Leadership is viewed as the way in which a person is able to guide others in accomplishing a designated task. Davis (2003) points out that leadership is ultimately concerned about making an avenue for the other people to participate in ensuring a certain task is completed in the required way and in the right time. In addition he asserts that good leadership should be effective in that is able to make use of the available resources from within as well as those outside the area of operation so that the set goals are achieved.
Types of leadership
In the contemporary world, we have a number of leadership styles that have been identified based on their distinct characteristics. The first one is the democratic way of leadership. Under this style of leadership the leader gives an opportunity to the people he or she is leading to air their opinions before a conclusion is arrived at. Jeremy (2009) points out that a democratic leadership allows for cooperation in all aspects of decision making and that the leaders decision is not unilateral as he or she has to depend on the input of the other members.
Laissez faire is the second form of leadership. In this type, the leader allows the members to control their own affairs. That is to say, the leader allows the other members to decide on their own policies as well as methods of handling issues. Miller argues that this type of leadership is important because in cases of emergency the other members are able to convene and hold a meeting without necessary waiting for their leader to come and chair such a meeting.
Thirdly is autocratic type of leadership. Davis (2003) notes that in this type of leadership all matters pertaining (2008) to decision making are vested in the leader. According to him this kind of leadership is best illustrated as dictatorial. This is because members are supposed to take the decision of their leader as their stand or else they risk loosing the membership of whatever committee they are in. He adds that this kind of leadership is well known for making hasty decisions because the leader is solely responsible for making such decisions.
The role of democratic style of leadership in allowing the team to provide input before making a decision.
As earlier stated a democratic style of leadership allows for members to air their views before a concrete conclusion can be arrived at. Therefore, in a democratic civic group the leader allows for participative decision making process to take place.
Miller (2008) argues that the leader of such a civic group makes the members feel to own the whole process and therefore they can contribute immensely and thus help the civic group move forward. In addition to that he claims that the democratic civic groups allow the members freedom to share anything that they think is relevant to the group.
He notes that freedom is paramount to any member of the society as it avoids limiting what such people has to offer. There is also the freedom to question the way in which the group is being run. This is essential as it allows the leaders to know what the members like and do not like so that they can change or improve on its operations.
Jeremy (2009) points out that democratic style of leadership allows the team ample time to think and deliberate on the issues at hand. He has noted that, the members are informed on time prior to the meeting on some of the issues that will be discussed.
This therefore gives members adequate time to prepare by noting some of the important issues that should be raised before the group arrive at the conclusion. Therefore, once this has bee done the members will come to the meeting already armed with their proposals which when discussed by other members might prove to be very useful to the group. He says that such an act goes a long way in making members continue having faith in the group leadership team.
Furthermore, he observes that inviting experts to advise members on certain issues gives the team a chance to understand some of the concepts and therefore be in a better position to participate in the decision making. He argues that such a move helps the members raise relevant issues that may help in the manner in which the civic group is organized and run. Thus making the group more transparent in the manner in which it is being operated.
The democratic style of leadership in relation to different perspectives and ideas?
Any person claiming to offer a democratic style of leadership has to respect the decision of every one in the group whether in agreement or in disagreement with the others. In order to make sure that everyone is comfortable with the decision of the group the leader has an option of doing either of the following in order to accommodate everyone.
According to Miller (2008) the leader can form a small committee from amongst members to go and discuss the contentious issues and report back after certain duration of time. He says that the committee is normally comprised of members from both sides to make it more inclusive.
He says that in such committees more deliberations are made and that chances are high that a consensus will be reached. If the members in the committee fail to agree on the contentious issues, the leader has an option of making the members vote so as to break the dreadlock. He points out that if either of the side wins or loses the idea is either adopted or rejected depending on the outcome. This ensures that no one is denied the chance to air his or her views.
Discuss how the various impacts of poverty in a rural area and how civic leadership can coordinate educational and economic opportunities to address these issues.
In many countries of the world rural areas are the worst hit by poverty compared to the urban areas. Jeremy (2009) attributes this to the fact that in rural areas, there are limited opportunities of employment and therefore many people depend on farming as a source of their livelihood. He notes that farming is nowadays becoming a risky business especially for those depending on rain because the climate is fast changing and thus rain can no longer be predicted at the exact time is likely to come.
Poverty in rural areas has caused a significant number people to move to urban areas to search for an employment opportunity. According to Davis (2003) this has further complicated matters in the rural areas because the people moving to the urban areas are the young people who have the ability to farm thus leaving the old and the vulnerable alone in the villages.
In addition he says that poverty in rural areas has caused an increase in insecurity in many parts of the world. He attributes this to the determination by the young people to make the ends meet in a world of limited resources. He says that the civic leadership is close to the people than the main government and therefore it has a very crucial role in helping the rural dwellers improve on their standards of living.
He argues that the civic leadership has an obligation of organizing seminars for such people where they can invite speakers who can teach the people on the modern ways of farming other than depending on the rain fed agriculture, what to plant and not plant, and how to ensure soil fertility through crop rotation. He points out that if farmers adhere to the teachings given by the agricultural experts then they are likely to produce sufficient foods for themselves and have a surplus to sell thus being able to cater for their needs.
Conclusion
Civic leadership in every country plays a very important role because it is the one close to the people compared to the national government. Therefore, maintaining a good and accountable form of leadership will be very beneficial not only to the local people but to the entire nation at large.
The people at the helm of leadership should make sure that peoples needs are adequately met so that they can be productive through out their life. This goes a long way in keeping the nation as a whole a good place to live in.
Reference List
Davis, J. M. (2003). Leadership the Outward Bound Way. Seattle: Mountaineers Books
Jeremy, H. A. (2009). Leadership at the Community Level. New Delhi: Concept Publishing Company
Miller, L S. (2008). Partnerships for Problem Solving. New York: Cengage Learning
The process through which other people can be influenced in order to achieve certain targets, motivation, direction and purpose accounts for military leadership. It is imperative to note that the ability to accomplish certain government missions largely depends on how military leadership is well organized. Constitutionally, military leadership and the various roles performed by the latter are well enshrined.
In order to execute military leadership, a chain of command is paramount. This refers to an authoritative figure within military wing who is overly concerned with giving direction to subordinates. According to the United States constitution, the President is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. Hence, position or rank enables a military commander to legally exercise leadership mandate as provided in the constitution.
Various sections of the United States constitution outline some of the basic unique responsibilities of a military leader. These include safeguarding the welfare of subordinates as well as mission accomplishment in terms of providing the much needed state security as directed in the countrys constitution.
Both written and unwritten constitutions have their own leadership challenges especially during execution. A case example can be derived from several clauses of the United States constitution whereby foreign policy calls for effective leadership style in ensuring that various needs of citizens are met.
Besides, the clause on foreign policy including military issues ensures that all important undertakings of national interest are adhered to all the time bearing in mind that sovereignty of the state is paramount and cannot be compromised.
To begin with, Article 2, section 2 of the U.S constitution has clear provisions on the role of president in matters related to foreign policies. For example, important decisions on foreign matters are constitutionally passed by the President in liaison with Congress.
Although, there is a vivid separation of powers between these two organs in the sense that each is mandated to perform specific constitutional functions to avoid duplication of roles. It is imperative to note that each of these organs has specific constitutional roles that are particularly embed in leadership ideals.
Although the US constitution outlines specific leadership roles of each of the two entities, their functions sometimes overlap. This constitutional provision may pose some challenge in leadership since any wrong decision might have devastating effects to a nation.
For instance, the president must utilize high level of leadership skills while making decisions about deployment of troops either for peacekeeping or to arrest an established threat.
Although the constitution requires the president to consult with the Congress before he/she can deploy Army or Navy troops, this is not always the case as the president is sometimes required to undertake independent actions on certain urgent matters without involving the Congress.
For instance, incase there is an eminent threat at our borders, or when other states threaten to attack, the president may have no time to consult the Congress; instead, independent decisions are mandatory during such times.
The above action demands a high level of leadership and ethical conscience so as to make the right choices when such issues arise. Otherwise, if ideal and effective leadership skills are absent, whatever decision is made might have far reaching effects for the country.
On the same note, effective presidential leadership skill that has been informed through contextual intelligence is in high demand especially with the current shift on perception of America as an autonomous superpower. As stipulated in Article 2, section 2 of the U.S constitution, the president is recognized as the countrys Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.
The latter constitutional provision is indeed instrumental in discharging important and more sensitive matters of national security since he has enormous control over the military. This jurisdiction is very crucial, for it exerts the president as the ultimate determiner of how the nation relates with other nations on a military basis.
Indeed, the role calls for super leadership skills for any president to understand the times are changing, and military power is no longer the main variable to measure the strength and limits of a particular nation.
It is imperative to mention that though Article II of the US constitution does not grant the president exclusive powers to declare war for he/she has to consult Congress; there are some instances when past presidents have defied this decree. Therefore, this only amplifies that the execution of some aspects of the constitution requires a leader who is out to protect the constitution, but not to violate it.
Throughout the history of US foreign policy, there have been some instances of failure mostly arising from incumbent presidents. To eliminate such instances, the incumbent presidents must rise above the challenge by making informed decisions while selecting advisors on foreign policy matters on security.
Article 1, section 2 of the US constitution stipulates that the president has the power to appoint and dismiss high-ranking officers in the military. History has shown that most of the presidents make such appointments or dismissals based on political influence. While the move might be fruitful, it would be disastrous if the appointee fails in his/her duty; thus, ruining the reputation of the country.
Therefore, any president willing to succeed must consider learning the rigorous bureaucracies embedded in US foreign policy, so as to make informed decisions that portray his/her leadership intelligence.
Though challenging, a good leader must be able stand up and fight for his decision amidst a contrasting view by those who brag about their experience on foreign military matters. Besides if anything was to go wrong, the first blame would be on him/her regardless of whether the mistake was self or caused by others.
To recap it all, it is worth observing that there are several clauses in the constitution that are attached to leadership. On the other hand, it largely requires both personal and political will in order to fully adhere to good leadership that is acceptable to both the rule of law and entire citizenry.
On the same note, implementation of different aspects of any constitution may be a strenuous and challenging task to many world leaders. However, proficient leadership skills are essential in solving myriad of socio-political and economic problems that are often eminent when various leadership clauses in any piece of constitutional document are not implemented to the letter.
As already mentioned a critical look at the US foreign policy and how leadership has been embraced in the constitution in streamlining operations is indeed a critical example on how leadership and constitution are related. It is also vital to note that leadership directions provided in a constitutional document may. There are quite a number of leadership roles that may not be necessarily enshrined in a constitution.
The human qualities of a leader are in many ways more revealing regarding his or her success, the respect of the people, and the appreciation of descendants than education and professionalism. In different historical times, there were both heroes and despised dictators who had power over entire continents and possessed the minds of millions.
This report examines the leadership style of Abraham Lincoln as an example of an ethical leader who was moral in his day, and the regime of Adolf Hitler as an example of a mentally unstable leader blinded by the unlimited authority. Lincoln, although through a long war, achieved the unification of the United States and devoted much effort to the restoration of both parts of the country.
Hitler inspired the German people that only the Aryan nation has the right to live, sent millions to fight for world domination, and was not ready for the resistance of allies. Both leaders in their home countries were perceived as representatives of the people, and both were very popular, especially at the beginning of their careers. However, their beliefs and values were radically different, which significantly affected the results of their activities.
Introductory Statement
Historical Background of Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler is a political leader of Germany, whose activities are associated with such monstrous crimes against humanity, as the Holocaust. He was born on April 20, 1889, in Austria, in the town of Braunau am Inn, located near the German border (Kershaw 13). Adolfs childhood was spent in constant moving, caused by his fathers work, and changing schools, where he showed no special talents.
He had outstanding ability and craving for fine arts, so first of all he tried to pass the exam to The Art Academy, but failed it. In the next few years, the biography of Adolf Hitler was filled with homelessness, poverty, temporary jobs, sheltering under the bridges, and constant moving from place to place. During this period he did not tell his family or friends about where he was, because he was afraid of conscription, where he would have to serve with the Jews, deeply hated by him.
In March 1924, Adolf Hitler, as one of the organizers of the Beer Hall Putsch, was sentenced to five years in prison. But the Nazi spent less than 9 months there: he was released on December 20, 1924, for still unknown circumstances (Hamilton 38). Shortly after his release, Hitler revived the Party and rearranged it, with the help of Gregor Strasser, into a widespread political power. He managed to remove all obstacles from his path, including the President of Germany and the Reichstag, and become an unlimited dictator.
