The School of EducationThe University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus

Jalan Broga 43500 Semenyih Selangor Darul Ehsan

Malaysia

Authentic Leadership:Paying attention to follower emotions

Student Name : Adam Bryan FreemanStudent Number : 010353Module Title : Effective Leadership and

Change in EducationModule Code : XXDEL2Module Convenor : Dr Ashley NgDate of Submission : 29 July 2013Word Count : 6134

1

Authentic Leadership: Paying attention to follower emotions

Table of Contents Page

Abstract 3

1.0 Introduction 3

1.1 Context 4

1.2 Assignment Structure 6

2.0 Authentic Leadership 8

2.1 Authenticity 10

2.2 Authentic Leadership in Individuals and Organisations 10

2.3 Positive Psychological Capital 12

2.4 Identity 13

2.5 Authentic Leadership and Political Skill 16

3.0 Emotional Leadership 17

3.1 Emotional Intelligence 19

3.2 Vulnerability 20

3.3 Teacher Emotions and Educational Change 21

4.0 Applications in Practice 22

5.0 Implications 24

6.0 Conclusion 25

7.0 References 26

2

Abstract

What role does an authentic leader take in facilitating positive follower emotions? Varying components of Authentic Leadership; namely, authenticity, behaviours, positive psychological capital, identity and political skill, provide frameworks for a deeper understanding of the skills required in emotionally positive educational change. Set within the context of a current educational initiative within Malaysia, Authentic Leadership theory and Emotional Intelligence theories combine to provide approaches to facilitate relationship-based positive outcomes, specifically through an understanding of leader-follower vulnerability and teacher emotions concerning educational change.

1.0 Introduction

“An essential job requirement for the twenty-first century school leader is to be a whole person in his or her leadership, aware of attitudes that he/she holds, accepting of his/her feelings, and real in his/her relationships with others. Equally important, of course, is that she possess the critical skills and knowledge to lead herself and others toward the improvement of teaching and student learning” (Ackerman & Maslin-Ostrowski, 2004, p. 325).

To examine what role the Authentic Leader takes in facilitating positive follower

emotions and trust, the author asserts a framework comprised of lenses

“consciously selected for their potential to explore and thereby enhance our

research understanding” (Peshkin, 2001). These selected lenses include:

Taysum’s (2003) Holistic Leader Model, chosen to “explore the constructs of a

leader on many levels including the spiritual, emotional and intellectual within a

social, cultural and historical context” which may “help to reveal the true

potential of leadership and what it could look like in the future” (p. 12), and

Algera and Lips-Wiersma’s (2012) consideration of the existentially authentic

leader, specifically related to a way of ‘being’ (p. 119) which posits the concept

of inauthenticity as a distinct consideration in Authentic Leadership (AL)

literature.

It is the contention of the author that an individualised existential authenticity

function throughout AL practices to facilitate improved educational reform in the

3

context of Malaysian National Primary Schools (MNPS), and, as such, this

assignment serves as a preface to a dissertation framed in self-study, in which a

focus on personal/professional levels, openness to public critique, collaboration

and vulnerability (Samaras & Freese, 2009) will be explored in more depth.

Biases of the author include: a belief that individual autonomy and self-

awareness (Avolio & Gardner, 2005) are required in the context of organisational

change; that understanding weakness is essential to development of leader-

follower relationships (Diddams & Chang, 2012); and, that educational leaders

should be devoted to developing eudaemonic well-being (Klenke, 2007; Ilies et

al., 2005) within themselves and their followers through the development of

authentic leader-follower relationships and creation of meaningful Professional

Learning Communities (PLCs).

1.1. Context

Within Malaysia, a number of educational initiatives are presently underway,

linked to the Vision 2020 (Mohamad, 1991) Working Paper presented by His

Excellency YAB Dato' Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad, former Prime Minister of

Malaysia. The current initiatives, in all subjects, while laudable, are at present

located in the realm where “multiple improvement initiatives collide” (Hatch,

2000, cited in Fullan, 2001, p. 186), and are, as such, facilitating an atmosphere

in which teachers are unable to choose between multiple goals, thereby

becoming “literally demoralized” (Nias, 1991, cited in Hargreaves, 1998, p. 323).

As such, many teachers within MNPS experience “vulnerability” (Blase, 1988,

cited in Kelchtermans, 2005, p. 997) that often finds them feeling powerless

(emphasis added) and unable to control their professional careers. Add that

“excessive complexity may arise when teachers are required to teach in areas

for which they are not certified” (Liethwood, 2007, p. 623), as is happening at

4

present in many MNPS locations, and a demoralised and confused set of teachers

arises within this system. A prime example is, due to the lack of adequately

trained English teachers in MNPS, ‘non-optionists’, or teachers certified in an

area of expertise other than English, are often co-opted to teach English courses

and participate within national English initiatives. Such ‘non-optionists’ are at the

whim of school principals who choose them to ‘fill the gap’ left by the dearth of

trained English teachers.

It is within this demoralised context the author is employed as a Teacher Mentor

(TM) to local Malaysian English Educators (MEE). The specific educational

initiative is the Native Speaker Programme (NSP), which began in January 2011

and concludes in September 2013. Tasked with leading teachers to improve

English proficiency and facilitate methodological/pedagogical improvement, a TM

visits and works closely with selected teachers from five (5) schools, both in

classroom interaction and Teacher Professional Development (TPD) sessions, to

assist teachers as they ‘come to grips’ with the KSSR curriculum implementation

across MNPS by 2016 (See Appendix 1 for a curriculum overview). The

curriculum incorporates phonics, student-centred methodologies, attention to

critical thinking skills, and an emphasis on improved speaking/listening

strategies. At the time of this writing, the author has participated with the same

teachers for thirty (30) months, within the same cluster of five (5) schools. In this

instance, the majority of the teachers have been within the NSP for the entire

duration, and, as such, formed varying types of relationships with the author.

