1. Using a Grounded Theory Approach to Explore Leadership Contradictions David Rosch, Agricultural Leadership Education, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign Dan Collier, Educational Policy, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

2. What do we know about human development? ▪ Rarely is it linear ▪ Rarely is it completely rational ▪ “Backwards” sometimes happens as often as “forwards” ▪ This leads to INTERNAL CONTRADICTIONS in beliefs (Kegan, 1994)

3. What do we know about student leadership development? ▪ Leadership Identity Development (LID) model ▪ 6 stages – from simple to complex ▪ “Key Transition” between stages 3 and 4 – Where students transition from belief that leadership is a position to one that leadership is a process

4. Current state of leadership education

5. Our study ▪ Collected a sample of 23 undergraduate students ▪ All “experienced” in practicing leadership – Self-reported positions, involvement, and/or training in leader-like activities ▪ Balanced men and women ▪ Relatively diverse regarding race/ethnicity – 5 international students ▪ Most upper-class students (juniors/seniors)

6. Our study Individual interviews – 60-75 minutes ▪ General questions of beliefs – “What makes a good leader?” ▪ General questions about behaviors – “What do leaders do that is different from everyone else?” ▪ Some focused on ideals – “ Who is a good role model for how leaders should act, and why?” ▪ Some focused on individuals – “What personal characteristics do you possess that you apply in your practice of leadership?”

7. Analysis ▪ Focused on areas where statements of practices and behaviors seemed to contradict or were inconsistent across single interviews – Where Student A said one thing in one part of the interview and said something inconsistent with first statement in another part ▪ Created open codes, then built to themes based on patterns in codes ▪ Conducted a member check after theme identification – 11 students provided feedback on themes

8. Findings - Common internal contradictions student navigate 1)Leader as servant or commander? 2)To adapt to group or remain resolute in beliefs? 3)Is organizational position required or unrelated to leader effectiveness?

9. Servants or commanders? ▪ Students firmly believe that effective leaders help the group as a whole be successful: – “A leader is someone who puts more priority on helping and serving others and wanting to improve other people’s lives instead of necessarily just being selfish and getting ahead of yourself.” [Ingrid] – “They put others before themselves, and they look at whatever the situation is as objectively as possible regardless of how invested they might be in it…” [Nate] – “I think they’re very selfless. A good leader is selfless.” [Oscar]

10. Servants or commanders? ▪ When describing their own effective behaviors, their descriptions characterize more traditional “command” conceptions: – “I’d rather take charge rather than somebody who wouldn’t know what they’re doing or somebody who could potentially mess everything up or make everything go in the wrong direction.” [Curt] – “When you bring someone on board there’s a known chain of command that people must work within and follow clear expectations.” [Donald] ▪ Many students expressed unwillingness to relinquish control – behavior must be “managed” for a team to accomplish goals

11. Adapt or Remain Resolute ▪ Almost all students identified the need for leaders to be situationally aware and adaptive: – “A good leader needs to be situationally aware and adaptable… Things are always changing, and you have to be able to adapt to it. Every situation is different and needs a difference response.” [Donald] – “I think good leaders also have to be good listeners because you have to hear peoples’ opinions and what they think, then be able to change what you’re going to do or implement to fit all of their needs and values.” [Gisele]

12. Adapt or Remain Resolute ▪ Again, in describing behaviors (especially their own preferred behaviors), students described the need to be resolute in the face of criticism, adapting only when faced with clear failure: – “If you see your leaders simply rolling over to what you say, that just shows me the leader is not leading.” [Mike] – “A bad leader is easily influenced. You’re kind of a push over then you’re not a good leader.” [Allison] – “You get that vision to know where you are going otherwise you’re not really leading people; you’re moving with the pack... If you truly were confident and knew that you were right, then it wouldn’t matter how many people were saying things because you would just acknowledge what they are saying but also know it was wrong, so you would just move on.” [Jake]

13. Is a Position Required for Success? ▪ Many students indicated that legitimacy often stemmed from hierarchical positions: – “They [leaders] have like official roles, like the instructor, the police officer, they have like roles in society, You could consider that as people who have leadership roles… So like people who have leadership roles of like higher authority in society.” [Gail] – “It’s easier to talk about leadership through hierarchy... one of my majors is management, so it’s like I do aspire to manage one day, so it’s just easier to talk about... I guess it is the culture [in which] you’re brought up. You view the president of the United States; he is the leader of the country. You just view it as that hierarchy.” [Oscar]

14. Is a Position Required for Success? ▪ Often when prompted, students would recognize the potential for success unrelated to hierarchical position: – “I mean it is interesting we didn’t even think about it [non-positional leadership]… my responsibility [within a student organization] was to promote how you can be an everyday leader, the servant leadership. You don’t need to be on the executive board to be a leader. It is kind of funny that I didn’t say it because that’s what I told everyone for two semesters.” [Oscar] – “I guess I haven’t necessarily thought about and evaluated those other aspects of it [non- positional leading] as it relates to my future outside of college, so it wasn’t necessarily the first thing that popped in my head… I feel like now because of leadership training and just seeing other people take responsibility for things, it showed me that leaderships is not necessarily a position of power, everyone’s a leader in their own way.” [Nate]

15. Summary of struggle 1)Defining the role of leader as a commander or that of a servant to the group 2)Balancing the degree to which leaders should adapt to group needs or adhere to their own personal goals and plans 3)Defining a leader’s legitimacy as a hierarchical position or as a process of action

16. Implications ▪ Each struggle is evidence of leadership practices falling within a continuum (i.e. rigidity vs. openness) ▪ Students recognize the need to practice nuanced behaviors based on complex values, but often cannot identify structure for decision- making for where to place selves on continuum

17. Implications ▪ Suggests need to provide support in complex decision-making ▪ More evidence that “one-size-fits-all” education is not enough ▪ Suggestions – Structured mentoring programs focused on these principles (“When should you stick to your guns and when should you show flexibility?” – Explicit reflective activities to provide space for students to consciously struggle through issues

18. Discussion??? Dr. David Rosch, dmrosch@Illinois.edu, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaigndmrosch@Illinois.edu Dan Collier, dcoll3@Illinois.edu, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaigndcoll3@Illinois.edu