From that moment on, the country began to oppress Jews and Gypsies, trade unions were closed, and the country turned into a massacre for 10 years of his rule. He immediately created the Wehrmacht, restored aviation and tank troops, as well as long-range artillery. Contrary to the Treaty of Versailles, Germany invaded the Rhine, then Czechoslovakia and Austria.
In 1941, in spring, Hitler invaded Yugoslavia and Greece and hit on the Soviet Union on June 22, led by Joseph Stalin those days. In 1943, the Red Army arranged a massive counter-attack on the German army, so in 1945 the Second World War crossed the border of the Reich, which made the Fuhrer absolutely mad (Hamilton 146). He sent teenagers, old, and disabled people to fight with the Soviet army, demanding the soldiers to stand to the end, while he was well-hidden in the bunker and watched from the sidelines.
On April 30, 1945, when Hitlers house in Berlin was blocked by the Red Army, the Fuhrer made a decision to kill himself. There are a lot of different versions of how Adolf Hitler died (Payne 232). Some historians claim that the Fuhrer took potassium cyanide, while part of them supposes that he shot his head.
Historical Background of Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was a US statesman, one of the founders of the Republican party, the 16th President of the United States, who freed the slaves, an American national hero. He was born in Hodgenville, Kentucky, on February 12, 1809 (Buccola 8).
Because he was born in a farming family with poor income, Abraham could not get a full education, went to school no more than a year, and joined the physical work from an early age. At the age of eight, together with his parents, the boy moved to such a place in Indiana, where there was no school nearby at all. Nevertheless, Lincoln learned to read and write, and enjoyed reading. It became an assistant in diligent self-education and a favorite pastime for him.
Young Lincoln had a chance to try a variety of activities he was a day laborer, carpenter, postman, and lumberjack. In 1830, their family moved to New Salem, Illinois, and Abraham worked as a surveyor, a small clerk in a shop. During the Indian war, Lincoln volunteered for the militia, because the Indians killed his grandfather and grandmother. He was appointed a captain, but he did not serve long and was not involved in the battles.
Working as a postmaster from 1833 to 1836, Lincoln studied law and passed the exam, and in 1836 was granted permission to practice law, which he pursued in subsequent years (Nicolay 43). He succeeded in this field, becoming one of the best lawyers in the state, worked with the Illinois Central railway as a consultant for some time. Such qualities as sharp mind, integrity, honesty, and an unusual gift of eloquence also contributed to his professional growth and strengthening of his authority.
Lincolns political biography began in the early 30s with an unsuccessful attempt to take a seat in the statehouse of representatives. However, in 1835, the young Lincoln was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Illinois, where he joined the Whig party. Until 1842, he served as Chairman of the Finance Committee and one of the first persons in his party. The next step in his political career was his election to the US Congress in 1847. Lincoln advocated for the political and civil rights of the broadest masses of the population, such as womens suffrage. Struggling with slavery, the politician defended stopping the spread of slavery throughout the country. In 1854, Lincoln acted as one of the organizers of the Republican Party. In 1858, he was a candidate for US senators, but he failed the elections.
Lincoln was elected President in 1860 and served from March 1861 to April 1865. The South responded to his appointment by secession, even though the position of the new President was moderate about slavery; a Civil war broke out in the country (1861-1865). On December 30, 1862, the President signed the Proclamation on liberation, which freed 4 million people from the yoke of slavery (Foner 2). In 1863, the government forces won crucial victories that eventually broke the resistance of the South and restore the unity of the nation.
In 1864, Lincoln was re-elected for a second presidential term, although he doubted this decision, and some political forces opposed it. April 14, 1865, Lincoln, who was in Washington at the Ford Theater at the play, was shot by actor J. William Booth, a supporter of the southern slave-owners (Nicolay 92). Lincoln died without regaining consciousness, on the morning of 15 April, becoming, thus, the first murdered President of the United States.
During his time in power, he was subjected continuously to sharp critical attacks; however, according to the results of opinion polls, now Lincoln is still among the most loved and respected presidents of the USA. In Washington, there is a memorial in honor of Abraham Lincoln as one of the four heads of the United States, whose activities determined the historical development of the state.
Executive Summary
Definition of Leadership
Not everyone is given to be a leader in the best sense of the word. Many believe that being ahead is very prestigious, but poorly aware of what qualities a leader should have to people seeking to follow him and would like to look up to him. A leader can be a person whose interests are much broader than just his own, because he thinks exceptionally widely, and he is most interested in the personal growth, development, and self-realization of other people. Any leader is the bearer of specific moral norms for a particular association of people, so his worldview must comply with the general universal laws justice, honesty, reliability, responsibility, and a precise sequence of actions.
The Leadership Styles Represented by the Two Leaders
Since Adolf Hitler got his post, a number of concentration camps and death camps were established in Germany, Poland, and Austria, and the first of them was set near Munich. It is well-known that there were about 42 thousand camps, in which millions of people died in torture (Kershaw 64). These specially built centers were designed for terror and genocide against both prisoners of war, the local population, and the so-called useless material, which included women, children, and disabled persons.
The largest Hitlers death factories became Auschwitz, Lublin, Buchenwald, and Treblinka, in which dissenters were subjected to monstrous torture and experiments with venoms, incendiary mixtures, gas, which in most cases led to the painful death. All concentration camps were set up to eliminate the whole world population of oppositionists, the unwanted races, real criminals, and other destructive elements for the German leader.
The symbol of Hitlers ruthlessness and fascism was the Polish city of Auschwitz, where the most terrible death conveyors were built, and where about twenty thousand people were killed every day (Kershaw 91). This place became the center of the extermination of Jews: they died in gas chambers straight after arrival even without registration and identification. Auschwitz became a mournful symbol of the Holocaust the massive liquidation of the Jews, which was recognized as the biggest genocide of the XX century.
President Abraham Lincoln gathered around him the best, brightest politicians, including his political opponents. He demonstrated his leadership by making a group of people a unique team that consisted of the greatest minds of his time. Many soldiers died during the civil war, and Lincoln visited the battlefield and hospitals to maintain the morale of U.S. citizens; he talked to people and shook hands with everyone (Nicolay 66).
Lincoln could communicate his goals to his countrymen; he was attentive and straightforward in communication. He was also able to listen to different points of view, creating an atmosphere in which members of the government could freely express their opinions without fear of retaliation. At the same time, he knew when to stop the discussion, listening to the views of others to make a final decision. When the war was over, Lincoln was re-elected for a second term. The President never talked about his achievements, on the contrary, in his inaugural speech he focused on the reunification of the whole country.
The Leaders Position
When Hitler gained authority, he held a cleanup in his staff he organized murder than was called the night of the long knives when most of the powerful Nazis disturbing the Hitlers infinite power were eliminated. Having assumed the title of the supreme ruler of the Third Reich, the Fuhrer established the police Gestapo and a complex of death camps, where he imprisoned and tortured Gypsies, Jews, political opponents, prisoners of war, and innocent people.
The basis of Adolf Hitlers domestic policy was the philosophy of racial discrimination and the superiority of noble Aryans over other peoples. His aim was to become the supreme world leader, making the Slavs elite slaves for the master race, and destroying the lower races, to which he ranked peoples like Jews and Gypsies.
In his last speech, Lincoln strongly advocated the peaceful restoration of the southern states to the Union. Their reconstruction included, in addition to the destruction of slavery, the beginning of a confrontation between American society and liberated black People. Lincoln understood the fundamental task of the legal and political equalization of slaves but did not yet know how to implement it given the racist positions in the South and the North. Voting rights for black men in the South could only be achieved by coercion, which was contrary to Lincolns idea of agreement and reconciliation.
Summary and Conclusions
General Summary
The difference between a dictator and a leader is exceptionally significant, and it can be traced when comparing the leadership style of Hitler and Lincoln. The first of them aspired to the power for the sake of personal ambitions and to vent the irrepressible aggression of the painful consciousness. The Fuhrer experienced constant fear as the war ended and finally went crazy in its last months because he was not ready to be responsible for his actions. Lincoln was guided in his efforts by the needs of the people and tried his best to preserve a single state to protect it from decay and destruction by other countries.
General Statement on Leadership
The experience of both leaders shows that a real leader knows precisely where and why he is going because it gives him the opportunity to lead his followers. In another case, it will just be a small unit of a large crowd. The leader must be calm, sober-minded, and confident in himself and his compatriots. All these critical qualities help to make the necessary decision in certain critical cases; sometimes he can even take risks because in certain critical situations his determination and courage are increased. Adequate self-confidence significantly extends the limits of the leaders capabilities, as a result of which he can acquire a new positive life experience.
Works Cited
Buccola, Nicholas. Abraham Lincoln and Liberal Democracy. University Press of Kansas, 2016.
Hamilton, Richard F. Who Voted for Hitler? Princeton University Press, 2014.
Kershaw, Ian. Hitler. Routledge, 2014.
Nicolay, John G. A Short Life of Abraham Lincoln. BoDBooks on Demand, 2018.
Payne, Robert. The Life and Death of Adolf Hitler. Vol. 8. Brick Tower Press, 2016.
Foner, Eric. The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery. The Chautauqua Journal vol. 2, no. 1, 2018, 1-5.
Niccolo Machiavellis contribution to modern philosophical thought is perceived by pundits as one of the most interesting. Born in Florence in 1949, Machiavellis philosophical acumen came of age during his heydays as a servant in public offices and later as a chancellor and respected secretary (Giants para. 1). The social and political perspectives illustrated by the philosopher, mainly in The Prince, seem excessive even for the time-frame in which they were postulated, but still remain influential in the contemporary political landscape. It is the purpose of this paper to evaluate which parts of Machiavellis contributions could still be applicable in the modern world.
Machiavellis advice on how a prince should keep strong military forces and refrain from depending on allies in times of military conflict is certainly applicable in the modern world (Machiavelli & Connell 56). Machiavelli argued that a prince who ascends to power through the influence of other powerful figures or sheer luck will experience a lot of difficulties in sustaining his power over his subjects (Machiavelli & Connell 28). This assertion is witnessed today, especially in African countries where incumbent presidents aspire to handpick their successors using political patronage, resulting in outbreaks of war. The philosophers assertion that an incoming ruler must brace himself for difficult and often dangerous confrontations with the subjects in reforming an existing political dispensation still applies to date since individuals are naturally resistant to reforms (Machiavelli & Connell 38).
In one of his revolutionary perspectives, Machiavelli argued that a prince is always praised for not backtracking on his word. According to the philosopher, a prince derives praise for keeping his subjects in the delusion that he will keep his word even though he may only keep his word when his interests are at stake (Machiavelli & Connell 83). This advice still applies in the modern world in as far as the ruler should be viewed as an authority who keeps his word no matter the circumstances. Machiavelli also asserted that a prince should command admiration and respect from his subjects through his conduct (Machiavelli & Connell 87). According to the Philosopher, a ruler must also complete great achievements to be honored in his own country, not mentioning the fact that he must keep an inner group of counselors to offer true and objective advice on matters of national importance (Machiavelli & Connell 111). These assertions are still applicable today.
As a neophyte ruler, it is imperative to keep strong military forces to guard the country against external or internal aggression. Countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan have definitely failed to provide security for their citizens due to overreliance on foreign allies, notably U.S. and UK. As a novice ruler, I must find strategies to subdue my opponents if my ascension to leadership was based on political patronage rather than democratic process (Machiavelli & Connell 39). However, this strategy does not always bring desired results if mutinies witnessed in Africa are anything to go by.
The advice on how to stand strong in the face of confrontations occasioned by political reforms is a must keep. More often than not, a new ruler aspires to change the political landscape, which may include changing the entire political dispensation so that he may leave behind an era that is uniquely associated with his rule (Machiavelli & Connell 106). To achieve this is no mean feat, and as such, it is imperative to keep the Machiavellian perspective on establishing authority. The notion of keeping an inner circle of advisors is also essential since not only do these experts offer credible advice to the ruler, but they also serves to sell the rulers ideologies to citizens on the ground.
Although it is imperative to keep my word so that I may earn praise and loyalty (Machiavelli & Connell 72), I would disregard the notion of keeping my word for my own benefit or when my interests are at stake. It is a well known fact that leaders who strive to fulfill their own interests before meeting the needs of the citizens may be successful at the beginning, but their leadership end up being dictatorial, subjective, and prejudiced as was witnessed in Germany during Adolf Hitlers reign.
I would also disregard the notion that it is better for my subjects to fear me than to love me as their leader (Machiavelli & Connell 79). This notion does not have a place in the 21st centurys political scene as citizens have become overly enlightened about their own rights and will willingly stage a rebellion than fear a ruler. The red shirts rebellion that is currently going on in Thailand is a good example of how modern-day citizens cannot be muzzled by the threat of fear from government machineries (Kaen para. 1). Lastly, I must disregard the notion that a ruler should not be exceedingly concerned about inculcating good qualities in leadership. Practice reveals that leadership goes hand in hand with individual qualities, and individuals with outstanding qualities are more likely to become good leaders.
