Peter G. Northouse's Leadership: Theory and Practice (Fifth Edition) fills an important gap in the literature that rests in the hazy space between thinking (theory) and doing (practice). The author points out different theories, approaches, and general points in the area of leadership. Even though the book basically talks about different practices of leadership, it differs from other previous viewpoints and argues the importance of different perspectives and their practices in real life settings. Eventually, this book shows that there is much more needs to be done in order to improve leadership. The author states that when different leadership perspectives are understood and put into practice, in real life settings, organization will be more effective and reach their aims efficiently. Leadership: Theory and Practice consists of 15 chapters. At the end of each chapter, a summary is provided.
In Chapter 1, “Introduction,” Northouse argues that the various types of leadership have come into prominence in the past several decades. The author gives different definitions of leadership and then explains his definition of leadership. He compares trait with process leadership and assigned with emergent leadership definitions and shows the comparison of trait and process leadership definitions in Figure 1.1 (The Different Views of Leadership). He also discusses leadership and power with the summary of the bases of power in Table 1.1 (Five Bases of Power) and types of power in Table 1.2 (Types and Bases of Power). Next, the author speaks of leadership and coercion. He defines leadership and management and summarizes them in Figure 1.2 (Functions of Management and Leadership). Finally, he provides information about layout of book.
In Chapter 2, “Trait Approach”, Northouse describes the trait approach and mentions some previous studies about this approach. He summarizes some of them in Table 2.1 (Studies of Leadership Traits and Characteristics). Then, the author talks about major leadership traits. Following, the author discusses five‐factor personality model and leadership and summarizes his discussion in Table 2.3 (Big Five Personality Factors). Also, he points out emotional intelligence in terms of leadership trait. After that, the author argues how the trait approach works and explains the strengths and weaknesses of the approach. Then, he notes the application of this approach and gives case studies. Next, he discusses the various questionnaires used to assess individuals' personality features and provides the Leadership Trait Questionnaire (LTQ).
In Chapter 3, “Skills Approach,” Northouse first describes the skills approach. Then, the author describes the “Three‐skill Approach” and depicts it in Figure 3.1 (Management Skills Necessary at Various Levels of an Organization). Then, the author discusses “Skills Model” and summarizes this new skills‐based model of organizational leadership in Figure 3.3 (Skills Model of Leadership). Following, the author argues how the skills approach works and explains the strengths and weaknesses of this approach. Then, he explains the application of this approach and provides case studies. Next, he points out that there are many different questionnaires in order to measure an individual's skills for leadership and presents “Skills Inventory” as an example.
In Chapter 4, “Style Approach,” Northouse explains the style approach and states that there are three major studies about this approach. These studies are the Ohio State studies, University of Michigan studies, and Blake and Mouton's Managerial (Leadership) Grid. Next, the author argues how the style approach works and explains the strengths and weaknesses of the approach. Then, he clarifies the application of this approach and gives case studies. Following, he notes that there are some questionnaires to measure the styles of leaders and presents “Style Questionnaire” as an example.
In Chapter 5, “Situational Approach,” Northouse explains situational approach and illustrate his description in Figure 5.1 (Situational Leadership II). Then, the author discusses how the situational approach works and covers the strengths and weaknesses of the approach. Following, he explains the application of this approach and provides some case studies. Next, he talks about some questionnaires and situational leadership questionnaire as an example.
In Chapter 6, “Contingency Theory,” Northouse describes contingency theory. The author also mentions leadership styles within the framework of contingency theory. After that, the author argues situational variables and depicts them in Figure 6.1 (Contingency Model). Next, the author discusses how this theory works and elucidates the strengths and weaknesses of the theory. Then, he clarifies the application of this theory in leadership and provides case studies. Following, he points out Least Prefer Coworker (LPC) scale to measure an individual's leadership style.
In Chapter 7, “Path‐Goal Theory,” Northouse describes path‐goal theory. The author also explains the fundamental ideas of path‐goal theory and illustrates this in Figure 7.1 (The Basic Idea Behind Path‐Goal Theory). The author indicates the different components of path‐goal theory in Figure 7.2 (Major Components of Path‐Goal Theory) and defines them one by one. Then, the author describes how this theory works and illustrates how leadership behaviors are related to subordinate and task characteristics in Table 7.1 (Path‐Goal Theory: How It Works). Following, he points out the strengths and weaknesses of this theory. He, also, explains the application of this theory and gives case studies. He advocates that there are many different instruments to evaluate the leadership process in this theory and presents “Path‐Goal Leadership Questionnaire as an example.
