Reimagining Leadership in Sport Management: Lessons From the Social Construction of Leadership

Abstract

Conventional approaches to leadership in sport management regard leadership as a leader-centric phenomenon. Recent advances in the generic leadership literature have highlighted the way that people construct their own understanding of leadership and shown that these influence their assessment and responses to people they regard as leaders. This observer-centric perspective is collectively known as the social construction of leadership. In this conceptual paper, we demonstrate how this emerging theoretical approach can reframe and invigorate our understanding of leadership in sport management. We explore the research implications of this new approach, reflect on what this might mean for teaching, and discuss the practical ramifications for leadership in sport management that might flow from the adoption of this approach.

A Stakeholder Perspective on Ethical Leadership in Sport: Bridging the Gap Between the Normative and Descriptive Lines of Inquiry

“…Particular focus has thereby been put on the perspectives and the perceptions of key internal stakeholders of sport organizations, such as athletic administrators, coaches, and players [for an exception, see the fan study of Constandt and colleagues ( 2020 )]. A couple of authors have acknowledged and advocated the integration of a wider group of internal and external stakeholders in sport leadership research ( Billsberry et al, 2018 ; Ferkins et al, 2018 ; Kihl et al, 2010 ). For example, sponsors of sport organizations can demand certain behavioural standards of the leadership of the sport organization they fund, in return for their (continued) support.…”

“…Nevertheless, as some people who are confronted with leadership are either non-receptive or not the actual target for its influence – and are thus not actual “followers” but rather “observers” – an observer -centric perspective has been proposed ( Billsberry et al, 2018 ). An observer-centric perspective goes further than a follower-centric perspective in that sense that a follower is someone who is having a clear and direct relationship with the leader at hand, while an observer is not necessarily in that position.…”

“…We therefore posit that combining normative and descriptive insights can only turn into practice when sufficient attention is being paid to specific circumstances and values at stake. Furthermore, different sources advocate leadership in sport research to consider leadership as a socially constructed and collective phenomenon, that is co-created by all relevant stakeholders – everyone who impacts or is impacted by the sport organization under study, such as players, coaches, and board members (internal), and sponsors, governments, and the media (external) – involved ( Billsberry et al, 2018 ; Ferkins et al, 2018 ). In this light, we believe adopting such a stakeholder perspective to study ethical leadership in sport may aid to bridge the gap between the normative and descriptive lines of inquiry, leading to a more comprehensive view on this phenomenon.…”

Christian sports coaches and servant leadership

“…Another recent advancement in the field centres around Billsberry, Mueller’s 27 call to embrace leadership from a social constructionist perspective. Critical of post-positivistic approaches, Billsberry, Mueller 27 proposed that leadership should be seen as a sociocultural process of perceptual evaluation and behaviour dependent on all stakeholders (i.e. leaders, followers and other influencers), rather than as a quality or skillset solely held by any one individual.…”

“…Ferkins, Skinner 28 similarly proposed that leadership should be considered a “collective achievement” (p. 77). Whilst numerous scholars advocate further research into shared leadership approaches 28,29 and, in particular, servant leadership, 29,30 Billsberry, Mueller 27 suggest that social constructionist approaches to investigating leadership necessitate understanding that most leaders deploy Implicit Leadership Theories (ILTs) rather than aligning to any specific model. ILTs are proposed to form over the individual’s lifespan and are unique constructions of belief and behaviour formed through, for example, relationships and observations.…”