References
Giants of Renaissance: Niccolo Machiavelli. (n.d.). Web.
Kaen, K. Rebellious Mood in Rural Thailand. The New York Times. (2010). Web.
Machiavelli, N., & Connell, W.J. The Prince: With Related Documents. New York, NY: Pocket Books. 2004
The concept of lies and the truth is a major aspect of ethics and leadership. Ciulla (2003) says that leaders should always be able to distinguish between lies and truth although ethical dilemmas may pose a challenge. The case study illustrates a situation where one person lies to protect the happiness of others. To this end, the manner in which people lie should have a deep analysis.
In the case study titled Is a lie always a lie?, the author proposes that not all instances of telling lies are always misleading. To achieve the greatest happiness and good, Ciulla (2003) asserts that an individual (leader) should be quick to judge the rationale behind some lies given that it may result to achievement of a greater good.
Lies in this case study are aimed at increasing the benefits of human beings and the organizations. Nevertheless, according to ethical considerations, lies are not morally upright and should not be applicable to any circumstance of human living.
Borrowing from the perspectives of renowned thinkers, I will use this paper to explain the case study and answer the question that it poses. The critical thinkers who constitute a huge part of the paper include Immanuel Kant, Bernard Williams, Hannah Arendt and Confucius. The paper will explain how the thinkers would handle the situation in the context of a business.
Main Ideas by Different Critical Thinkers on the Case Study
Immanuel Kant
Kantian ethics articulate that specific actions may not be the best solution for an ethical dilemma notwithstanding the fact that they may result to heightened happiness than alternative solutions.
In deciding on what to action to embark on, it is important to look at various standpoints that other people would hold when faced with the same situation.
If the action would receive disapproval from other people, Kantian ethics dictate that a leader should not make such a decision besides it is important to ponder on whether the course of action respects the fundamentals of human life and is not deriving happiness for the leader only.
According to Kantian ethics, the decision should not be disrespectful to human life and that all decisions are equal, and the leader should choose the decision that does not cause such inconsistencies.
Bernard Williams
Ethics according to Bernard revolve around the rejection of moral standpoints that Kantian ethics and utilitarianism explored.
He articulates that the moral theories and views capture an idealistic society that is not possible in human society.
To be precise, he asserts that human life is undeniably untidy to have a systematic way of explaining and predicting behavior.
His leadership model revolves around the ability of an individual to explain factors underpinning moral psychology and to self-awareness, which results from personal identity.
Hannah Arendt
Being a social theorist and a political scholar, her ethics revolves around political institutions.
She makes a distinction between various factors that involve the wide concept of freedom.
Particularly, she posits that freedom is not the nature of human beings but social organization results to the same.
Human beings construct both the truth and lie and may sometimes imply the truth in different contexts since argues that political space was only a construction of the human society to allow human beings to experience freedom.
Confucius
The Chinese thinker allows no room for a lie in the social organization of human beings.
In particular, he explores the concept of virtue and asserts that a man of virtue will rarely be in able to sacrifice it for other things even life.
To that end, he says that a lie is always as such given that an individual will always protect his/her virtue despite the likelihood to lie.
Virtue is therefore, the absolute guide to human action without which, a single society would not be possible.
Main Explanations by Different Critical Thinkers on the Case Study
The above thinkers would ultimately have different perspectives on the case that asks, Is a lie always a lie? Kantian concept of ethics does not necessarily prohibit an individual from acting in a specific way. The rationale is that Kantian ethical model dictates that if other people would lie when faced with the same situation, it would be a good course of action.
Besides, if the lies were in the name of protecting human life and human dignity, there would be no such thing as a lie. To that end, a lie is not always a lie drawing from Kantian ethics. Kantian arguments draw inspiration from the thought that human beings face decisions and choices that make them prone to lying and making decisions that are in line with their convictions.
Human nature entails making hard choices some of which are to satisfy their self-interests. Although human beings are prone to such instances, Kant argues that human beings can always be in a position to distinguish the right decisions from the wrong ones. Hence, Kant asserts that judgment of acting in a particular way is important especially when the decision does not affect human dignity in any way.
Further, Bernard Williams would also hold the position that a lie is not necessarily a lie. The rationale is that human beings have different perspectives that cannot invite similar judgment. The reason for one person to act in a particular way is not necessarily the rationale for other people to act in the alternative or similar way.
The ethical standpoints held by Williams always point out that an individual is not always able to act in an acceptable way. To him, acting appropriately is the essence of human nature. In other words, he argues that a lie will ultimately result to cognitive dissonance implying that an individual can know when to lie and when not to tell lies.
If human beings can differentiate between lies and the truth, Williams says that a lie is relative and can lead to different decisions at all times. Hence, people tell lies in many instances to reap the greatest benefits that the truth cannot promise to match. Simply, he says that an individual will never tell the truth when lies can result to higher benefits.
For Arendt, a lie is a construction of the society and, it is not a part of human nature. As such, while some situations may not necessarily deem an action as a lie others may have a different perspective of the same action. Being a political and social philosopher, Arendt articulates that an individual gets a lot of influence from the socialization process.
The socialization process imparts social beliefs, values and attitudes to new members of the society. While some societies value the importance of telling the truth, others socialize their members differently. A lie therefore according to Arendt is that which contravenes the societal system and does not result to achievement of social objectives.
As such, a lie is not always a lie since the social processes are completely different. Besides, human beings are political creatures who will always want to have an advantage over the rest. Hence, every person will lie to create the advantage.
Confucius has no specific definition for a lie. This implies that virtues (jen), according to the thinker may not indicate that a lie is always a lie. However, if a decision to lie causes an individual to experience cognitive dissonance, it becomes a lie. According to the Confucian virtues, virtuous people value their basis of actions and sacrifice even their lives for the same.
Virtues will assist people to make the right choices in life and ensure that every person gets justice in all aspects of life. It is important to notice that virtues according to Confucius are explicit and allow people to make even the seemingly hard decisions.
As such, a lie will not be a lie if making the decisions that bring about the highest benefits for all people is the best. To him, virtue brings about happiness for all and does not aim to injure the rest of the society.
Essentially, Kantian ethics seem to explain the question in a subtle way. Kant simple view of lies was that a lie is a lie only if others would not lie given the same situation. Besides, if the lies uphold the sanctity and respect of human life, it is an appropriate action. To that end, the contexts in which people lie should be able to enhance human dignity and be rational. It is important to notice that the extents to which people lie are relative according to Kantian ethics.
Corneas in Congo Case Study
Ethics and leadership are intertwined concepts that clearly dictate ways that an individual can make decisions that result to the greatest good for all stakeholders. The case presented by Ciulla (2003) on Corneas in Congo requires impeccable ability to make rational decision that yields more pleasure than pain.
In particular, the case explicates that the head of a small aid agency in Congo is currently experiencing a quandary on whether or not to import corneas from China. An aid agency had been in Congo to help refugees who are currently escaping wars and skirmishes in the region. It made a camp where children and displaced people can have shelter and health care.
Unfortunately, an increase in a parasite that causes infection of the corneas leading to loss of sight among the refugees has plagued the refugee camp. Indeed, the aid agency articulates that almost ten people have gone blind. The organization seeks to provide the victims with corneas transplants that could restore the sight of at least ten people by working with other partners.
Owing to the rising needs of corneas transplants, the leading organization in providing the corneas asserts that the number available is limited to restore the sight of all the ten people successfully. A Chinese firm emerges and promises to deliver twenty corneas given that the aid agency would provide it with medical supplies and a truck. The ethical question that emerges is the acquisition of the corneas.
The aid agency learns that the Chinese firm accesses the corneas and other body parts in a corrupt way. Despite the ethical dilemma, numerous people across the world are ready and willing to buy the corneas. Should the leader of the agency continue with the plans to acquire corneas from China?
Using the main ideas of ethical thinkers who include Mill, Rawls, Nietzsche and Tzu, this paper seeks to analyze that the leader of the aid agency could respond to the situation by making a decision that upholds ethics and enhances greatest happiness for all.
Main Ideas Presented By Various Critical Thinkers
John Stuart Mills
The critical thinker presents various ideas on ethics in leadership.
Utilitarianism is a major angle of leadership and ethics and it asserts that ethics ought to revolve around increasing the happiness of human beings and the society.
Besides, Mills articulated that utilitarianism enhances ethical decisions that minimize the pain of all individuals and ensure that communities have an improved life.
The critical thinker also explains that utilitarianism draws its basis from experience because leaders encounter many situations that require ethical decisions; they get the ability to act in an ethical way.
John Rawls
Being a contemporary philosopher, Rawls perceives ethics from different standpoints that his ethical theory emphasizes the importance of the leaders to uphold justice.
Borrowing from the concept of justice, Rawls pinpoints that human beings are able to uphold the concept of justice in all their judgments and decisions leading to a just and an ethical society.
Drawing from a hypothetical illustration, Rawls establishes the concept of original position, liberty principle and difference principle.
This way, Rawlsian ethics revolve around the importance of upholding justice for all people notwithstanding their socio-economic class.
Friedrich Nietzsche
The critical thinker borrows immensely from Shakespeares existentialism in the development of his ethics.
He disputes the assertions of other thinkers that human beings are able to judge right from wrong and good from evil.
He argues that the key concepts that underpin ethics in the contemporary world include immorality, master morality in addition to making decisions that go beyond what people regard as good and evil.
Additionally, he says that will power and slave morality are the main concepts that can assist leaders in making ethical decisions.
Sun Tzu
Tzu asserts that human beings ought to act morally and ethically to achieve success in their lives.
Particularly, Tzu wrote the book Art of War and explicates that ethics are dependent on realism rather than idealism.
First, he says that conflicts from poor leadership decisions are intrinsically costly since he articulates that the person who indulges in war and defeats many men is unethical than a man who wins the war without fighting in the battle.
To him, success is not a matter of winning a contest among competitors but is dependent on avoidance of direct conflicts.
Main Articulations by Different Critical Thinkers on the Case Study
John Stuart Mills would resolve the cornea case in Congo by arguing from the standpoint of increasing pleasure and minimizing pain of the stakeholders. His articulations are that the head of the aid agency in Congo should make a decision that maximizes on the overall pleasure of all people and minimizes pain.
To that end, it is critical to ensure that the refugees are able to access corneas gained in an ethical way rather than accessing them from China where the corneas of criminals on death row are accessed without their consent. As such, Mills ethics dictate that the aid agency refuses the offer of the Chinese aid firm.
Rawls would not all allow the aid worker to access corneas from China. The rationale is that the aid agency would defy the basic principle of justice because the acquisition of corneas was unjust. The criminals convicted in China have no control of their body organs since the wardens access them when they die.
According to Rawls, not all people will access justice. Nevertheless, those who will access justice are more than those who do not. The patients in Congo therefore are few considering those whom the Chinese firm has denied justice. Indeed, they have already taken organs from more than twenty death row convicts.
Nevertheless, the convicted criminals are already dead making it a less ethical issue since they would have been convicted anyway.
For Nietzsche, the decision revolves around distinguishing between what is evil and good. Human beings are not always able to make the distinction. Hence, the aid agency should make a decision that brings about the greatest happiness.
The ability of human beings to make a distinction suffers constraints and as such, it is imperative to ensure that people in Congo receives the corneas as way of increasing happiness instead of focusing on the criminals who already have no other choice but to let the law take its cause.
Finally, Tzus ethics far outweighs the ability to make decisions based on the anticipated outcomes. He articulates that leaders should be in the forefront of reducing conflicts emanating from specific decisions. The decision for the aid agency should be in a position to reduce the conflict that may result.
The conflict of interests should not deny the Congolese refugees from accessing sight by ensuring that the ethical considerations should bring. This way, the refugees will receive the corneas without raising any ethical considerations that may be apparent with the aid agencies.
The ethical thinker who best resolves the ethical dilemma is John Rawls. Rawlsian ethics dictate that all the principles of justice are important in making such a decision. At the outset, it is important to recognize that justice implies that all human beings are able to not only access that which they think is just but also in a moderate way.
Liberty principle asserts that a leader should not focus on making a decision that brings about justice and happiness for all. This is in lieu of the fact that justice is not equal for all. As such, the aid worker should enhance justice by refusing to take the corneas from the Chinese firm. Although some people would suffer from blindness owing to the apparent shortage, Rawlsian ethics do not promise justice for all.
