Abstract
Is there an ideal leader? If yes, do the traits of this ideal leader vary by national culture or across time, or is leadership a uniform concept across cultures? In this paper, modal leader behavior patterns are explored in modern Greece, through the findings of a longitudinal research project carried out on 1000 middle managers. The identified as desired leadership traits are then studied under the light of ideal images of the leader, as depicted in the classic works of Ancient Greek thinkers, notably Plato. Believing that implicit fundamental values are, to their larger part, unchangeable, we assume that the Greek ideal leader remains the same across centuries. Our findings seem to support this assumption.
“The concept of a leader cannot be defined independently of what a “good” leader is expected to accomplish.”[(Kodish 2006), on Aristotle’s teleology]
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Papalexandris, N., Galanaki, E. (2012). Connecting Desired Leadership Styles with Ancient Greek Philosophy: Results from the Globe Research in Greece, 1995–2010. In: Prastacos, G., Wang, F., Soderquist, K. (eds) Leadership through the Classics. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-32445-1_22
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-32445-1_22
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