Leader-Member Exchange (LMX) Theory (Graen & Uhl-Bien, 1995; Hogg et al.,

2004), which is concerned with the domains of leadership, specifically, leader-

based, follower-based, and relationship-based, and how leaders develop

interpersonal relationships with their followers, has been a significant element of

relationship creation within the current context, particularly due to the nature of

5

the author’s ‘outsider’ status as a foreign educator situated within the Malaysian

context. Concurrently, the author is a member of a private organisation currently

working to implement the Malaysian Ministry of Education initiative. See

Appendix 2 for the TM Job Description.

Due to the organisational construct, a differing ‘identity’ domain exists. Social

Identity processes, specifically concerning prototypicality of group members in

leading initiatives individually and as part of a team (Hogg & Van Knippenberg,

2003), tend to manifest, particularly due to the nature of immersion in MNPS and

subsequent understanding by TMs that the ‘multiple improvements’ have

‘demoralized’ teachers within those schools. It is against this background that a

discussion of MEE emotions and the development of leader-follower trust will

emerge. The definition of leader-follower in this context, for the author, means

that both TMs and MEEs are partners in the improvement of the MEE, pursuant to

the above noted Job Description. Hargreaves (2005) notes, “understanding how

teachers experience and respond to educational change is essential if reform

and improvement efforts are to be more successful and sustainable” (p. 981).

1.2 Assignment Structure

This assignment will consider the recent phenomenon of AL theory (Kernis &

Goldman, 2006; Avolio & Gardner, 2005; Ilies et al., 2005; Gardner et al., 2005;

Walumbwa et al., 2008) and its interaction with teacher emotions (Hargreaves,

1998; Hargreaves, 2004; Hargreaves, 2005; Kelchtermans, 2005) and trust

(Tschannen-Moran, 2007; Clapp-Smith et al., 2009; Walumbwa et al., 2011). In

Section 2, discussion of AL will highlight concepts within the field; namely, 1)

authenticity (Kernis, 2003; Harter, 2002; Ilies et al., 2005), 2) AL considerations

for both individuals (Avolio, Luthans & Walumbwa, 2004) and organisations

(Luthans & Avolio, 2003), 3) positive psychological capital (Walumbwa et al.,

6

2011; Clapp-Smith et al., 2009; Caza et al., 2010), 4) identity (Klenke, 2007;

Hogg & Van Knippenberg, 2003) and, 5) political skill (Douglas et al., 2005).

Attention to the literature of teacher emotions and emotional leadership remains

pertinent, particularly in light of its relevance to the impact of the NSP. Section 3

will explore literature from the areas of Emotional Intelligence (EI) (Goleman,

1998) vulnerability (Ackerman & Maslin-Ostrowski, 2004; Kelchtermans, 2005)

and emotional responses of teachers to educational change (Hargreaves, 2004;

Hargreaves, 2005). Based upon the emotional nature of educational change

(Hargreaves, 2005), discussion of the emotional lives of teachers and leaders

proves relevant within the existing literature, and the links/associations between

the emotional lives of teachers and the potential impact of AL behaviours in

mitigating negative emotions and encouraging positive emotional outcomes is a

necessary consideration. Through discussion of Social Identity theory (Hogg &

Van Knippenberg, 2003) and LMX theoretical applications, enacted during the

course of this author’s leadership practice, this assignment will then focus on the

implications for capacity-building through the blend of AL theories and relevant

literature concerning teacher emotions. Concluding remarks will comprise the

final section.

7

2.0 Authentic Leadership

Throughout the AL literature, varying definitions of AL exist, yet most remain

framed within the construct of authenticity (Klenke, 2007). Ladkin & Taylor

(2010) note that the construct itself encounters difficulties due to the fact that “a

unified, agreed definition of authentic leadership does not exist” (p. 65).

Authentic leaders themselves have been defined as “those who are deeply

aware of how they think and behave and are perceived by others as being aware

of their own and others’ values/moral perspectives, knowledge, and strengths;

aware of the context in which they operate; and who are confident, hopeful,

optimistic, resilient, and of high moral character” (Avolio, Luthans & Walumbwa,

2004, p. 4). The concept itself has also been categorised as a process which will

“foster the development of authenticity in followers” (Avolio & Gardner, 2005, p.

317) through a “dynamic process of development in context” (Ibid.) which allows

them to “consider multiple sides of an issue and multiple perspectives as they

assess information in a relatively balanced manner” (Ibid.).

Cooper et al., (2005) indicate that the multi-dimensional definition defined by

Avolio et al. (2004) poses significant measurement challenges and call for a

refined definition including: 1) a specification of the nature of the dimension, 2)

the observer/perspective of the person(s) providing the report, 3) the level(s) of

analysis involved, 4) the response category measurement units to be employed,

and 5) the dimension’s content domain (p. 478). Cooper et al. argue that,

without a refined definition based upon providing rigorous measurements of the

impact of AL practices, the field itself can hardly be taken seriously. Algera &

Lips-Wiersma (2012) have even advocated that AL is in danger of being

relegated to the status of ‘technique’ (p. 120) and argue that one of the inherent

flaws within the prevailing literature is the supposition that “the leader can role

8

model authenticity for the follower but not that the follower could role model

authenticity for the leader” (Ibid.). Algera & Lips-Wiersma further advocate that

current AL theory “almost immediately rejects the structural implications of

authenticity” (Ibid.) and implicitly ignores the nature of inauthenticity.

