl, 2010). Usually, leaders have been the research targets but also employees have been asked to evaluate their leaders' and managers' leadership skills in various workplaces (e.g., Busser, 2015).…”

Burns, Senge, and the Study of Leadership

“…These articles have a fairly narrow focus in their discussions without reference to the complexity of Burns' thought. These may also include brief discussions of transforming and transactional leadership, the importance of leaders' character, and ethical issues of leadership (Ahn, Ettner, & Loupin, 2011;Alimo-Metcalfe & Alban-Metcalfe, 2005;Andersen, 2016;Baker, 2007;Balda & Mora, 2011;Boje & Rhodes, 2005;Bolden & Gosling, 2006;Collinson, 2012;Ford & Harding, 2018;Frawley, 2009;Gavan O'Shea, Foti, Hauenstein, & Bycio, 2009;Groves, 2014;Guthrie, Shields, & Zernick, 2014;Hofman, 2008;Ilies, Judge, & Wagner, 2006;Kempster, Jackson, & Conroy, 2011;Malakyan, 2014;Matthews, 2008;Middlebrooks & Haberkorn, 2009;Mir, 2010;Mohr, 2013;Moss & Ritossa, 2007;Nye, 2014;O'Brien, 2007;Olivier, 2012;Peele, 2005;Popa, Hazel, Whatley, Andenoro, & Crandall, 2011;Redekop, 2016;Song, Kang, Shin, & Kim, 2012; Spector, 2016;Tafvelin, Armelius, & Westerberg, 2011;Wilson, 2013;Woods, 2007;Zhu, Riggio, Avolio, & Sosik, 2011).…”