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Leader Perspectives On Factors That Shape Their Change Leadership Practice, Michelle A. Shields Dec 2018

Leader Perspectives On Factors That Shape Their Change Leadership Practice, Michelle A. Shields

Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership Theses

With the abundance of change and leadership research and literature at our fingertips, why do so many change initiatives fail? Is there a connection to leaders’ perspectives on what factors inform their change leadership practices, and how do they think about engaging followers in change? This thesis research project leveraged qualitative interviews to explore leader perspectives on what factors inform their change leadership practice, particularly with respect to their approach for engaging followers. To set a theoretical foundation, this project reviews Kolb’s Experiential Learning Theory (1984) to provide insights to the role that experience plays in the individual learning for …


Navigating Perceptions And Stereotypes Of Leaders Who Identify As Non-Religious In The U.S.: A Qualitative Thesis Examining How Individuals Who Identify As Non-Religious Navigate Stereotypes And Perceptions Of Their Identity To Establish Themselves As Credible Leaders, Sarah Kruger Hilger May 2018

Navigating Perceptions And Stereotypes Of Leaders Who Identify As Non-Religious In The U.S.: A Qualitative Thesis Examining How Individuals Who Identify As Non-Religious Navigate Stereotypes And Perceptions Of Their Identity To Establish Themselves As Credible Leaders, Sarah Kruger Hilger

Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership Theses

The religious landscape of the U.S. is changing drastically with an increasing number of individuals identifying as non-religious (Pew Research Center, 2014). While these individuals do not associate with a particular religion, they may be spiritual, have some religious based beliefs, or identify as atheist, agnostic, or yet another category (Baker & Smith, 2009; Cragun et al., 2012; Edgell et al., 2016). These individuals are our neighbors, friends, and family members. They are also leaders in our communities. However, U.S. society tends to have a negative perception of individuals who identify as non-religious as a person’s religious affiliation often serves …


Childfree Women: Navigating Perceptions And Developing A Leadership Identity, Stephanie Mccluskey May 2018

Childfree Women: Navigating Perceptions And Developing A Leadership Identity, Stephanie Mccluskey

Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership Theses

The number of childfree women in the United States has increased in recent decades, and those women occupy managerial roles at a higher rate than mothers. Childfree women, and women in leadership roles, encounter negative perceptions due to the inconsistency between their identities and the patriarchal views of the roles women should assume. This study examined how childfree women navigated perceptions assigned to them by others in order to gain credibility in their leadership. In qualitative interviews of 13 childfree women leaders, participants described others’ perceptions of them and discussed a variety of strategies they utilized to gain credibility in …