Reference
Ciulla, J. (2003). The Ethics of Leadership. New York: Thompson-Wadsworth Publishers.
It is worth noting that secrecy is an integral part of the work of the Intelligence Community (IC) due to the nature of the tasks it performs. The IC carries out intelligence tasks, prevents and investigates traditional and non-traditional threats to national security, monitors the activities of various organizations, and carries out the protection of certain structures and objects (Lowenthal, 2017). Secrecy gives Intelligence Community a competitive edge in dealing with complex issues, while excessive transparency puts it at risk. For this reason, executing full oversight by the US Congress is challenging. The purpose of this paper is to address several oversight issues and make recommendations for each that could assist in streamlining the Congressional oversight process.
Background
It should be mentioned that the problem of transparency and accountability of the work of the Intelligence Community is related to Congressional oversight directly. The solution to the majority of issues depends on decisions taken by Congress since it participates in the development and adoption of laws and strategies governing privacy and access to information. Thus, it plays an important role in determining the level of accessibility or closeness of Intelligence activities to public control (Lowenthal, 2017). In addition, Congress not only oversees the work of the Community but also bears the responsibility to society and is obliged to provide citizens with information about the Intelligence Community. For these reasons, the US Congress should discuss strategies and budgeting related to intelligence services in an open regime.
Congressional and IC focus on Appropriations instead of Real Oversight
One of the main problems associated with the interaction between Congress and the Intelligence Community is the focus on the audit of expenditures, budget allocations, revenues, and financial systems (Schick, 2007). The chambers of Congress carry out control and audit management, which gives them access to any information related to secret funds. Specially trained employees study classified documents and classified information considered a state secret.
The level of access of oversight authorities gives them the right to reject or approve funding for strategic intelligence programs and approve the financing of special services as well as appoint new leaders for senior positions (Lowenthal, 2017). This approach must be applied so that Congress can use people at these strategic points as a tool to influence the services they control in determining intelligence policy. Thus, this state of affairs leads to the fact that the Congress of the country becomes a body of control and oversight and allows its committees to influence the formation of the main areas of intelligence and policy through the approval of budget allocations.
To shift from the focus from appropriations to real oversight, it is necessary to reorganize the priorities set for Congress. The body executing supervision should identify those tools and methods of oversight that will enable Congress to exercise its direct oversight functions. Instead of focusing on subsidies and project financing, congressional bodies should develop methods such as inspections, hearings, and workflow analysis, which are directly related to oversight and control.
They can also resort to such methods as surveys and database checks, drawing on the experience of other countries (Richelson, 2018). For instance, some European countries regard working with databases as the main tool for oversight. Depending on the tasks set, these approaches and instruments can be utilized independently of each other, in parallel, or one after another.
In this regard, it should be noted that Congress services regularly study secret and unclassified reports, files, and other documents prepared by the Intelligence Community (Richelson, 2018). These documents may contain useful information that can provide answers to questions about the activities of the Intelligence Community, but these same documents may also provoke questions, the answers to which have to be sought using other, more advanced tools.
In addition to the recommendations discussed above, Congress should oversee various stages of Intelligence activities. It can be carried out before a decision is made regarding a new project and its financing, during the implementation of operation or strategy, or after the completion of an initiative. The interim oversight regime should be determined depending on the current needs and stage of oversight.
Congresss Legislation and Oversight Powers Relinquished to Executive Branch
The politicization of the activities of the Intelligence Community and the executive branch is another problem that requires close attention. This phenomenon can manifest itself at different levels and not only directly in the activities of the Community. In particular, this can be observed in the close relationship between the executive branch and the leadership of Intelligence. As a result, intelligence agencies begin to act according to a certain position of the state, which is highly undesirable, given the sensitive nature of the activities of this body (Richelson, 2018).
Moreover, the Communitys engagement can jeopardize the confidence of the population in the work of this body and destroy the faith in the transparency of its activities. In addition, another consequence of the fact that the legislation and oversight powers of Congress were transferred to the executive branch is the possibility of using the Intelligence Community by the representatives of the current government to collect compromising information about their political rivals.
To avoid such phenomena, it is necessary to provide conditions for discussing the main directions of the states international and defense policy in Congress in an open mode. It is also crucial to develop protection mechanisms due to which the community cannot be used by the executive branch to achieve political goals (Durbin, 2017). When the executive branch requests an investigation, the supervisory authority should have the right to initiate investigations on its initiative.
However, in most cases, the decision on whether to open an investigation on a specific issue remains with the oversight body. The overseeing side cannot meet high standards of professionalism if the law does not fully guarantee its independence and autonomy. To ensure this level of professionalism, all parties need to function without pressure from the side of political forces.
To fix the current situation, it is essential to clearly distinguish between the conditions of interaction between the Intelligence Community and the executive branch (Gill, 2017). The legislative and supervisory powers of Congress should be defined in a special document with a strict regulatory framework. When changing the work of the Intelligence Community, alterations need to be made to the document as well as to the mandate of the body carrying out oversight.
The powers of the oversight authorities should be comparable with the powers of the Community, and the controlling body should be able to hold any type of hearing and gain access to the necessary information. For oversight to be systematic, not only planned budget discussions are needed but also a plan of oversight activities (Schick, 2007). In carrying out activities, the Intelligence oversight body should adhere to high standards of transparency, responsibility, and accountability.
In the setting of hybrid threats, America needs an effective and highly professional Intelligence Community that is respected and has public support. This cannot be achieved without the confidence and control of Congress over intelligence activities. The specifics of state security do not imply complete openness and absolute control, and a compromise is required to be able to meet the requirements of taxpayers but not to jeopardize the viability of the special services (Durbin, 2017). Oversight commissions should have extensive powers since they need to monitor compliance with the law in the activities of special services and the compliance of intra-departmental regulatory documents with the legislation.
Congress determines the amount of budget funding and agrees to the appointment of the heads of special services and their deputies. Despite so much oversight, there need to be limitations as well. Oversight commissions should not gain access to information about operational activities, the procedure for interaction with foreign special services, sources and methods of obtaining information, to any information that could reveal the identities of employees, and jeopardize the current operations. Otherwise, the disclosure of such information threatens the lives of people.
Lack of Necessary Resources to Do Adequate Oversight
Lack of necessary resources for adequate supervision is another issue due to which oversight of the activities of the Intelligence Community cannot be carried out as needed (Richelson, 2018). Because most of the oversight actions are retrospective in nature, it is impossible to assess the current component, which will make it possible to evaluate how the forces and resources available to the Intelligence Community correspond to the future needs of the government in this area. However, the structures that can carry out oversight activities do not always have the time and resources to perform full-fledged oversight of the intelligence sector on an ongoing basis (Gill, 2017). To compensate for the lack of control, lawmakers may decide to grant additional authority to the control or audit bodies or to create additional control and audit structures.
As the main recommendation, it is possible to gather a permanent, politically neutral staff that will assist legislators in the exercise of oversight functions. This will help in the formation and consolidation of institutional memory. Experience and knowledge in the intelligence field have been accumulating over the years, and the rotation of the legislative and executive branches often leads to the loss of this valuable knowledge and experience, and consequently resources (Richelson, 2018). Therefore, the presence of a permanent, politically unbiased body will help reduce the impact of this factor on the effectiveness of oversight of the Intelligence Community and will save resources and allow for their more effective usage.
Conclusion
Thus, it can be concluded that the main task of the oversight committee is to check not only expenses and allocate the budget but also to determine the specifics of performing functional tasks, carry out consultations on military-political issues, and the like. At the same time, interference in the process of performing functional tasks is not only impractical but often harmful and risky. Admission of committee members to operational activities is unacceptable since it can affect the sensitive nature of the work of the Intelligence Community. Accurate resource allocation, an adequate degree of transparency, and effective interaction between the structures are the key factors of effective oversight.
References
Durbin, B. (2017). The CIA and the politics of US intelligence reform. Cambridge University Press.
Gill, P. (2016). Intelligence governance and democratisation: A comparative analysis of the limits of reform. Routledge.
Lowenthal, M. M. (2017). The future of Intelligence. John Wiley & Sons.
Richelson, J. T. (2018). The U.S. intelligence community (7th ed.). Routledge.
Schick, A. (2007). The federal budget: Politics, policy, process (3rd ed.). Brookings Institution Press.
The novel coronavirus called Covid-19 has killed more than 280, 000 people and has spread to 177 countries all over the world in less than four months (Taylor, 2020). Its history has begun in China, where the first infected person was detected on December 8, 2019. Beijing confirmed to the WHO that its healthcare authorities are dealing with patients who contracted a new type of virus. In January, the first death in China was reported, whereas the virus transferred to South Korea, Thailand, Japan and the US. The WHO declared a global health emergency and the Chinese government isolated Wuhan City, while other countries restricted travel from China. The coronavirus pandemic still adversely affects not only the health of people but also brings negative consequences for economic and political life.
February was marked by the first COVID-19 death in Europe (France) and the rapid growth in cases, particularly in Italy. At the end of the month, Italy became the leading area of concern with 800 people infected (Taylor, 2020). At the beginning of March, the US officials decided to close the country to stop travelling from Europe, as the WHO declared the global coronavirus outbreak a pandemic (Ravelo & Jerving, 2020). It was a time when authorities initiated restrictions on their citizens to decrease the pace of coronavirus dissemination. For instance, France postponed elections, imposed a nationwide lockdown, while the EU leaders decided to close their external borders. On March 19, for the first time of the pandemic, China reported that there are no new local cases. Then the UK, India and other countries announced the isolation measures.
At the end of March, the US became a leader in terms of COVID-19 number of infections, overtaking China and Italy. On April 2, the novel coronavirus reached its first million cases worldwide, killing approximately 51,000 (Ravelo & Jerving, 2020). At that moment, the rapid outbreak of the virus was seen in Russia. In the mid of April, European countries started to lift some lockdown restrictions by reopening particular stores and industry sites. On April 19, Europe reached 100,000 deaths caused by the coronavirus pandemic, while the US continued to lead the world in terms of reported deaths. However, more and more countries presented their plans to ease the quarantine.
Despite facing criticism from the US government, the WHO extended the global health emergency declaration. Some countries, including the US, Australia, UK, and Germany, demanded to investigate the origins of the crisis and blamed China for the initial mishandling of the issue. Currently, situations in Italy, Spain and other European countries are stabilized, so governments start to implement their plans to ease coronavirus restrictions. More than 4,000,000 cases of infections in the world were confirmed by May 11 (Muccari et al., 2020). The US, UK, and Russia are the most affected states at the moment.
Possible Effects of COVID-19
The world seemingly enters the stage of recovery from the pandemic, which took many lives of people and deteriorated the worlds economy. However, its further repercussions will change almost every aspect of human life and international politics. For instance, the EC made a forecast suggesting that the European economy will decrease by 7.5%, which will mark a record recession ever (Muccari et al., 2020). GDP is expected to decrease in the majority of countries all around the world. Production and operation in many economic fields were suspended, which significantly hit businesses, especially small and medium-sized enterprises.
Apart from economic consequences, some changes to international politics can be forecasted. The notion of globalization will be criticized in the short future, and its recent rapid development might be deliberately hindered. Countries realized that such a fast spread of the virus was possible due to the free movement of people and global supply chains. For instance, when coronavirus caused initial stagnation of Chinas economy, many other countries felt adverse economic outcomes because they strongly depend on Chinas supply chain. Nation-states proved to be the most effective and legitimate institutions that are able to wage war on COVID-19 with the help of internal social policies (O uzlu, 2020). All the measures, such as strict lockdowns, social distancing, tracing of peoples movement, supporting various economic sectors, isolation and treatment of ill people in special hospitals, could be handled only by states. Other binding entities, such as the WHO are usually just making some recommendations. The current pandemic will likely induce future geopolitical rivalry between China and the US. However, the US is expected to follow Trumps nationalist and isolationist ideas, while China will pursue a more claimant role in IR.
The COVID-19 outbreak pointed at drawbacks of being a part of the global supply chain, so regional integration can be an answer to the issue for national economies, which will enjoy safer economic relations within the region. For instance, the EU has been criticized for inappropriate measures to help its members deal with the pandemic, but eventually, more ready member states rescued their severely affected neighbours. According to Smith and Cheeseman (2020), despotic authorities use pandemics to foster their power; thus, the post-COVID-19 era may be marked with an authoritarian surge where dictators will violate the principles of democracy. For instance, the recent shift to dictatorship was seen in Hungary, while Russia and Belarus continue their authoritarian consolidation. Moreover, terrorist movements, such as Al-Qaida and ISIS, may threaten the national security of Western countries who will be weakened and distracted following the troubled times.
