Chapter 1: Theory Leadership from Africa: Examples of Trait Theory

Written from a Leadership Studies educator’s perspective, this chapter highlights and challenges the Western bias of leadership theories, and disrupts this ideological ethnocentrism by presenting leadership trait theory through the experiences of contemporary African community leaders. Using one of the most recognizable theories in leadership studies, this chapter proposes reimagining trait theory by presenting examples of skills, abilities, and qualities of leadership by contemporary leaders from Liberia, Cameroon, and South Africa.

By using examples of leadership in African countries, this chapter demonstrates that the Western bias of leadership is artificial because its theories, particularly trait theory, can be successfully employed to discuss leadership in non-western contexts in ways that prize the differences in culture and societies.