Authentic Leadership Theory and Practice

With today’s pressures to pursue style over substance, keep up with latest fads, assume superficial and disposable identities (e.g., on-line personas), and compromise one’s values to “make the numbers”, the challenge to know, show, and remain true to one’s real self has never been greater. Facing such pressures, many people are looking for authentic leaders who are genuine, transparent, and trustworthy – leaders who are “real” and can be counted on to keep their word. In this volume, prominent scholars from a wide array of disciplines offer insights on the development of authentic leadership.The contributors consider the dynamics whereby such factors as humor, political skill, emotions, resiliency, and moral and spiritual leadership interact with authenticity to foster authentic leader-follower relationships at dyadic, group, and organizational levels. Contextual factors that may trigger the emergence of authentic leadership, including in extremis or “near death” situations, are also explored. Throughout the volume, contributors focus on how new theoretical perspectives, measures, and intervention strategies can be used to develop authentic leaders and followers. Ultimately, we hope the insights offered will promote a comprehensive research agenda into what constitutes authentic leadership and how it can be positively developed to produce veritable and sustainable gains in performance.