Leadership VS. COVID-19
Nation-states proved to be effective in fighting COVID-19, but now it is time to present and compare how different leadership styles cope with the issue. The main types of leadership are democratic, laissez-faire, autocratic, paternalistic, transactional, and transformational styles (Lussier & Achua, 2015). Democracies have been found to deal with healthcare issues better than autocratic political systems in the long run due to investments in durable healthcare policies, free media, transparency, and international cooperation (Bollyky, 2019). However, Bollyky (2019) revealed that democracy is not better at combatting infectious diseases. Chinas aggressive and well-structured response to the pathogen spread showed why autocratic leadership is more suitable in such cases.
Beijing, of course, can be blamed for the late warning of the WHO and failure to stop the international spread of the infection, but their further approach to combat local problems can be admired. Communist Party of China managed to contain the virus in less than three months from its initial detection applying at least twelve extreme measures (Brueck et al., 2020). Chinese officials rapidly isolated entire cities, erected two new hospitals in ten days, halted travel, closed businesses and institutions, and imposed severe restrictions on internal movement. Moreover, state-owned media and Chinese robust surveillance systems were consolidated to trace contact among people and spread recommendations, which played an important role in containing the outbreak. The Chinese government made testing easily accessible and free for everyone. There was also a chain of widespread fever clinics, where all inhabitants who had a suspicion of being infected were welcomed to be initially screened. Despite raising doubts concerning the respect for individual rights and transparency, this mixed approach of severe autocratic style of states management and the communist idea of collectivism proved to be effective in time of the outbreak.
Nevertheless, not every country with an authoritarian style of leadership was effective. For instance, leaders of Russia and Belarus, who have already established dictatorship regimes, use the coronavirus issue to enhance the authoritarian consolidation and strength their influence and control, instead of leading a timely response (Smith & Cheeseman, 2020). President Alexander Lukashenko, who is continuously in charge since 1994, went even further by refusing to impose major preventative restrictions. Hence, Belarus at the moment suffers from one of the highest per capita infection rates in the region. It did not prevent the parade on May 9 to celebrate Nazi Germanys loss in World War II of taking place (Bienvenu, 2020). The iron-fisted leader created a repressive state apparatus which made him able to downplay the Covid-19 pandemic and utilize do not panic policymaking.
He wants to show himself as a strongman before elections, decrease the threat of losing sovereignty to Russia, and shield the uncertain Belorussian economy. Lukashenkos response to the pathogen spread was criticized by 86% of people who participated in the survey (Bienvenu, 2020). With a worsening epidemic situation, more strict measures in the near future may be implemented, but it means that authorities just wasted much time downplaying the problem.
However, developed and democratic countries, such as US and UK, can justifiably be criticized for their leaderships failure to respond to the issue in a timely and proper manner. Democracies showed that they are prone to assess economic consequences, threats to individual freedoms, and possible health implications for an unacceptably long period. For instance, it took six weeks for Trump Administration to suspend travel from Europe and other hotspots entirely (Strasser, 2020). Moreover, the national lockdown still has not been declared, while European countries did it within a few days. The majority of states ordered local restrictions and applied needed measures, but some of them did it faster than others.
The nationwide lockdown was difficult to implement because of a decentralized type of leadership and insufficient testing that lead to a lack of information. In six weeks since the first case was detected, only 3,000 Americans had been tested, that is 1 to 100,000 inhabitants (Strasser, 2020). Initial delays and downplaying messages from the president constituted the main reasons for failed response. The national emergency was declared only on March 13, and three days later, the authorities issued their social distancing guidelines (Ravelo & Jerving, 2020). The US failed to keep its death tolls down because of Trumps underestimation, neglect of warning signs, low testing, and insufficient measures to stop the spread of COVID-19 during the initial six weeks.
It seems that the laissez-faire style of leadership and decentralization on the example of the UK and the US has adverse outcomes in dealing with outbreaks. Trump is more concerned with the political and economic aspects of the epidemic and blames others, including the WHO and China, for his own miscalculations. The WHO provides the same information to all members, so the US problem is in leadership and public health readiness on the national level. Intelligence agencies were not used in the way China deployed it, hence; the US failed to devise a timely and coherent response to the epidemic and now has the highest number of deaths from coronavirus in the world.
For military to be successful in their endeavors, military service needs leaders who are not only agile in their analysis, but also innovative in the development of new solutions to the complex challenges.
As such, military leaders should be academically qualified to lead such significant and racial diverse institution (Richardson 2005, 36). Effective military leadership skills can help the military solve racial inequalities within its departments.
As asserted by the activists, the top US military organizations do not only depict racial disparity, but also gender disparity. The current military programs, in the US, emphasize on the need to improve their efficiency and enhance their leadership skills.
As such, the military program focuses narrowly on ending the rampant racial and gender inequality in its top leadership. Based on its diversity, US military leaders should be able to fight the alleged racism with swift.
Similarly, the current warfare requires military soldiers with innovative and responsive skills to understand and tackle the ever- increasing applications of technology in the warfare by the terrorist and enemies (Richardson 2005, 34).
This paper seeks to identify the characteristics of great military leaders, chooses a specific leader, and assesses the persona of a specific leader.
Characteristics of a good military leader
Based on the current military standards, most of the great military leaders in the history of the US military would be considered as racists. Despite their military success and outstanding leadership skills, some of these military leaders owned and abused slaves.
In spite of owning slaves, Gorge Washington became one of the greatest military leaders in the history of the US military. In the 1940s, activists called for more prewar efforts in the US military. The activists accused the US military for their selective services.
Until the mid 1950s, the activists accused the US military for the rampant racism in their departments. Since then more efforts have been put in place to enable recruitment of all persons regardless of their race, color, and gender in the military.
To lead an institution confronted with enormous challenges such as racism, a military leader has to rise above traditional tactics and demonstrate control and stability. Similarly, current military leadership entails more than just organizing followers, but also motivating them to confront reality.
Through this, efficient military leaders should change values, habits, practices, and priorities in their juniors to be in line with the current racial diversified military services (Serry 2001, 3). To achieve this, military leaders should create a vision, and motivate individuals through appropriate approaches.
Through education and experience, an individual develops and learns leadership skills. This implies that learning and applying leadership skills takes some time. For an individual to be an effective military leader, he or she is required to put in conscious and consistent attention of aspiring and proven leaders.
Effective military leaders have made deliberate choices to improve their leadership skills throughout their careers. Great military leaders such as George Washington, Dwight Eisenhower, and George Marshall worked persistently to cultivate their abilities and skills through their efforts and commitments.
One common attribute about these leaders is that they chose the difficult path of improving their military leadership skills from their first day as junior officers. Similarly, these leaders knew from their early careers that for them to be effective military leaders, they had to enhance their skills through diverse means.
Integrity
In the military, a leader must be independent, selfless, incorruptible, dedicated, honest, and be sound and morally upright. Through integrity, an individual attains these attributes over time. Military leaders must be perceived as responsible and trustworthy in every setting and situation, whether social, financial, or political.
Notably, a military leader should a person of integrity to head a racial diverse institution (Laver 2008, 23). The value of integrity in the great U.S military leaders cannot be overstated. In the history of the U.S military, racism, harsh and brutal punishments were common.
This implies that great U.S military leaders had to be intelligent to rise above such challenges, which have persisted to date (Laver 2008, 25). Regarding this, Military leaders should earn trust from their juniors regardless of their race and ethnicity. Similarly, leaders of integrity should work under clear principles.
In the history of the US military, George Washington became one of the greatest military leaders due to his integrity. Through his acts of integrity, he led the American soldiers through numerous challenges in the 18th century. He consistently demonstrated his commitment to the patriotic cause.
Unlike other past military leaders before him, Washington built a strong trusting relationship with his officers. He always reminded his soldiers about the common interests of defeating the British soldiers.
Equally, Washington consistently reminded his soldiers of their own obligation to act with integrity. Through his military services, Washington optimized the cultural ideals in military and courteous honor, of which integrity was the central quality.
Other great military leaders known for their integrity included George C. Marshall and Lewis B. Chesty Puller. Through their integrity, the U.S military succeeded in several war fields the two leaders commanded. Lewis B. Chesty Puller became very renowned for his intelligence and charisma.
Determination
All U.S. military leaders had strong will and determination. Similarly, modern military leaders should be determined in their endeavors to ensure that racisms and other related injustice in the military are put to an end.
It is believed that with determined leaders, numerous challenges such as racism, gender inequality in the military can be reduced significantly.
Even though, the past great military leaders in the US military showed little interest in ending racism in the military, their determination and goodwill in the success of the military is considered prudent. Notably, Ulysses Grant was one of the military leaders who had an outstanding determination and a strategic vision.
Several literatures have focused on his strategic thinking with the aim of determining the proficiency of his leadership skills (Grant 2011, 54). Due to his exceptional quality leadership skills, Grant is among the most celebrated historical leaders in the history of the U.S military.
Carl Von, a writer, described him as a man with great force of will. Like Grant, Gorge Washington George C. Marshall and colonel Powel were always prepared to adapt to new situations. Through this, these leaders never allowed tactical challenges to distract them from achieving their strategic objectives.
During their time in power, critics underestimated most of these leaders skills and expected them to fail terribly. On the contrary, these leaders endured failures and despondency and slowly worked their way to the top of their professions, earning a reputation as the best military commanders in the U.S. history (Laver 2008, 56).
Cross-cultural leadership
Several US military leaders became famous during the World War I and the World War II for their crosscultural leadership styles. Through cross-cultural leaders, the US military rose beyond social barriers during the World War II and worked with other nations regardless of their race.
It is believed that the American success in the interwar was due to their participation with their allies. Several literatures have praised these great American leaders as men who accepted responsibility, and made ardors decisions.
Notably, Eisenhower was a great military leader who had exceptional cross-cultural leadership qualities. From his junior army officer career, under Brigadier General Fox, to his appointment has a five star general; Eisenhowers cross-cultural leadership style was eminent.
His leadership philosophy asserted that Americans could win the Second World War only with the help of their allies. He strongly believed on motivating a strong unified allied command. To achieve support from the allies, Eisenhower showed humility, patience, and flexibility to American allies.
Like Eisenhower, Ulysses Grant and George C. Marshall became famous and successful for their cross-cultural leadership styles (Laver 2008, 80). By exercising cross-cultural leadership styles, these great military leaders gained confidence from their coalition members.
Cross-cultural leadership style, allowed them to treat other nations as equal in terms of basic human dignity. Through this principle, cross-cultural leadership style became so effective in the history of the U.S military.
Moreover, these leaders personal traits such as honesty, fairness, courage, and geniality greatly boosted their leadership style.
Mentorship
All leaders across all disciplines accept the fact that great leadership styles develop through practical experience. This implies that potential, effective military leaders must not only reflect their personal experience, but also others experience and learn from both.
Through this, they must reinforce their learning through practice. Similarly, studying through experience approach may necessitate an individual to study the past events or individuals. Political philosophers have asserted that great military leaders should always use history as a guide to military action.
By doing so, those aspiring to be effective military leaders must study the path taken by great military leaders in history and emulate their success, while learning from their mistakes.
If American military leaders had analyzed the history of the Vietnam War, before proceeding with the war in Iraq in 2003, most of the current challenges faced by our military soldiers in the Middle East could be insignificant.
Past military seniors mentored most great military leaders in the US. As such, their leadership styles were acquired from these senior leaders. In this regard, a few of them possessed inborn leadership styles. For instance, Ulysses Grant did not begin his career with an unshaken determination.
His determination developed out of experienced in wars, learning, and studying his previous mentors. Grant applied lessons from the Mexicans campaign during the early engagements of the civil war, and demonstrated a confident determination during the Vicksburg campaign.
As an army officer, Grant was fortunate to serve with high-ranking men in the military history such as Zachary Taylor and Charles F. Smith. Grant always requested help from general smith as a cadet. Smith taught Grant that leaders must always be prepared to fight.
Through these teachings, Grant succeeded and served as a role model in the military leadership. Most literatures assert that Grant learned his greatest lessons from firsthand experience. With every decision Grant made, he gained experience and confidence, which helped him develop into a determined commander.
It is worth noting that Grants persistence was not mere stubbornness. Stubborn leaders fail to recognize strategic and tactical skills needed for effective leadership.
Similarly, Eisenhowers seniors mentored his leadership skills. In the year 1922, Eisenhower went to Panama to work alongside Brigadier General Conner. Conner had an unusual quality of mentoring his junior officers. During their stay in Panama, Conner revived Eisenhowers interest in American history.
It was through their relationship that Conner taught Eisenhower the key principles of leadership. Conner thought his young scholar the importance of unity in command. He taught him that large campaign must have a commander over all its forces.
