International Journal of Leadership Studies

From the Editor

Dail Fields

Servant leadership is a concept that generally evokes a range of reactions from the very positive ("Yes! That's what this organization needs!") to the less positive ("What is it–but a contradiction in terms?"). Anything that controversial clearly needs to be studied. This special issue represents the work of several scholars to do just that. The papers included were compiled from over 20 studies presented in August 2006 at a conference held annually at Regent University. The Servant Leadership Roundtable brings together seasoned academics and young developing scholars to discuss and debate aspects of research related to the nature and outcomes of servant leadership. The research in this field of leadership, first described by Jesus, continues to develop and grow. I want to thank our guest editors Kathleen Patterson, who makes sure the Servant Leadership Roundtable happens, and Mihai Bocarnea, who is the director of Regent University's Ph.D. program in Organizational Leadership. I hope you will find their selections informative and stimulating.

From the Special Edition Editors

Kathleen Patterson & Mihai Bocarnea

This issue is a special edition that showcases servant leadership research that was recently presented at Regent University's Servant Leadership Research Roundtable in August 2006. We are pleased to have participated in the roundtable and further pleased to now bring you a sampling of the work that was presented.

The articles you will find are both enlightening and informative and add to the growing literature base on servant leadership. The first article assesses six essential servant leadership themes and team effectiveness. Following this, the second article seeks to assess servant leadership from a philosophical point of view and a worldview perspective. Another article includes a look into an American auto dealership and the role of servant leadership in the succession planning process. Finally, an article is presented which looks into how servant leadership is related to trust and team commitment. Our thanks go to the authors for the diligence in their servant leadership research. Furthermore, we are grateful to those of you who have continued the high interest that has been surrounding the servant leadership literature. We trust you will enjoy this special IJLS edition.

Please note: Views and opinions expressed in the articles published in the International Journal of Leadership Studies (IJLS) represent each author's research and viewpoint and do not necessarily represent IJLS or its sponsors. IJLS and its sponsors make no representations about the accuracy of the information contained in published manuscripts and disclaims any and all responsibility or liability resulting from the information contained in the IJLS.

Team Effectiveness and Six Essential Servant Leadership Themes: A Regression Model Based on items in the Organizational Leadership Assessment

Justin A. Irving & Gail J. Longbotham

As evidenced by LaFasto and Larson's (2001) work with over 6,000 team members and leaders, interest in teams continues to capture the attention of both leadership scholars and practitioners. Subsequently, research into what leadership behaviors contribute to team effectiveness becomes relevant for those at the crossroads of theory and practice. Utilizing the Organizational Leadership Assessment (Laub, 1999) as a measure of servant leadership and the Team Effectiveness Questionnaire (Larson & LaFasto, 2001) as a measure of team effectiveness, this paper presents a multiple regression model that is able to explain a significant percentage of the variance in the effectiveness of teams. The essential servant leadership variables identified were (a) providing accountability, (b) supporting and resourcing, (c) engaging in honest self-evaluation, (d) fostering collaboration, (e) communicating with clarity, and (f) valuing and appreciating. [more]

Servant Leadership: A Worldview Perspective

J. Randall Wallace

The concept of worldview is introduced and explored as a framework for creating a philosophical foundation for servant leadership. The author uses the work of Schaeffer (1968), Pearcey (2004), Murphy and Ellis (1996), and MacIntyre (1984, 1988) to demonstrate the fragmented nature of modern philosophic and scientific traditions, how this affects ethics and morality, and how this fragmentation can be remedied to produce a unified and cohesive worldview. Five major world religions (Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism) are examined for their overall compatibility with servant leadership. An eight-component worldview based upon the Judeo-Christian tradition is offered as a potential foundation for servant leadership and an answer to the question: Why should I practice servant leadership? [more]

Servant Leadership's Role in the Succession Planning Process: A Case Study

Walter W. Dingman & A. Gregory Stone

This case study applied the seven constructs of Patterson's (2003) model of servant leadership (agápao love, humility, altruism, vision, trust, empowerment, and service) to examine the role and effect of servant leadership on the succession process within Freedom Automotive, a for-profit organization. The current owner, a past owner, and six of the seven executive committee members provided data triangulated by three methods of data collection: the observations of the organization over a 4-month period, the data from company records, and responses to eight in-depth interviews conducted using emergent design. This examination of the succession process in a servant-led organization showed a positive relationship between servant leadership principles and the succession process. [more]

Structural Equivalence of the Barbuto and Wheeler (2006) Servant Leadership Questionnaire on North American and South African Samples

Zani Dannhauser & A. B. Boshoff

The Servant Leadership Questionnaire (Barbuto & Wheeler, 2006) was applied to 417 salespersons from 100 dealerships operated by an automobile retailer in South Africa. The structural invariance of the instrument was investigated by means of item analysis as well as exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Item analyses indicated that the items all correlated very highly with each other and formed part of the same construct. The five-factor structure identified by the authors of the instrument could not be replicated by the exploratory factor analyses carried out on the responses of the present sample. A unidimensional structure seemed to represent the best fit with the data when confirmatory factor analyses were performed to determine the configuration of the measurement model. [more]

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