The philosophy of leadership

Abstract

This article consists of a conceptual analysis of the word leadership followed by an exploration of the problems of evaluation concerned with the morality of leadership. The following four characteristics of leadership are identified:

1. a person acting as a centre of authority;

2. a group of people whose actions are directed from this centre;

3. the acknowledged right to execute power;

4. the interactional relation between leader and followers.

The logic of leadership does not entail any judgement about the moral quality of leadership. However, since effective leadership can indeed be morally evil crucial moral questions should be raised in this respect. In conclusion the political philosophy of Plato is used to illustrate another aspect of leadership, namely that it should create the conditions for citizens to become leaders of themselves, that is, persons whose lives are under the control of their reason.