NCJ Number
200187
Journal
Gazette Volume: 64 Issue: 4 Dated: 2002 Pages: 35-39
Date Published
2002
Length
5 pages
Annotation
This article presents a conceptual framework for leadership in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) that can be a common basis for guiding leadership-development discussions, planning, and structures.
Abstract
The authors first discuss the need for more precise language concerning leadership, language that draws on the proposition that leadership is a social process that involves leaders, followers, and the context. The authors then propose transformational leadership theory as the guiding framework for future leadership development processes in the RCMP. Transformational leadership is defined by the ability of a leader to motivate followers to transcend their own personal goals for the greater good of the organization. There is a reciprocal relationship between leader and follower that depends on the ability of a leader to have an idealized influence, to trigger inspirational motivation, to provide intellectual stimulation, and to demonstrate individualized consideration to followers. The article discusses how transformational leadership connects with the vision and values of the organization as well as with community values. The authors note that although there are many broad leadership models other than transformational leadership theory, part of the attractiveness of transformational leadership theory is its conceptual simplicity and its emphasis on follower attributions and performance. Recent research that has used transformational leadership theory has focused on inexperienced individuals who are either in a formal officer training program or are cadets receiving leadership training as a normal part of their curriculum. The key implication for the RCMP stemming from this kind of research is that some kind of formal leadership training be included in the curriculum for cadets. Such training must be grounded in accepted theory, draw upon the operationalist principles of that theory, and use valid and reliable measures to assess the training and its effects on followers and performance. 12 notes