Practitioners such as George (2004) have advocated dimensions of authentic

leaders, specifically, purpose, values, leading with ‘heart’, establishing

connected relationships, demonstrating self-discipline (p.30). Further authentic

leader behaviours include a focus on transparency, positivity and high ethical

standards (Avolio et al., 2004). AL is conceived as a root construct for other

positive approaches such as transformational, charismatic and ethical/moral

leadership (Avolio & Gardner, 2005), and the implication that, due to an

emphasis on follower development (Gardner et al., 2005), AL approaches may

impact Distributed Leadership (Spillane et al., 2004) remains a compelling area

for continued research. Regardless of the oppositions the field of AL may face,

the concept of leadership as a relational construct may provide a possibility for

mitigating leader-follower relationships, and thereby forming an “authentic

relationship” (Gardner et al., 2005, p.348) which validates the espoused theory

of AL. If indeed authentic leaders do not “distort, exaggerate, or ignore

externally based evaluations of the self nor internal experiences and private

knowledge that might inform self-development” (Gardner et al., 2005, p. 347), a

process of refining adequate quantitative measurement techniques may further

validate AL as a root construct.

9

2.1 Authenticity

Generally accepted definitions of authenticity include “the unobstructed

operation of one’s true, or core, self in one’s daily enterprise” (Kernis, 2003, p. 1)

and “owning one’s personal experiences, be they thoughts, emotions, needs,

wants, preferences, or beliefs, processes captured by the injunction to ‘know

oneself’” (Harter, 2002, p. 382). Kernis (2003) advocates authenticity as the

“free expression of core feelings, motive and inclinations” (p. 14). Shamir &

Eilam (2005, pp. 396-7) have outlined a series of authentic characteristics they

believe arise from the authenticity of the leader, specifically, authentic leaders:

1) do not fake their leadership (i.e. leadership is considered a self-expressive

act); 2) lead from conviction (i.e. status, honour or rewards are not actively

sought); 3) are originals, not copies (i.e. they have experienced their values to

be true); and, 4) exhibit actions based upon values/convictions (i.e. their actions

are consistent with their beliefs), which is verifiable by the authentic responses

of followers who: follow the leader for authentic reasons, have a realistic view of

the leader’s strengths and weaknesses, and determine the leader’s consistency

with their perceived beliefs and values (Ibid., p. 401). Issues within the literature

pertaining to authenticity include: inauthenticity (Algera & Lips-Wiersma, 2012),

image management (Criswell & Campbell, 2011), and inauthentic leaders posing

as authentic leaders (Bass & Steidlmeier, 1999). These issues lead to

consideration of the behaviours authentic leaders are considered to exhibit both

as individuals and within the organisational context.

2.2 Authentic Leadership in Individuals and Organisations

For the individual, Walumbwa et al. (2008) further defined Kernis & Goldman’s

(2006) multicomponent definition to include the following behaviours: self-

awareness, balanced processing, relational orientation and internalized moral

10

perspective. According to Klenke (2007), self-awareness is a “measure of the

person’s ability to be truly conscious of the components of the self and to

observe it accurately and objectively” (p. 77). Balanced processing may be

defined as a “self-regulatory process” (Walumbwa et al., 2008) wherein the

leader participates in “an active state of seeking input and non-defensively

considering other’s ideas (Diddams & Chang, 2012, p. 597) in order to be “able

to more objectively evaluate and accept both positive and negative aspects,

attributes and qualities of themselves, including skill deficiencies, suboptimal

performance, and negative emotions” (Gardner et al., 2005, p. 356) Relational

orientation includes a relational authenticity (Eagly, 2005) that involves “valuing

and striving for openness, sincerity, and truthfulness in one’s close relationships”

(Kernis & Goldman, 2006, p. 300). Finally, internalized moral perspective refers

to “being guided by internal moral standards, which are used to self-regulate

one’s behaviour” (Avolio et al., 2009, p. 424). Walumbwa et al., (2008) further

posit that they see AL as “reflecting an interactive and authentic relationship

that develops between the leader and followers” (p. 95).

However, for the organisation, AL is considered a process that “results in both

greater self-awareness and self-regulated positive behaviours on the part of

leaders and associates, fostering positive self-development” (Luthans & Avolio,

2003, p. 243). Returning to the Holistic Leader Model (Taysum, 2003), there

remains a proposition to “shift our gaze from linear lives and the need to

understand how agency interplays with historical, social and organisational

structures” (p. 10). Within MNPS, the historical structure is one of multiple

initiatives colliding paired with general teacher apathy, a lack of PLCs wherein

teachers continue to work in professional isolation, and a bureaucratic structure

which often causes teacher confusion. In shifting our gaze, Cooper et al. (2005)

have advocated that scholars be aware of the history of the field so that

11

researchers may “avoid historical problems” (p. 476). To that end, Klenke (2007)

has proposed “the use of critical incidents of authentic and inauthentic leader

behaviors to produce typologies of authentic leader behaviors that may be

instrumental in defining the nomological network of the construct domain more

precisely” (p. 89). The narrative structure of qualitative research (Shamir &

Eilam, 2005; Sparrowe, 2005) is one method which may potentially be useful in

determining such typologies. In fact, further research may require a definition of

authenticity within the specific cultural context. Narratives of authenticity may

prove fruitful in determining a context-specific identity incorporating

authenticity. What is considered an authentic leader-follower relationship within

this context? How does that leader-follower relationship impact the formation of

individual and collective identity? Such research may qualify the positive self-

development of individuals and organisations advocated by Luthans & Avolio

(2003), particularly in light of contextual factors. One limitation is that AL

behaviours, attitudes and emotions may be constrained by organisational

contexts in which there is no attention paid to “caring, nurturing of the human

spirit at the workplace, and providing opportunities for all members of the

organization to develop their full potential” (Klenke, 2007). Examination of such

authentic leader behaviours would heavily depend upon organisational context,

as well as the leader’s identity.