Similarly, Conner taught Eisenhower the value of preparation and study. By the end of their relationships, Eisenhower had articulated his leadership principles.
Charismatic leadership
Charisma in the great American military leaders cannot be overstated. Historians assert that the great American military leaders had ability to motivate men to act towards a common course. Their marines were always ready for their command. They were always ready to sacrifice their lives for the sake of the country.
Lewis B Chesty Puller was one of these leaders. He became a great role model among the greatest military leaders in the history of the US military. Few leaders will manage a similar career and retain their common touch like him.
Similarly, Ulysses Grant and Colonel Powel were among the other few charismatic leaders in the history of the U.S. Because of their great contribution to the country, the leaders enjoyed massive support from the public and their subordinates.
Their self-confidence enabled them to conquer numerous military challenges experienced at their times. These leaders were not only confidence but also courageous; they had strong beliefs over their decisions and moves. They were never afraid to make vital military decisions, which shaped the history of this country.
Through their innovation, these leaders maximized the skills of their battalions. During the Mexican American war, Ulysses Grant was responsible for the regiment logistics. The complexity of the challenges faced during the war needed a charismatic leader to provide appropriate solutions.
On arrival, at the War field, Grant negotiated with the local suppliers, bent a few military regulations, and eventually secured sufficient mules to organize a caravan for the war. These innovative acts, depicts Grants ingenuity.
George C. Marshall
George C. Marshall was born on 31st, December 1880. He was one of the greatest military leaders in the history of America. Marshall served as chief military adviser under the leadership of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. As a young boy, Marshall was educated in several private schools (Laver 2008, 95).
However, after the 1891 economic collapse, Marshall transferred to a public school. His father noted that during his early years he demonstrated little academic excellence, except in historical subjects. Marshall developed a lot of interest in history throughout his entire life.
Through this, historical studies assert that Marshall solved most of his challenges using solutions from his past.
Marshall later enrolled in the Virginia Military School in the year 1897.Upon his enrollment, Marshall became enthusiastic about the regimen and quickly grasped the skills to being a successful military leader. He persevered through adversity to achieve his intended goals at the military school.
While at the military school, Marshall was very hard working and ambitious. Because of his ambitiousness, Marshall received numerous promotions and held a prestigious office at a lower.
Though his class grades were average, Marshall committed his time to extra studies, which made him learn self-control, discipline, and problem management skills. All through his career, Marshall became very popular for his extraordinary commitment in the military.
He was hardworking, energetic, assertive, and always expected his staff to demonstrate extraordinary commitment. As a leader, he was always fair, empathetic, and conscious. He always provided his juniors with opportunities to relax and energize.
Although, Marshall was acutely sensitive to misconceptions of the army, he always remained a model of discipline in full control of his emotions. In spite of working under regular stress and pressure, he still enjoyed every time he worked as a military leader.
As an institutional leader, Marshall understood the importance of effective communication in leadership. He communicated with his subordinates effectively building organizational morale and developed strong relationships with his subordinates.
Like Ulysses Grant, Marshall acquired his leadership skills through experience and studying historical military occurrence. He greatly benefitted from his understanding of American history in the army and social influence. He learned from personal experience and his mentors.
Through this, he developed an administrative philosophy that emphasized on simplicity, efficiency, and decentralization.
Unlike any other military leaders in the history of the US military, Marshall understood the underlying domestic issues of race and gender inequalities in the US military.
Although he never implemented any policy to end such inequalities, he asserted that anyone could engage in military acts regardless of their race and gender.
Notably, he mentored women in the regular army and supported the minority military organizations, including the African American Tuskegee aviators and the Japanese American Nisei Battalion (Adams 1993, 1).
In general, Marshalls personal character, organizational skills, and reform-minded policies made him an outstanding institutional leader (Dodd 1962, 67).
Conclusion
From this analysis, it is clear that great American military leaders achieved their goals due to their effective leadership styles. These men achieved high ranks and positions in the military because of their competency, loyalty, and passion for their career.
Similarly, these leaders had exceptional leadership qualities in that they were able to impart their skills and knowledge in their subordinates (Cawthorne 2004, 55).
In this regard, current military leaders, corporate leaders and those aspiring to be leaders in every discipline will greatly benefit from the historical analysis of these leaders.
Through this, they have to study the models of these great leaders and learn from their examples. In addition, current leaders can analyze these great leaders attributes to establish reasons for their stability in leadership.
Although these leaders showed little or no interest in ending racism in the military, it would be unfair for us to judge them using the current leadership standards. Instead, we must advocate for equality in our military services.
Through this, we should analyze the past military leaderships, while noting on their failures to end racial and gender inequalities in the military. Through this, we are to come up with appropriate policies aimed at ending social inequalities in our military system.
Reference List
Adams, Peter. 1993. Chappie James, Jr. New York: National Aviation Hall of Fame.
Cawthorne, Nigel. 2004. Military commanders: the 100 greatest throughout history. New York: Enchanted Lion Books.
Dodd, Mead.1962. Famous American military leaders of World War II. New York:, U.S. Army War College.
Grant, R. G. 2011. Commanders. London: Dorling Kindersley.
Laver, Harry. 2008. The art of command military leadership; from George Washington, to Colin Powell. Lexington, Ky.: University Press of Kentucky.
Richardson, John. 2005. Real Leadership and The U.S. Army: Overcoming A Failure Of Imagination To Conduct Adaptive Work. New York: W. W. Norton.
Serry, Mordu. 2001. The Trials and Tribulations of General Colin L. Powell. New York: Random House.
In the past decades, leadership has become one of the fundamental concepts in management. It is widely studied in research and applied to a wide variety of settings, including public, private, and governmental organizations all over the world. Public safety leaders operate in a complex environment that involves a wide range of stakeholders.
Although they must focus on protecting communities, building internal organizational culture is still important as it has a direct effect on the employees attitudes and actions (Pearson-Goff and Herrington 7). Using effective leadership strategies is thus essential to protect the citizens; leadership strategies and tools help public safety leaders to manage their agencies daily, as well as to respond to emergencies and external threats efficiently. This paper will seek to outline the importance of leadership to public safety and reflect on strategies, tools, and leadership styles that can help public safety leaders to protect communities more efficiently.
Importance
Leadership in public safety is vital for several reasons. First of all, appropriate direction enhances the effectiveness of the agency and allows it to achieve its goals in protecting communities. As noted by Sienkiewicz-Malyjureka, public safety leadership is critical to adequately orchestrate ventures, coordinate operations, and transfer information between specific sub-systems across the system (115). Indeed, public safety leaders must be active in managing their organizations, as it helps to improve performance outcomes. Also, appropriate leadership is critical to promoting a positive organizational culture and maintain a healthy workforce. For instance, efficient leadership strategies can reduce turnover, encourage motivation, and empower workers to achieve organizational goals (Murari 240). Besides, appropriate leadership tools can foster job satisfaction among all employees, thus also contributing to improving performance outcomes (Murari 240).
Another essential reason for fostering leadership in public safety leaders is that it can help to build positive community relations. Johnson recognizes that public safety professionals often act as visible symbols of government, [and] have an important role of community leadership that brings the responsibility to model behavior that is beyond reproach (par. 2). By encouraging employees to achieve organizational goals, the leaders aid in building a solid reputation of the agency, thus fostering a trustful relationship and fostering collaboration with members of the community.
Poor leadership in the public sector is widely linked to distrust and might affect the well-being of the entire nation. For instance, Imhonopi and Ugochukwu connect the leadership crisis to the lack of sociopolitical development in Nigeria: one cannot but agree with the position that Nigeria is a victim of poor leadership and convoluted systemic corruption which has become pervasive and cancerous in the countrys national life (78). Whereas positive leadership behaviors and practices foster the development of communities, poor leadership can lead to ineffective public safety, threatening the well-being of the nation.
Moreover, effective leadership allows for collaboration, both with the communities and with other agencies (Van Wart 64). This is especially needed at times of crisis, as emergency management involves many different players. To protect communities, the leaders must respond quickly, foster collaboration with other agencies, and support the people all at once. Weak leadership is widely recognized to be among the key factors resulting in ineffective emergency management. Therefore, for public safety leaders, it is essential to choose appropriate leadership strategies to handle disasters promptly and efficiently.
Overall, leadership is of critical importance to public safety. Strong leadership can help agencies to be more useful in protecting the public, thus achieving organizational goals. Poor administration, on the other hand, harms the work of public safety agencies and threatens communities. Thus, public safety leaders must understand leadership theory and apply it in their work.
Leadership Styles
Many leadership styles made their way into contemporary leadership theory. Leaders can choose leadership styles based on their goals and the organizational environment or follow a particular style intuitively, based on their values and beliefs (Sarver and Miller 127). When it comes to public safety management, three key leadership strategies are of interest: autocratic leadership, transactional leadership, and transformational leadership.
Autocratic leadership is one of the oldest and most rigid leadership styles. Autocratic leaders practice control on all levels of the organization, promoting structure and transparency. Although an authoritarian leadership style is often criticized for not allowing employees enough freedom and responsibility, as well as for establishing a vertical power structure within the organization, it can still be beneficial if applied correctly.
By definition, autocratic leadership emphasizes the centralization of power, allowing leaders to exercise full control of all processes within the organization (De Hoogh et al. 687). Indeed, in public safety settings, this can ensure that all employees act by set rules and guidelines, which can help in protecting communities. Furthermore, research shows that autocratic leadership promotes team performance and contributes to the psychological safety of employees (De Hoogh et al. 687). Thus, authoritarian leadership may be used to protect communities at times of crisis.
Transactional leadership views the relationship between workers and managers as a transaction. Transactional leaders seek to ensure that the workers are committed to a common goal by providing benefits and reward schemes to improve motivation (Fisher et al. 17). More specifically, transactional leaders define the task, initiate structure to get the task done, clarify the role of the subordinates, show concern for them, and attend to their individual and group needs and motivation (Fischer et al. 19). Transactional leadership is used in many organizations since it is rather simple to implement and helps to achieve excellent results. When applied to public safety management, transactional leadership assists in promoting a performance by ensuring that employees are rewarded for their efforts.
Transformational leadership is often viewed in contrast to transactional leadership. Whereas transactional leadership creates motivation stemming from self-interest, transformational leaders seek to create a vision and inspire all employees to contribute to achieving it (Fischer et al. 19). Transformational leaders often rely on their personal qualities, mainly their charisma, to inspire workers. According to research, transformational leaders are the most efficient when it comes to law enforcement leadership, which is why this leadership style is often used in public safety. For instance, as shown by Sarver and Miller, transformational leaders in police departments receive fewer complaints and rank better on employee effort, satisfaction, and effectiveness than those using transactional or passive-avoidant leadership (134). Transformational leadership is commonly used when organizations are undergoing a significant internal change, as it helps to earn full support and contribution of the employees.
Leadership Strategies
Supporting an active leadership style with appropriate strategies helps to implement it correctly, thus achieving better performance outcomes. Nooteboom and Termeer discuss common leadership strategies that are used in complex leadership settings. These strategies are also relevant to public safety as they help to coordinate team efforts and promote the positive development of the agency. For instance, reflection on cross-organizational relationships is essential to public safety leaders as it fosters communication with external stakeholders, whereas the strategy of investing in personal trust-based relationships helps in maintaining a healthy climate within the organization and enhance its reputation in the community (Nooteboom and Termeer 28).
Improvisation is also among the key leadership strategies that are critical to public safety settings. Improvisation allows leaders to find opportunities and solutions in stressful situations and to respond to crises quickly and efficiently (Nooteboom and Termeer 29). Besides, organizing minimal structures is another strategy that can be utilized by public safety leaders. As explained by Nooteboom and Termeer, this strategy makes the leader responsible for supporting goal-attainment using internal organizational structure (28). Another approach that is relevant to the public safety environment but is not mentioned by the authors is goal-setting. Creating a vision of the organizations desired impact can be a great motivation strategy, as it provides employees with a shared goal and sets standards of behaviors and actions required to achieve it.
Leadership Tools
Today, there is a great variety of tools that are available to leaders. Technologies make communication easier, whereas continuous training initiatives allow to enhance performance and achieve organizational objectives. However, it is also important to consider the tools that affect the very foundation of leadership, shaping how leaders are seen and followed.
Credibility is an excellent example of such a tool. Kouzes and Posner view credibility as the foundation of leadership (15). Indeed, credibility defines the relationship between the leader and his or her followers, thus becoming a powerful tool for leading public safety agencies. Credibility is also linked to trustworthiness, legitimacy, and ethical behavior, which are among the essential characteristics of efficient public safety leaders (Pearson-Goff and Herrington 7).
