Towards a model of influence of spirituality on leadership: empirical research of school leaders on Catholic schools in the Netherlands

Abstract

What is spirituality? What is leadership? And what is their relationship? The article presents the concept of ‘discernment’ (Latin: ‘discretion’) as the link (tertium comperationis) between spirituality and leadership. Spirituality is a way of life in (the growth of) discernment towards human fullness, which is grounded in a moral universe (God, nature). Three elements are employed in discernment: spiritual traits (Cloninger), spiritual capital (Bourdieu) and spiritual transformation (Waaijman). The influence of spirituality on leadership is empirically tested in research among 97 leaders (principals) of Catholic schools in the Netherlands. The findings show three types of leadership, namely trustworthy guiding leadership, empowering leadership and autocratic leadership. Our model with three predictors of a spiritual life growing in discernment (spiritual traits, capital and transformation) is partially confirmed, and looks promising for future research. In the discussion, the authors reflect on trustworthy-guiding leadership from the concept of attestation of Paul Ricoeur.

Keywords:

• discernment
• spiritual traits
• spiritual capital
• spiritual traits
• leadership

Notes

1. A tertium comperationis (which is Latin for the third [part] of the comparison) is the quality that two things which are being compared have in common. Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tertium_comparationis; accessed 10-2-2011) gives a good example for this based on a saying of John Lennon: ‘Woman is the nigger of the world.’ The objects of comparison are the treatment of woman in global culture and the treatment of African Americans in US culture. The point of comparison is the inhumane treatment or subjugation. This point of comparison is shared by both sides of the equation (woman and African Americans). As such, it is not mentioned in both terms of the equation.

2. Six items were eliminated from the final solution (items 5, 6, 7, 10, 14, 30 and 33).

3. In the fall of 2011, we gathered data of school leaders in South Africa (around Pretoria and Johannesburg). This project is supervised by a team of researchers of the department of practical theology of UNISA (Pretoria).