2.3 Authenticity and Psychological Capital

Psychological Capital is a second-order factor comprised of four (4) components:

1) optimism; 2) hope; 3) self-efficacy; and, 4) resilience, and refers to

“individual’s tendencies to be motivated toward goal achievement, to recognize

paths for achieving those goals, to believe they can succeed in reaching the

goals, and to recover from the inevitable setbacks of goal pursuit” (Luthans et

12

al., 2007a, cited in Caza et al., 2010). As authentic leadership posits that a

leader maintain self-awareness, balanced processing, relational authenticity and

individualized moral perspective (Walumbwa et al., 2008), the question of

whether authentic leaders develop the psychological capital of their followers

has been predicted. However, this prediction remains troublesome. Clapp-Smith

et al. (2009) conducted a study utilising the social contagion premise advanced

by Meindl (1995, cited in Clapp-Smith et al., 2009) to evidence the role of peers

in the construction of leader-follower perception. Evidence from that study

suggests that “followers and their psychological states are equally important to

understanding how leadership processes influence performance” (p. 237). A core

argument of AL advocates that the authentic leader model and facilitate the

authenticity of their followers (Avolio & Gardner, 2005; Gardner et al., 2011; Ilies

et al., 2005), yet research is limited as to the impact of follower authenticity

upon leaders. Such impact remains an area of possible research of psychological

capital and authentic leadership. Caza, et al. (2010) further confirm that leader

authenticity and follower psychological capital show a “sizeable positive

correlation between the two constructs (p. 65) and suggest more research

concerning the authentic leader’s impact upon the psychological capital of

followers.

2.4 Identity

Klenke (2007) has proposed a series of identities which may play a critical role in

AL, while operating at different levels of analysis: “individually, identity is

captured by the self-identity system and its component elements; collectively, as

the leader identity system and its correlated subidentities; and holistically, as the

spiritual identity subsystem also comprised of several constituent components”

(p. 88). This author has opted for a personal spiritual subsystem of atheistic

13

existentialism, which forms both self- and leader-identities; this subsystem

manifests in the ‘conscious intention’ (Diddams & Chang, 2012, p. 597) to create

and re-create identities in line with an existential, evolutionary life path,

exemplified here by a reflective journal entry from April 17, 2013:

“Ownership (of one’s experience/thoughts) implies responsibility, which implies existentialism. To be authentic to the core, we must take responsibility for the formation of that core, and recognise that it is related to others, both in formation and personal relation; there is no vacuum that helps us form our authenticity…often times, it’s a self-discovery process that will require significant reflection, questioning, confronting ugly truths about ourselves; however, the process of discovering the ‘authentic self’ is infinitely more rewarding, especially in light of the effort expended to understand it.”

A self-identity system is highly contingent upon how we see ourselves; it

“strongly informs our feelings, beliefs, attitudes, goals and behavior” (Leary &

Tangney, 2003, cited in Klenke, 2007, p. 79). The self-awareness and self-

regulatory processes advocated within AL (Gardner et al., 2005; Ilies et al., 2005;

Avolio & Gardner, 2005) remain linked to self-reflection, a practice at the heart of

the authentic leader (Gardner et al., 2005). As such, a reflective practitioner

possesses a significant tool with which to define, or redefine, their own individual

self-identity, at any time within their career: “by reflecting through introspection,

authentic leaders gain clarity and concordance with respect to their core values,

identity, emotions, motives and goals (Gardner et al., 2005, p. 347).

Leadership identity research is built upon Social Identity theory (Hogg, 2001),

which proposes that “as people identify more strongly with a group, the basis for

leadership perceptions, evaluations and endorsement becomes increasingly

influenced by prototypicality; prototypical members are more likely to emerge as

leaders, and more prototypical leaders will be perceived to be more effective

leaders” (p. 191). Klenke (2007) expands upon Hogg’s argument, proposing that

authentic leaders are more likely to emerge as prototypical members of a group,

thereby assuming leadership more readily. Oppositely, Wang et al. (2012)

14

conducted a study employing LMX Theory components to determine the

influence between authentic leadership and follower performance. The results

were generally positive, yet linked to follower positive psychological capital. In

other words, the lower the positive psychological capital of the follower, the less

an impact AL had. However, in relation to leadership identity, just as it is possible

for leaders to “embrace multiple self-identities” (Klenke, 2007, p. 81), the

possibility of leader reputation to follow a similar pattern may mean that both

Social Identity conceptualisation and LMX Theory processes may concurrently be

at work. An authentic leader may or may not rise to leadership based upon the

culture of the workplace; however, the authentic leader may conduct herself in a

manner in line with authentic leader behaviour while implementing a strategy

based in LMX theory and application. The author, throughout the NSP, has

implemented LMX strategies, focusing on relationship-based approaches through

praise and positive reinforcement to encourage and sustain the formation of

PLCs between cluster schools. The political skills of the leader (Douglas et al.,

2005) have worked together with LMX theory to engender trust, confidence and

authenticity in varying levels based upon the individualised leader-follower

relationships. An example of one such relationship is included in Appendix 3.