Credibility is primarily built on the interactions between the leader the communities he or she serves; once the credibility of a leader is established, it can be used to promote public safety efforts. For instance, the high credibility of the leader can determine the impact of his or her messages, which is critical to emergency management. High credibility can also promote followership behaviors, thus allowing the leader to gain more influence within the public safety landscape. If applied correctly, credibility can help leaders to improve the efficiency of their leadership, thus contributing to organizational performance.
In his book, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Covey describes behaviors that can help people to enhance their lives and build positive relationships with others. Some of these habits can also be considered to be influential leadership tools. For example, Covey describes being as proactive as the first habit of highly effective people (65). In public safety, proactiveness is the key to preparing for threats and planning future public safety initiatives. Proactive leaders are perceived to be important in promoting the safety of communities because they manage to achieve excellent results.
Another essential habit described by Covey is thinking about relationships and transactions in win/win terms (204). In leadership, this tool can help to motivate workers by enabling them to share the success of their efforts, for instance, by providing rewards for high performance. This tool allows for fostering a healthy workforce and achieve better outcomes in public safety. Furthermore, Covey emphasizes the importance of empathetic communication, which includes understanding peoples needs (235). Empathetic communication can be of great use to public safety leaders as it enables them to be more efficient in serving the population, as well as improving their relations with employees.
Results
As part of the Experiential Learning component, an interview with a manager working in a public safety organization was conducted. Overall, the results of the interview supported and expanded on the research gathered for the project. For example, the respondent confirmed that the key challenges faced by public safety leaders include operating in an increasingly complex environment. Furthermore, the respondent agreed that public safety leadership was crucial to performance and serving communities. It was also interesting that the respondent named transactional and transformational leadership styles as the most common ones, which conforms to the information provided by Sarver and Miller (126). The respondent did not mention autocratic leadership, which probably means that it is not used in her agency.
In some responses, the participant offered a new perspective on the topic, thus enhancing the scope of the project. For instance, the respondent stated that setting a moral example should be the priority strategy for public safety leaders, as it can help to achieve the desired level of organizational citizenship behaviors and improve performance. Moreover, the participant stated that rewards are the most beneficial leadership tool, which somewhat contradicts the research and exemplifies a transactional approach to leadership.
Some questions included in the interview were designed to explore the aspects of public safety leadership that were not addressed in the paper. Thus, Question 8 focused on the personal qualities required for success in public safety leadership. Among others, the participant outlined responsibility and trustworthiness as critical qualities. Interestingly, the response supports the discussion of credibility as a leadership tool, as credibility impacts the perceived trustworthiness and responsibility of the leader. In general, the interview offered useful insight into the topic and served to support the research.
The Franciscan Tradition
The topic is relevant to the Franciscan tradition as it supports some of its fundamental values. First of all, the Franciscan Tradition emphasizes building healthy communities as one of the principal goals of leadership. Using efficient leadership styles, tools, and strategies can help public safety leaders to improve the trust between public safety professionals and the general public. Thus, fostering strong communities becomes a primary goal for public safety leaders.
Furthermore, active leadership in public safety is mostly focused on integrity and service, which are also among the significant Franciscan values. By promoting a positive organizational climate and employing ethical leadership tools and behaviors, public safety leaders should also seek to enhance integrity and transparency within their organizations. When it comes to providing services to communities, leadership tools, and strategies assist public safety leaders in achieving shared safety goals. Overall, the link between leadership in public safety and the Franciscan Tradition lies in their fundamental values and goals.
Conclusion
All in all, public safety leaders today face the challenge of managing their agencies in a way that improves performance, helps in building a solid reputation and promotes community relations. Various leadership styles, strategies, and tools can aid them in achieving these goals by fostering positive behaviors and relationships both within the organization and with its external stakeholders. The present paper explained some of the principal concepts in public safety leadership, providing tools and strategies that can assist leaders in improving the safety of communities and responding to critical public safety threats.
Works Cited
Covey, Stephen R. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. 25th anniversary ed., Simon & Schuster, 2013.
De Hoogh, Annebel H.B., Lindred L. Greer, and Deanne N. Den Hartog. Diabolical Dictators or Capable Commanders? An Investigation of the Differential Effects of Autocratic Leadership on Team Performance. The Leadership Quarterly, vol. 26, no. 5, 2015, pp. 687-701.
Fisher, Andrew, David Weir, and John Phillips. Beyond Transactional and Transformational Leadership into the Double Helix: A Case-Study of Blended Leadership in Police Work. Review of Enterprise and Management Studies, vol. 1, no. 2, 2014, pp. 16-28.
Imhonopi, David, and Moses Urim Ugochukwu. Leadership Crisis and Corruption in the Nigerian Public Sector: An Albatross of National Development. Journal of the African Educational Research Network, vol. 13, no. 1, 2013, pp. 78-87.
Kouzes, James M., and Posner, Barry Z. Credibility: How Leaders Gain and Lose It, Why People Demand It. 2nd ed., Josey-Bass, 2011.
Murari, Krishna. Impact of Leadership Styles on Employee Empowerment. Partridge Publishing, 2015.
Nooteboom, Sibout G., and Catrien Jam Termeer. Strategies of Complexity Leadership in Governance Systems. International Review of Public Administration, vol. 18, no. 1, 2013, pp. 25-40.
Pearson-Goff, Mitchell, and Victoria Herrington. Police Leadership: A Systematic Review of the Literature. Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice, vol. 8, no. 1, 2013, pp. 14-26.
Sarver, Mary B., and Holly Miller. Police Chief Leadership: Styles and Effectiveness. Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, vol. 37, no. 1, 2014, pp. 126-143.
Sienkiewicz-Malyjurek, Katarzyna. Determinants and Attributes of Leadership in the Public Safety Management System. Procedia Economics and Finance, vol. 39, no. 1, 2016, pp. 115-121.
Van Wart, Montgomery. Dynamics of Leadership in Public Service: Theory and Practice. Routledge, 2014.
Appendix 1
Experiential Learning
Introduction
Hello, my name is (*) and I am here to talk to you about leadership in public safety. Please note that your responses will be kept confidential and will only be used to support the project on public safety leadership.
Question 1. What are the main challenges faced by leaders in public safety today?
Rationale: As explained by Pearson-Goff and Herrington, public safety leaders function in increasingly complex environments. The answer will offer further insight into the subject.
Answer: Public safety leaders have to balance the interests of multiple stakeholders while being subject to governmental regulations. Besides, they need to respond to the increasing number of safety threats.
Question 2. How can effective leadership help public safety leaders to achieve their goals?
Rationale: The answer will help to support the discussion about the importance of leadership to public safety.
Answer: In my opinion, effective leadership helps to respond to threats and serve communities in the best way possible.
Question 3. Why is it important for public safety leaders to understand leadership theory?
Rationale: Although the project seeks to discuss leadership theory from the perspective of public safety, none of the sources explain why this is required.
Answer: Leadership theory offers a systematic approach to managing public safety agencies. Thus, it can help leaders to improve performance and be more successful.
Question 4. Why do you think leadership is particularly important during a crisis?
Rationale: This question expands on Van Warts claim that effective leadership promotes collaboration, which is critical to disaster and crisis management (64).
Answer: During a major crisis, people look up to their leaders for information and support. Effective leadership in crisis management is important, as it unites communities in recovery efforts.
Question 5. In your opinion, what are the main leadership styles used by public safety leaders?
Rationale: The project focuses on autocratic, transactional, and transformational leadership; however, the respondent might offer other styles for consideration.
Answer: A lot of leaders use transactional leadership style. Today, there is a shift towards transformational leadership, but most leaders prefer to stick to the more traditional approach. Also, some public sector managers use strategic leadership, which is quite efficient.
Question 6. Why do you think transactional leadership is prevalent in public safety settings?
Rationale: This question will let the respondent expand on the previous answer.
Answer: Transactional leadership is well-studied and proved to be worthwhile in multiple settings. It is also easy to follow and gives the workers something to aspire to.
Question 7. What are the benefits of the transformational leadership style?
Rationale: Sarver and Miller explore the benefits of transformational leadership in public safety (134); this question intends to support or expand their argument.
Answer: Transformational leaders have a strong public image, which is especially useful in the public safety climate. Moreover, they achieve great results in motivation and performance. Personally, I think transformational leadership is ideal for most public safety organizations today, as it helps them adjust to external changes.
Question 8. In your opinion, what are the qualities that every public safety leader must possess?
Rationale: Character and beliefs play an important role in shaping the persons leadership style. The answer can help to understand which traits contribute to effective leadership.
Answer: Public safety leaders have to be responsible, trustworthy, and just. They also need to be creative and resilient, as difficult situations require quick action. Charisma is also important for leaders as it aids in building relationships and maintaining a positive reputation.
Question 9. What are some of the strategies that public safety leaders should use to be more efficient?
Rationale: Nooteboom and Termeer discuss some of the strategies in police leadership (28); I want to know if the respondent can highlight any other approaches.
Answer: The main strategy leaders should use, regardless of what sector they work in, is setting a moral example for their workers. Showcasing ethical behavior, organizational citizenship, and commitment to the cost can help to motivate and inspire employees, who will also deliver results.
Question 10. What is the most important tool for contemporary public safety leadership?
Rationale: The answer will contribute to the discussion of leadership tools.
Answer: I think rewards are probably the most important tools for public safety leaders. Establishing standards for performance and encouraging employees to achieve or exceed them can improve the agencys work and results.
Appendix 2
Annotated Bibliography
Covey, Stephen R. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. 25th anniversary ed., Simon & Schuster, 2013.
In this famous book, the author aims to provide advice for people looking to improve their life. The author focuses on helping the readers to develop habits that would allow them to be more efficient in work. A significant part of the book explores the practices that can assist in becoming more influential, thus offering useful advice on leadership tools. The book is relevant to the project as it explains tools for effective leadership in a simple and understandable way.
De Hoogh, Annebel H.B., Lindred L. Greer, and Deanne N. Den Hartog. Diabolical Dictators or Capable Commanders? An Investigation of the Differential Effects of Autocratic Leadership on Team Performance. The Leadership Quarterly, vol. 26, no. 5, 2015, pp. 687-701.
In this article, the authors aim to analyze the negative image of autocratic style and explore how it can benefit organizations and leaders. The researchers performed a quantitative study of 60 retail spots and found that autocratic leadership led to improved worker safety and increased performance. The article is useful for the project as it offers an objective view on autocratic leadership and offers an excellent explanation of this leadership style. The report was published in Leadership Quarterly, which is a credible source of peer-reviewed studies on the topic.
Fisher, Andrew, David Weir, and John Phillips. Beyond Transactional and Transformational Leadership into the Double Helix: A Case-Study of Blended Leadership in Police Work. Review of Enterprise and Management Studies, vol. 1, no. 2, 2014, pp. 16-28.
This study aims to provide an innovative view of transactional and transformational leadership style by combining their features instead of showing them as opposites. Using a qualitative method, the authors analyze a case study to show how transactional and transformational leadership styles can be used together to achieve better results. The work is particularly appropriate for the project as it focuses on police leadership and provides thorough explanations of both leadership styles.
Imhonopi, David, and Moses Urim Ugochukwu. Leadership Crisis and Corruption in the Nigerian Public Sector: An Albatross of National Development. Journal of the African Educational Research Network, vol. 13, no. 1, 2013, pp. 78-87.
The present article is relevant to the discussion of the importance of public safety leadership. Based on the example of Nigeria, the authors offer a qualitative analysis of how poor leadership and corruption can halt the development of an entire nation. The paper contributes to the project by showing the consequences of poor leadership in the public sector.
Johnson, Samuel Jr. Public Safety and the Need for a Culture of Leadership Consciousness. Governing, 2014. Web.
In this article, the author seeks to draw the attention of the public to the need for proper public safety leadership. The writer discusses the role played by public safety professionals in the U.S. and offers insights into improving their contribution to the community by developing leadership in all levels of authority. The work was chosen for the project as it helps to analyze the importance of public safety leadership.
Kouzes, James M., and Posner, Barry Z. Credibility: How Leaders Gain and Lose It, Why People Demand It. 2nd ed., Josey-Bass, 2011.
This book is centered on the exploration of credibility and its effect on leadership. The authors show why developing credibility is important to being successful as a leader and offer strategies for building personal credibility. The present book is relevant to the topic as it shows how credibility can be used as a tool for promoting effective leadership.
Murari, Krishna. Impact of Leadership Styles on Employee Empowerment. Partridge Publishing, 2015.
This is an essential book for studying the effect of leadership on the organization. In it, Murari presents results from several quantitative studies that examined the impact of leadership styles on employee empowerment. Aside from providing credible insight into the topic, the book also serves to outline the impact of leadership practices on the organization, which is useful to promoting and studying positive leadership practices.
