Leadership training with adolescents

Abstract

Considerable effort hs gone into the development of leadership training programs for adults who have already assumed formal leadership roles. It is of interest to consider the application of leadership training which has been tested and used successfully with adults for use with adolescents. One such training program, developed by Fred Fiedler, is based on contingency theory. The theory postulates that leadership is a function of the personality of the individual and of the situation within which it is exercised. This training program, entitled Leader Match, was developed for use with adults in both private and public settings as a management training tool, and was revised for use with adolescents in this study. Hypotheses tested included (1) Leadership effectiveness as measured by group performance will improve significantly for those teams whose leaders receive Leader Match Training; (2) Perception of leadership on the part of group members as measured on a sociometric scale is influenced by providing Leader Match Training; and (3) Leadership behaviors of team leaders are affected by Leader Match Training. An application of the adolescent leadership training program was made with team leaders of high school basketball teams. Team captains were randomly assigned to two groups of 30 subjects each. One group of team leaders received leadership training while the other received self awareness training. An analysis of the effect of leadership training was made using group performance measures, team perception of team leaders and measures of leader behaviors. A comparison of leadership effectiveness as measured by group performance did not reach statistical significance. The perception of leadership performance based on team members ratings was influenced significantly. Leadership trained team leaders were seen as more influential. The frequency of leadership behaviors as reported by coaches and team leaders themselves increased in the hypothesized direction. No definitive recommendations were made.