2.5 Authentic Leadership and Political Skill

An element of AL that has received limited attention in the prevailing literature is

that of the political skill of an authentic leader. Douglas et al. (2005) note that

“politically skilled individuals combine social astuteness with the ability to adjust

their behaviour to different and changing situational demands in a manner that

inspires support and trust, appears to be sincere, and effectively influences

others” (p. 141). Further, they note that political skill is related to emotional

intelligence, and allows the “behavioral flexibility and adaptability necessary to

15

effectively address the needs and aspirations of followers in ways that favourably

influence their work reactions and behavior” (p. 145).

As AL is partially defined by the concept of relational transparency, further

research in how political skill and emotional intelligence interact with AL,

specifically in how a leader motivates authentic followership in the direction of

positive educational reform, is needed. Gardner et al. (2005) advocate that the

process involves “presenting one’s genuine as opposed to a ‘fake’ self through

selective self-disclosure to create bonds based on intimacy and trust with close

others, and encouraging them to do the same” (p. 357). Just as an authentic

leader may define differing self-identities and leader reputations, ‘appearing’ to

be sincere may not necessarily be construed as inauthenticity. It is assumed that

“authentic leaders will be relatively transparent in expressing their true emotions

and feelings to followers, while simultaneously regulating such emotions to

minimize displays of inappropriate or potentially damaging emotions (emphasis

added)” (Ibid., p. 358), an example of which can be found in Appendix 3.

Inclusion of elements of a self-identity which may contrast with the prevailing

cultural norms or ‘ways of being’ could potentially cause an authentic leader to

lose influence with followers if the behaviours do not align with the context of the

organisation or country. In order to effectively lead the group, authentic leaders

should adopt or reinforce the group prototype, yet remember that, “successful

authentic leaders do not change who they are, but rather they modify their

presentations based on leader-follower interactions” (Douglas et al., 2005, p.

144). Such interactions inherently allow for emotions to interact therein. Leader

political skill and authenticity remains a question for further research.

3.0 Emotional Leadership

If, as Hargreaves (2004) suggests, “there is no human change without emotion”

(p. 287), the emotional impact of educational reform cannot be discarded in

16

considering how teachers react to change initiatives. That teachers ‘harden’

(Ibid., p. 288) themselves to change initiatives does not imply that they fail to

consider the emotional act of teaching. In circumstances of ‘initiative overload’

or ‘change-related chaos’ (Abrahamson, 2004, cited in Hargreaves, 2004, p.

288), it follows that “educational change for today’s teacher, it seems, is largely

conceived of as external change that is unwanted, imposed, repetitious and

sometimes repellent, compared with more professionally positive, self-directed

change realities in the past” (Ibid., p. 294). Perhaps it is this externally warranted

change that demoralises teachers and, in effect, discourages them from initiating

holistic self-directed change realities. Hargreaves (1998) posits seven (7)

interrelated points that inform a conceptual framework to develop effective

educational change. They are:

1) teaching is an emotional practice;2) teaching and learning involve emotional understanding;3) teaching is a form of emotional labour;4) teacher’s emotions are inseparable from their moral purposes and

their ability to achieve those purposes;5) teachers’ emotions are rooted in and affect their selves, identities

and relationships with others;6) teachers’ emotions are shaped by experiences of power and

powerlessness;7) teachers’ emotions vary with culture and context (p. 319).

Based upon this framework of emotional politics within teaching and teacher

development, Hargreaves (1998, pp. 330-333) recommendations “the discourse

of educational reform and school leadership must acknowledge and even honour

the centrality of the emotions to the processes and outcomes of teaching,

learning, leadership and caring in our schools” (pp. 330-331). A further

delineation of the teacher emotions and approaches to their practice to

‘acknowledge’ and ‘honour’, is categorised by Liethwood (2007), specifically,

17

individual teacher efficacy, collective teacher efficacy, job satisfaction,

organisational commitment, the conditions of stress and burnout, morale and

engagement/disengagement in the school or profession.

Further, if the educational policy environment is eroding teacher job satisfaction,

organisational commitment and engagement in the school as “the pace of

externally initiated changes seems too rapid, and when such changes demand

significant amounts of extra time from teachers to both learn and implement”

(Ibid., p. 627), school leaders should give priority to reculturing (Hargreaves,

1998; Fullan, 2001) their schools toward a more emotionally intelligent

(Goleman, 1998) culture, enacted through AL behaviours and attention to the

emotions and/or relational approaches to practice elucidated by Leithwood

(2007). Such efforts may facilitate authentic improvement, effectively changing

elements of the demoralising context and encouraging MEEs to implement self-

initiated and self-directed change realities.

3.1 Emotional Intelligence

Emotional Intelligence (EI) is a construct comprised of five (5) essential skills:

self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social skill (Goleman,

1998). Self-awareness is defined as “having a deep understanding of one’s

emotions, strengths, weaknesses, needs, and drives” (p.6). Self-regulation “is

the component of emotional intelligence that frees us from being prisoners of our

feelings” (p. 8). Motivation implies that people be “driven to achieve beyond

expectations” (p. 9). Empathy means “thoughtfully considering employees’

feelings – along with other factors – in the process of making intelligent

decisions” (p. 10), and Social skill is purposeful: to move people “in the direction

you desire” (p. 11).

18

As leaders seek to develop their own skills in these areas, an implied ‘trickle-

down effect’ is hypothesised to form. Moreover, EI relates to the core

components of AL, signalling that authentic leaders who have spent the

necessary time to cultivate same can achieve higher levels of authenticity with

followers, specifically when they cultivate working relationships that help people

“find meaning and connection at work through greater self-awareness; by

restoring and building optimism, confidence and hope; by promoting transparent

relationships and decision making that builds trust and commitment among

followers” (Avolio & Gardner, 2005, p. 331), but that also allow for leader

vulnerability in the creation of authentic relationships.