Nooteboom, Sibout G., and Catrien Jam Termeer. Strategies of Complexity Leadership in Governance Systems. International Review of Public Administration, vol. 18, no. 1, 2013, pp. 25-40.
Here, the authors focus on various leadership styles evident in complex government systems. The authors utilize a qualitative methodology to present an overview of leadership practices and connect them to outcomes in complex governmental systems. Public safety is widely recognized to be a complicated environment, which is why this resource is useful to the discussion of leadership strategies in public safety settings. International Review of Public Administration is a reputable journal that publishes peer-reviewed articles on the topic, which is why this piece is an excellent source of information.
Pearson-Goff, Mitchell, and Victoria Herrington. Police Leadership: A Systematic Review of the Literature. Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice, vol. 8, no. 1, 2013, pp. 14-26.
The authors of this article aim to provide a comprehensive review of studies on the topic of leadership in public safety. Using a qualitative methodology, the authors developed a thorough analysis of the previous research on the subject. Their work is useful as it outlines the fundamental principles and challenges in public safety leadership while also providing information about past studies of it. The article was published in a reputable, peer-reviewed journal, which adds to its relevance to the topic.
Sarver, Mary B., and Holly Miller. Police Chief Leadership: Styles and Effectiveness. Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, vol. 37, no. 1, 2014, pp. 126-143.
In this study, the authors sought to provide a quantitative analysis of various leadership styles used by police chiefs and compare their effectiveness. The study was based in Texas and included 161 police chiefs, which is a sufficient sample size for this type of research. The authors found that transformational leaders were the most effective while also outlining personality characteristics that predicted the choice of a leadership style. The article is essential to the discussion of public safety leadership and transformational leadership in particular, as it shows evidence of its effects on performance.
Sienkiewicz-Malyjurek, Katarzyna. Determinants and Attributes of Leadership in the Public Safety Management System. Procedia Economics and Finance, vol. 39, no. 1, 2016, pp. 115-121.
This is an excellent introductory text that aims to present the fundamental concepts regarding leadership in public safety. The author intended to identify the characteristics of public safety leadership, as well as some of the factors affecting it. The paper is vital to the project as it assists in understanding the current context of public safety leadership.
Van Wart, Montgomery. Dynamics of Leadership in Public Service: Theory and Practice. Routledge, 2014.
The present book aims to examine the theoretical foundations of leadership in public service while offering practical advice to public service leaders. Also, the author explores the social, political, and historical factors that shaped the development of leadership in the public sector. The book is useful as it provides an introduction to the public service environment and outlines some of the critical principles that apply to public safety leadership.
Leadership is a concept that has been defined by many scholars who have come up with different definitions, underlying the same concept. In general, leadership is the act of leading a group of individuals with an aim of attaining a common goal. Scholars, for example, Thomas, regards leadership as one of the experiences that many people fail to understand, because the way it is defined is not the way it is practiced by those in power.
Scholars suggest that intellectuals should come up with scientific standards of measuring good leadership for a clear definition to be realized. Leadership entails the act of transforming the followers unlike the issue of politics which aims at short-term rather than long-term goals (Allison and Zelikow, 2006, p.102).
Leadership traits
Leadership traits are the characteristics or features that make a person an effective leader. It also refers to the mechanisms and tactics that make someone a leader and not a follower. Leadership traits often vary from one person to another, depending on how one handles his followers and tasks, as well as ones ability to interact with other people. For one to qualify as a leader, he has to be the person who has the ability to entrust ones duties in regards to the political control, as well as to be to make effective decisions (Allison, 2009, p.16).
An introduction to J. F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy is one of the American leaders who had a vision for his country, as well as a superb decision-making style while he served as the President of America. He also possessed political integrity, legislative skills as well as communication skills that helped him steer to greater heights in the achievement of his goals and objectives in leadership. His vision enabled him to chart a course for the achievement of the countrys goals and objectives while his decision-making style helped him in focusing on the internal processes of the leadership style.
JFK was task oriented as well as the person who focused on productivity. As he delegated his duties he often assessed the competencies as well as the perspectives that would bring favorable inputs into the aspects of leadership as well as the nation as a whole (Allison and Zelikow, 2006, p.144).
During his ten month presidential term which was the shortest ever, he was able to manage various events that occurred during the Cold War. JFK is said to be a leader in every sense of this word because during his term he was determined to make an end to the nuclear war in America; that was the major concern for the President during that period. It showed that he had a vision to spur the country forward as well as compel a brighter future for his America.
This created a new era in the US during which various successful visionary initiatives were born. The vision was made clearer through the Strategy for peace speech at the American university, in which JFK promised to end to the cold war along with signing the Test Ban Treaty . This Treaty was meant to educate the American public at large on the urgency and need for the pursuit for long term goals in national security (Allison, 2004, p.1).
Decision making as a tool for effective leadership
His decision making style was effective in the fact that he was competent in decision making because he was the person who believed in himself. In the analysis of his decision making, Alexander George says that JFKs collegial decision making model was efficient since he positioned each member of the group in a strategic position where each individual was able to contribute to the overall goal of the nation. (Dalgish & miller, 2010, p.176). He, therefore, made sure that each member contributed to the decision making process through the provision of information. He often made decisions using a bureaucratic manner, so that he would be able to defend his own rights as well as decide on the better innovations he came up with during the process of decision making.
Delegation in leadership
In his duty of delegating duties, JFK made sure that he selected intellectuals who were qualified and experienced in the various fields that they were in charge of. The president was able to control all their activities. He had preset standards that he required for all the people who filled leadership positions because he knew exactly what he wanted from each person he was working with. He was effective as he delegated the tasks that he was doing so that all the people could get hands-on experience with regards to the work that was required of them.
JFK was a leader to emulate because he was aware of the role of the President in the country and the role of his advisor; even though his advisors delayed in giving their pieces of advice, he always knew what measures he was supposed to take as the president of the US (Dalgish & miller, 2010, p.168).
J. F. Kennedy as a people-oriented leader
JFK was in most cases concerned with the welfare of the people as well as the long term vision of the country. As a result, it made him a revolutionary as well as a charismatic leader. He strived to focus on the future of the country by providing people with better ways of handling their problems. JFK was also self-driven in the fact that, he enjoyed being a presidential leader, and he was fully aware of his roles as the president. The kind of passion that JFK had, favored him in the accomplishments as well as in the achievement of the missions and visions that the nation had at that time. He used his power to influence the people to come up with better innovations that would urge the country to greater heights (Allison, 2004, p.1).
Intellectual stimulation of the people
JFK was an intellectual who utilized the knowledge and skills he had acquired by means of experience performing administrative tasks as a president. He was able to provide intellectual ideas to his followers who in turn got intellectually stimulated. It was made possible through the speeches that he often gave in public. He also relied on external advisors for some legal advice (Bass, 2006, p.86). This shows that he valued the various inputs and opinions of external actors. JFKs administrators worked together so that they could synthesize their speeches in order to incorporate the views of all parties.
This also helped him in creating a balance in decision making processes as it was multi-dimensional. It in turn made it possible to solve the Cuban missile crisis. His innovative ideas were useful in calming down of the missile crisis. When a comparison is made between President J. F Kennedy and President George w. Bush, it must be underlined that JFK was more ambitious than G. W. Bush, which is attributed to the ambitious goals that G.W Bush had set, but they lacked the appropriate contextual intelligence (Anderson, 2001, p.10).
JF Kennedys ability to inspire and motivate people
John Kennedy was always a self-inspired person who often believed that he could manage things better than any other person. He was able to understand the roots of the problem in regards to the Great Depression in America and resolve the Cold War issue presenting himself as the hero. He was an individual who has sense of humor and charisma that is why he was able to motivate people that he interacted with as well as keep them inspired performing his work and duties (Benson, 2000, p.48).
JFKs Quest for power
JFK ran for Congress in 1946; the fact that he joined the politics was unexpected for his college friends who were sure he would be a professor. JFK never enjoyed campaigning, but he was elected, and won a 1952 Massachusetts senate sit. In 1956 he published the book Profiles in Courage; it was a book about eight U.S. senators who had asserted political courage in the pursuit of their version of the public interest (Barnes, 2005, p.49).
JFK is one of the leaders who had the passion for taking their countries to greater heights. He always believed in himself and he knew that being a presidential leader required no prior experience, which gave him the vigor to work hard to attain his objectives for the country (Bescholss, 2001, p.56)
Instead of waiting for his tenure to arrive, JFK utilized his youthfulness as a strength in the campaign towards possessing power. He beseeched the young generation to consciously display vigor and energy (Hult, 2005, p.44). JFK was a man of forty-four years old when he was chosen for the post of the President of the US. John F. Kennedy occupied this post the least period of time in comparison to all presidents of the United States, in particular, two years and ten months, but his Administration is nonetheless, regarded as one of the most documented and remembered ever. Domestically, the struggle for civil rights dominated the agenda, but JFK ignored the issue throughout his Presidency tenure (Hult, 2005, p.44).
Schlesinger said JFK was one of the people who displayed his leadership qualities right from the beginning of his presidency. JFK was perceived as the person who was disciplined, not candid and ready to take challenges (Burns, 2008, p.68). He was ruling the US during some of the most difficult times in the history of the United States; the times when Berlin and Cuba were the two epicenters of the Cold War, over which the Soviet Union and the US wrestled (Cronin, 2004, p.2).
JFK presided over one of the great U.S. foreign policy fiascoes in the 20th century, the Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961, and one of the greatest U.S. diplomatic successes, the Cuban Missile Crisis of 25th October (Cronin, 2004, p.2). In the Bay of Pigs invasion, it is noted that American troops and air power were to assist exile Cubans to overthrow the Castro regime (Cronin, 2004, p.2). However, the operation failed because of poor intelligence service as well as planning of the operation itself. The primary test of JFK as a decision maker came in the Cuban Missile Crisis, where the Soviet Union had placed offensive nuclear missiles that could reach the U.S. in less than 10 minutes, but he managed the situation successfully (Dallek & Golway, 2006, p.142)
Kennedy pledged to restore American military strength by means of increasing conventional forces and boost the missile program while improving the relations with the Communist world. He was constantly involved in working on a nuclear arms control agreement pledged to defend Berlin, rebuild NATO, revitalize assistance to the Third World as well as create an Alliance for Progress with Latin America (Preston, 2006, p.103). It can be underlined that there was no other politician who had the same power to lead, inspire or restrain the Congress and the country at large (Leaming, 2006, p.46).
Conclusion
JFK is considered to be the most conscious president in the 20th century. The 1960s are associated with the development of the media, so JFK utilized imagery by means of press; he was always willing to look physically vigorous and sexual. He delivered the inaugural without his coat and hat when it was freezing outside to advance youthfulness and a break from traditions. Reflecting the three factors discussed in relation to leadership qualities, JFK appears to be the leader who can be remembered by many in the American history because he managed to cut across the three factors.
As discussed in the paper, he was the person who could easily make personal decisions and he had a vision for the country with proper strategies on how to accomplish the mission towards the intended vision. So, such abilities can be considered positive stories of JFKs personal development as they hardly took into consideration his mistakes.
References
Allison, G 2009, Conceptual Models and the Cuban Missile Crisis, The American Political Science Review, Vol. 63, No. 3, pp. 689-718.
Allison, G 2004, The Politics of Policy Making in Defense and Foreign Affairs: Conceptual Models and Bureaucratic Politics, Political Science Quarterly, Vol. 102, No. 3, pp. 524-525.
Allison, G and Zelikow, P 2006, Essence of Decision: Explaining the Cuban Missile Crisis, Routledge, London.
Anderson, P 2001, Decision Making by Objection and the Cuban Missile Crisis, Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 28 No.1 pp. 201-222.
Barnes, A 2005, John F. Kennedy on Leadership The Lessons and Legacy of a President, Amacon Publishers.USA.
Bass, B 2006, Bass & Stogdills Handbook of Leadership Theory, Research and Managerial Applications, The Free Press, New York.
Benson, T 2000, Speechwriting, Speechmaking, and the Press: The Kennedy Administration and the Bay of Pigs, Harvard College, USA.
Bescholss, M 2001, The Crisis Years Kennedy and Khrushchev 1960 1963, Edward Burlingame Books, New York.
Leaming, B 2006, Jack Kennedy: The Education of a Statesman, W.W. Norton & Company. USA.
Preston, T 2006, Individual Characteristics of Political Leaders and the Use of Analogy in Foreign Policy Decision Making, Political Psychology , Vol 27, NO 2, PP. 249-272.