Women's sport leadership styles as the result of interaction between feminine and masculine approaches

Abstract

There is a growing body of research focusing on women in the business sector using a transformational model of leadership that identifies the ways in which they lead yet little is known about the style of leadership women practise in sport. In attempting to redress this oversight in the literature, this article draws on data from a larger study to identify how women practise leadership within a sporting context. It identifies the leadership styles of women working at the community (club and regional) and elite (state and national) sectors of the Australian sport system in the state of Victoria as being feminine but which appropriate aspects of masculine styles. It also suggests that the women's early experiences of growing up played a significant part in shaping their leadership styles.

Keywords:

• women
• sport leadership
• gender equity in sport
• leadership styles