19

3.2 Vulnerability

The concept of vulnerability is a bit of a double-edged sword, implying both a

“structural condition” of educational contexts (Kelchtermans, 2005, p. 998), and

an emotion deeply connected to the work of leadership (Ackerman & Maslin-

Ostrowski, 2004). If the “basic structure in vulnerability is always one of feeling

that one’s professional identity and moral integrity, as part of being ‘a proper

teacher’, are questioned” (Kelchtermans, 2005, p. 997), the work of leaders in

expressing a “genuine vulnerability” is to model how vulnerability can be

considered as a “strength instead of a weakness” (Ibid., p. 318). This genuine

vulnerability extends when authentic leaders initiate open discussion of both

vulnerabilities of the leader and follower in an effort to continue personal growth

of both (Avolio et al., 2004). Similarly, Brené Brown, in a discussion at

TEDxHouston, indicated that, due to a fear of true emotional vulnerability, people

generally tend to numb themselves to being authentically vulnerable in social

situations (Brown, 2010). However, it is precisely this feeling of “genuine

vulnerability” that, in effect, allows the leader to become “responsible for and

‘author’ of his/her feelings and emotions about something he/she cannot control”

(Ackerman & Maslin-Ostrowski, 2004, pp. 316-317). What empowers people

through the vulnerability is to take control over those feelings instead of

numbing them into oblivion. If indeed teacher professional identity and moral

integrity are consistently questioned, the leader, through a sense of genuine

vulnerability, may model a way of being (emphasis added) that incorporates

vulnerability and weakness (Diddams & Chang, 2012) as a way to eradicate the

professional numbness that may arise due to this very questioning of teacher

integrity. In this way, the follower may determine to ‘author’ his/her emotions in

much the same way the vulnerable authentic leader can, thereby improving

leader-follower relationships and potential outcomes as followers learn to better

20

cope with their approaches to educational change. Note that again, self-selected

behaviour in line with the contextual considerations, dependent upon the leader-

follower relationship deserves consideration.

3.3 Teacher Emotions and Educational Change

Aside from the general demoralisation created by competing multiple initiatives

as cited above, additional emotional responses from teachers arise. From

experiencing frustration related to difficulty achieving their own purposes

(Hargreaves, 2004) to feelings of powerlessness (Hargreaves, 1998), and further,

to vulnerability which lies at the heart of educational reform (Kelchtermans,

2005), it might seem that successful, sustained educational reform might seem

elusive, both in the short- and long-term. However, the strength of self-initiated

change, or “change that creates positive emotions by fulfilling teachers’

purposes (through compatible goals and supportive conditions) and by

connecting them to and granting them recognition from their colleagues”

(Hargreaves, 2004, p. 302), is that it connects teachers to individualised

satisfactions. These satisfactions can differ based upon the stage of career in

which the teacher finds themselves.

In a study of early career, mid-career and late career teachers, Hargreaves

(2005) found differing approaches to educational reform based on primarily on

career stage. Early career teachers were energetic, adaptable and flexible, yet

were not assured of career security. Mid-career teachers were more relaxed,

accepting educational change in stride, and generally not allowing their feathers

to get ruffled. Late career teachers, by and large, were unfazed by educational

reform initiatives, mostly because they had participated in several reform

initiatives throughout their career, and things had hardly changed, thereby

allowing them the comfort of emotional distance in the face of new reform

21

initiatives. In the NSP programme, the same pattern has manifested in

conversation with teachers by this author, and the findings of Hargreaves’ study

are hardly surprising. Accepting that, emphasis of PLC formation through LMX-

based exchange between TM and MEEs to foster authentic leader-follower

connections has manifested in some form of information sharing, thereby

creating a more suitable climate for prototypical MEEs to arise as leaders

through Social Identity practices.

4.0 Applications in practice

Participation in this MA programme has allowed the author to modify his practice

in relation to teachers within the NSP programme. Bearing in mind that the

context itself as a government-initiated, top-down initiative, various theories

relating to AL, EI, LMX theory and PLC creation culled from the literature

presented through the coursework of this MA programme have found practical

implementation in the field. The social and emotional context in MNPS is one in

which the seeds of reflection, lesson planning, formative assessment or teacher

collaboration potentially find the space to germinate.

The author has taken the following steps to incorporate elements of these

theories into his practice. Firstly, attempts to form PLCs among and across

cluster schools took the form of encouraging teachers from up to fifteen (15)

differing clusters schools to share knowledge and ideas relating to their practice

within TPD sessions. The author simultaneously began to use technology to stir

discussion or disseminate information/resources to teachers in isolation. Both a

website, challengeaccepted2013.weebly.com and a Whatsapp group (See

Appendix 4) were formed, and informal resource sharing, as well as highlighting

the work of teachers within the clusters, began slowly but surely. When authentic

leaders “demonstrate their openness in terms of information sharing, are

22

transparent, and accept other members’ views, this should create a positive

environment where group members understand the importance of helping others

for the benefit of attaining group goals” (Walumbwa et al., 2011, p.11). The

author, implementing LMX theory to determine differing qualities of relationships

with NSP teachers, found varying versions of success, as noted in Appendices 3

and 4. As is highlighted within the conversation, most teachers did not actively

participate in resource/idea sharing. A contingency of mid-career, motivated

teachers began to share and actively take part in information sharing

(Walumbwa et al., 2011) and communicating concerning new resources created,

or lesson plans implemented within class. Independently, they began to

communicate via Facebook, Whatsapp and by partnering in TPD sessions.

