麻豆传媒

News — DETROIT 鈥� Members of an educational organization contribute to its leadership and can blend personal and social needs to help leaders encourage cooperation, a Wayne State University researcher has found.

Administrators of college preparatory programs 鈥� which are aimed at high school students but housed in colleges or universities 鈥� typically have been viewed as leaders, with students seen as followers. Recent scholarship, however, has begun to focus on the impact of followers on educational organizations鈥� leadership and leadership practices.

Michael Owens, Ph.D., assistant professor of educational leadership and policy studies in the College of Education, used grounded theory to try to understand leadership from a follower鈥檚 perspective. Grounded theory builds inductively from research data rather than formulating a hypothesis first and then testing it.

鈥淗aving a formal academic description of leadership may not be as important for the success of educational organizations as having a comprehensive understanding of constituents鈥� knowledge and expectations of leadership and the leadership roles they play,鈥� Owens said. 鈥淭his study makes a unique contribution to the field by using empirical data to describe concepts and relationships that define participation in educational leadership from the perspective of the led.鈥�

Owens questioned 20 students in a western-U.S. university鈥檚 Upward Bound program 鈥� which prepares high school students from low-income families and families in which neither parent holds a bachelor's degree to attend college 鈥� about how they participate in program leadership practices and what that participation implies for themselves and for leaders.

The results, titled 鈥淭he Feeling鈥檚 Mutual: Student Participation in Leadership as a Cooperative Effort,鈥� were published recently in The Review of Higher Education. Participants saw themselves in a take-then-give interaction, Owens said, meaning that over time their participation changed from primarily receiving behaviors to a mix of giving and taking leadership practices.

鈥淎s they went through the program, students said they felt a sense of belonging and that the program could provide help for them,鈥� he said. 鈥淎t that point, they made a shift in their sense of confidence, and then helped mentor younger students and moved the program along.

鈥淭hey went from thinking, 鈥榃hat鈥檚 in it for me?鈥� to 鈥楬ow can we make this program even stronger and better able to carry out its mission?鈥欌��

Taking behaviors included signing up, receiving support and taking advantage, and demonstrated students鈥� emerging confidence that the program would be willing and able to deliver what it promised. While students reported resisting program staff at times, Owens said such resistance constitutes a leadership behavior and can help an organization clarify its goals and develop tactics for influencing students.

Giving actions included taking advantage in a positive way (such as recognizing the program鈥檚 value or seeing it as an opportunity), showing respect, taking the program seriously and making an effort.

Owens said understanding how students influence educational leaders is vital in understanding how to prepare those leaders for their roles in schools and other educational organizations. He believes his study lays the groundwork for further research in similar settings, saying that a better understanding of students鈥� influence on leaders can empower organizations to develop leadership practices that reflect the wants and needs of those they serve.

###

Wayne State University is one of the nation鈥檚 pre-eminent public research universities in an urban setting. Through its multidisciplinary approach to research and education, and its ongoing collaboration with government, industry and other institutions, the university seeks to enhance economic growth and improve the quality of life in the city of Detroit, state of Michigan and throughout the world. For more information about research at Wayne State University, visit .