Certain “citizenship behaviors” within the group began to surface, thereby

allowing for increased confidence and motivation in implementing KSSR

practices within the classroom.

An examination of challengeaccepted2013.weebly.com (See Appendix 5)

exposes a narrative over time that helped facilitate the seeds of trust within this

demoralised context. Teachers in MNPS are not typically praised, and the culture

itself is not keen to single out specific exemplary models of performance,

particularly within a bureaucratic department such as Primary Schools. The

author, as a result of the biases of individual autonomy and self-awareness,

understanding weakness, and developing eudaemonic well-being within himself

and his followers, sought to challenge teachers to exhibit their successes and

downplay their failures. Through prizes, praise in TPD, praise on

challengeaccepted2013.weebly.com, praise through verbal interactions or face-

to-face meetings, the author found that the teachers themselves, when provided

the space to set self-initiated improvements, began to independently, and in

23

teams, implement the methodologies the author originally purported throughout

the initiative, as noted by reporting of MEEs within Appendix 4.

5.0 Implications

Through the process of applying theory to practice within the current context,

implications concerning the interweaving of authenticity, positive psychological

capital, identity and political skill together with emotionally intelligent

approaches based in vulnerability and an understanding of teacher emotions

demand further research. First, authentic leaders within the MNPS context may

use LMX relationship-based strategies to develop authentic leader-follower

relationships that help mitigate the emotional demoralisation teachers feel within

the multiple initiative context. Further, authentic leaders can, based upon their

own vulnerabilities in teaching and learning, empower teachers to explore the

emotional labour of teaching through forming PLCs that assist them in

information sharing and reflective practices. As authentic leaders model effective

leader identities that incorporate elements of self-identity (i.e. values, emotion,

goals, motives), paired with an understanding of weakness, the exhibition of

authenticity through self-selective behaviours provides an avenue for both

authentic leaders and followers to take ownership of and responsibility for

improving upon those weaknesses. Work within both self- and leader-identities,

supported by an individualised spiritual subsystem can create an environment

conducive to facilitating the same within teacher followers, thereby facilitating

authentic leader-follower relationships and a differing approach to educational

change by demoralised educators.

6.0 Conclusion

Through the lens of the Holistic Leader Model (Taysum, 2003), the potential for

authentic, vulnerable leaders and followers set within a social/cultural context

24

can serve as a proposed model of interaction wherein the way of being is

authored and owned by authentic leader-follower dynamics. It is asserted that

this way of being may help to stem the manifestations of teacher demoralisation

through the construction of PLCs, thereby alleviating MEE isolation while

providing for higher information sharing which may contribute to improved

eudaemonic well-being and teacher emotions toward educational change.

Attention to self- and leader-identities through both Social Identity and LMX

exchanges can facilitate deeper reflective practices of both leader and follower,

and assist in the co-creation of conditions required for authenticity throughout

the organisational system (Algera & Lips-Wiersma, 2012). Willingness to

understand and approach vulnerability in weakness in leader-follower exchanges

further deepens the possibility of authentic relationships, which may either

directly or indirectly impact how teachers approach their practice and

considerations of educational change. Based upon implementation of these

reflective and emotionally intelligent approaches, authentic leaders are likely to

have a surprising role in the emotional lives of their followers; such

implementation may expose the true potential of leadership and implications for

the future.

25

References

Ackerman, R.H. & Maslin-Ostrowski, P. (2004). The Wounded Leader and Emotional Learning in the Schoolhouse. School Leadership and Management, 24(4), 311-328.

Algera, P.M. & Lips-Wiersma, M. (2012). Radical Authentic Leadership: Co-creating the conditions under which all members of the organization can be authentic. The Leadership Quarterly, 23(1), 118-131.

Avolio, B. & Gardner, W. (2005). Authentic leadership development: Getting to the root of positive forms of leadership. The Leadership Quarterly 16(3), 315-338.

Avolio, B.J., Luthans, F. & Walumbwa, F.O. (2004). Authentic leadership: Theory building for veritable sustained performance. Working paper: Gallup Leadership Institute, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Bass, B.M. & Steidlmeier, P. (1999). Ethics, Character, and Authentic Transformational Leadership Behavior. The Leadership Quarterly 10(2), 181-217.

Brown, B. (2010). Brene Brown: The Power of Vulnerability [online video]. Available from: <http://www.ted.com/talks/brene_brown_on_vulnerability.html>, [Accessed 12 July 2013].

Caza, A., Bagozzi, R.P., Woolley, L., Levy, L. & Caza, B.B. (2010). Psychological capital and authentic leadership. Asia-Pacific Journal of Business 2(1), 53-70.

Clapp-Smith, R., Vogelgesang, G. & Avey, J. (2009). Authentic Leadership and Positive Psychological Capital: The Mediating Role of Trust at the Group Level of Analysis. Management Department Faculty Publications. Paper 23, 227-240.

Cooper, C.D., Scandura, T.A., Schriesheim, C.A. (2005). Looking forward but learning from our past: Potential challenges to developing authentic leadership theory and authentic leaders. The Leadership Quarterly 16(3), 475-493.

Criswell, C. & Campbell, D.P. (2011). Building an Authentic Leadership Image. Center for Creative Leadership: John Wiley & Sons.

Douglas, C., Ferris, G.R. & Perrewe, P.L. (2005). Leader Political Skill and Authentic Leadership. In W.L. Gardner, B.J. Avolio & F.O. Walumbwa (Eds.), Authentic Leadership: Theory and Practice: Origins, Effects and Development, Monographs in Leadership and Management, Vol. 3, (pp. 139-154), Oxford, UK: Elsevier Ltd.

Fullan, M. (2001). The new meaning of educational change, 3rd ed., New York: Teachers College Press.

Gardner, W.L., Avolio, B.J., Luthans, F., May, D.R. & Walumbwa, F.O. (2005). “Can you see the real me?” A self-based model of authentic leader and follower development. The Leadership Quarterly 16(3), 343-372.

26

Gardner, W.L., Cogliser, C.C., Davis, K.M. & Dickens, M.P. (2011). Authentic Leadership: A review of the literature and research agenda. The Leadership Quarterly 22(6), 1120-1145.

George, B. (2004). The Journey to Authencity. Leader to Leader, 31, 29-35.

Goleman, D. (1998). What makes a leader? [Internet] Harvard Business Review, Cambridge, MA. Available from: < http://www.proadvisorcoach.com/articles/3e-EmotionallyIntelligentLeadership.pdf> [Accessed 12 July, 2013].

Graen, G. & Uhl-Bien, M. (1995). Relationship-based approach to leadership: development of leader-member exchange (LMX) theory of leadership over 25 years: applying a multi-level multi-domain perspective. Leadership Quarterly 6(2), 219-247.

Hargreaves, A. (1998). The emotional politics of teaching and teacher development: with implications for educational leadership. International Journal of Leadership in Education. 1(4), 315-336.

Hargreaves, A. (2004). Inclusive and exclusive educational change; emotional responses of teachers and implications for leadership. School Leadership and Management 24(2), 287-309.

Hargreaves, A. (2005). Educational change takes ages: life, career and generational factors in teachers’ emotional responses to educational change. Teaching and Teacher Education 21, 967-983.

Harter, S. (2002). Authenticity. In C.R. Snyder & S. Lopez (Eds.), Handbook of positive psychology (pp. 382-394). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

Hogg, M. (2001). A social identity theory of leadership. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 5(3), 184-200.

Hogg, M., Martin, R. & Weeden, K. (2004). Leader-Member Relations and Social Identity. In D. Van Knippenberg and Michael A. Hogg (Eds.), Leadership and Power: Identity Processes in Groups and Organizations (pp. 30-45). London, UK: SAGE Publications, Inc.

Hogg, M. & Van Knippenberg, D. (2003). Social Identity and Leadership Processes in Groups. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 35, 1-52.

Ilies, R., Morgeson, F.P., & Nahrgang, J.D. (2005). Authentic leadership and eudaemonic well-being: Understanding leader-follower outcomes. The Leadership Quarterly 16(3), 373-394.

Kelchtermans, G. (2005). Teachers’ emotions in educational reforms: self-understanding, vulnerable commitment and micropolitical literacy. Teaching and Teacher Education 21, 995-1006.

Kernis, M.H. (2003). Toward a conceptualization of optimal self-esteem. Psychology Inquiry, 14, 1-26.

27

Kernis, M.H. & Goldman, B.M. (2006). A multicomponent conceptualization of authenticity: Theory and research. In M.P. Zanna (Ed.) Advances in experimental social psychology, Vol. 38. (pp. 283-357). San Diego, CA: Elsevier Academic Press.

Klenke, K. (2007). Authentic Leadership: A Self, Leader, and Spiritual Identity Perspective. International Journal of Leadership Studies, 3(1), 68-97.

Ladkin, D. & Taylor, S.S. (2010). Enacting the ‘true self’: Towards a theory of embodied authentic leadership. The Leadership Quarterly 21(1), 64-74.

Luthans, F. & Avolio, B.J. (2003). Authentic leadership: A positive developmental approach. In K.S. Cameron, J.E. Dutton & R.E. Quinn (Eds.), Positive organizational scholarship (pp. 241-261). San Francisco: Barrett-Koehler.

Mohamad, M. (1991). The Way Forward [Internet] Malaysian Business Council. Available from: <http://www.pmo.gov.my/?menu=page&page=1904> [Accessed July 12, 2013].

Peshkin, A. (2001). Angles of vision: enhancing perception in qualitative research. Qualitative Inquiry 7(2), 238-253.

Samaras, A.P. & Freese, A. (2009). Looking back and looking forward: An historical overview of the self-study school. In C.A. Lassonde, S. Galman and C. Kosnik (Eds.), Self-study research methodologies for teacher educators (pp. 3-19). Rotterdam, The Netherlands: Sense Publishers.

Spillane, J., Halverson, R. & Diamond, J.B. (2004). Towards a theory of leadership practice: a distributed perspective. Journal of Curriculum Studies 36(1), 3-34.

Taysum, A. (2003). In search of the holistic leader. Management in Education 17(4), 9-12.

Tschannen-Moran, M. (2007). Becoming a trustworthy leader. In The Jossey-Bass reader on educational leadership, 2nd ed., San Francisco: John Wiley & Sons.

Walumbwa, F.O., Avolio, B.J., Gardner, W.L., Wernsing, T.S., & Peterson, S.J. (2008). Authentic leadership: Development and validation of a theory-based measure. Journal of Management, 34(1), 89-126.

Walumbwa, F.O., Luthans, F., Avey, J.B. & Oke, A. (2011). Authentically leading groups; The mediating role of collective psychological capital and trust. Journal of Organizational Behavior 32, 4-24.

Wang, H., Yang, S., Luthans, F., Wang, D. & Wu, Yanhong. (2012). Impact of authentic leadership on performance: Role of followers’ positive psychological capital and relational processes. Journal of Organizational Behavior [Internet]. Available from: < http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/job.1850/abstract> [Accessed April 5, 2013].

28