In Chapter 8, “Leader‐Member Exchange Theory”, Northouse describes LMX theory. Then, the author talks about early and later studies of exchange theory. He explains the stages of leadership making and shows it in Table 8.1 (Phases in Leadership Making). Next, the author discusses how leader‐member exchange theory works and describes the strengths and weaknesses of the theory. Then, he clarifies the application of this theory in leadership and provides case studies. Following, the author states that there are various questionnaires to measure the quality of the working relationship between leaders and subordinates and presents leader‐member exchange (LMX) 7 questionnaire as an example.
In Chapter 9, “Transformational Leadership,” Northouse defines and provides information about transformational leadership. The author also talks about transformational leadership with charisma. He points out charismatic leadership theory and illustrates it in Table 9.1 (Personality Characteristics, Behaviors, and Effects on Followers of Charismatic Leadership). Then, he mentions a model of transformational leadership and shows this model in Figure 9.1 (Leadership Continuum From Transformational to Laissez‐Faire Leadership). Following, he argues transformational and transactional leadership factors and depicts them in Table 9.2 (Leadership Factors) and in Figure 9.2 (Full Range of Leadership Model). He discusses the effects of transformational leadership and illustrates this in Figure 9.3 (The Addictive Effects of Transformational Leadership). Then the author mentions some other transformational perspectives. Next, the author argues how the transformational approach works and explains the strengths and weaknesses of the theory. Then, he clarifies the application of this theory and provides some case studies. Finally, the author presents “Sample Items from the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) Form 5x‐short”.
In Chapter 10, “Authentic Leadership,” Northouse explains the authentic leadership theory and mentions intrapersonal, developmental, and interpersonal definition of authentic leadership theory. The author also discusses practical and theoretical approaches of the theory. Next, the author describes how authentic leadership theory works and spells out the strengths and weaknesses of this theory. Then, he elucidates the application of this theory and supplies case studies. After that, the author provides “Authentic Leadership Self‐assessment Questionnaire”.
In Chapter 11, “Team Leadership,” Northouse describes team leadership and discusses previous studies about groups and teams. The author emphasizes the importance of this approach and discuses the team leadership model. He talks about team effectiveness and explains some characteristics of team excellence. Next, the author argues how the team leadership model works and clarifies the strengths and weaknesses of the model. Then, he elucidates the application of this model and gives case studies. Following, he advocates that there are some different questionnaires in order to measure team effectiveness and the leadership within those teams and presents “Teams Excellence and Collaborative Team Leader Questionnaire” as an example.
In Chapter 12, “Psychodynamic Approach,” Northouse describes the psychodynamic approach, Eric Berne and transactional analysis, Sigmund Freud and personality types, social character and a shift in leadership perspective, and Carl Jung and personality types. The author, also, talks about the Kroeger and Theusen (2002) study and shows their result in Table 12.2 (Psychological Preferences and Leadership). Then, he talks about sixteen personality types and leadership and summarizes them in Table 12.3 (Psychological Types and Leadership). Next, the author argues how the psychodynamic approach works and explains its strengths and weaknesses. Then, he provides case studies and presents “Psychodynamic Approach Survey” for the readers.
In Chapter 13, “Women and Leadership,” Northouse briefly discusses the roles of women in leadership and gives some great examples about women leaders from different places. Then, the author defines gender‐leadership styles and gender‐leadership effectiveness. He mentions the leadership gap between women and men and shows this in Figure 13.1 (The Leadership Gap). He also points out a number of explanations for the leadership gender gap and illustrates them in Figure 13.2 (Understanding the Leadership Labyrinth). Following, he advocates that the number of women in‐high level leadership positions has been increasing recently and explains the various causes. Next, the author argues the strengths and weaknesses of this approach, mentions its application and supplies some case studies. Finally, he presents “The Gender‐Leader Implicit Association Test” for the readers.
In Chapter 14, “Culture and Leadership,” Northouse gives bit information about chapter and globalization. The author shortly argues research on culture, its dimensions and influences on the process of leadership. The author defines culture and describes two related concepts of ethnocentrism and prejudice to culture and leadership. Then, he talks about the dimension of culture and introduces Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness (GLOBE). After that, he argues the dimensions of culture according to the results of GLOBE. He also discusses clusters of world cultures and characteristics of clusters and summarizes them in Figure 14.1 (Country Clusters According to GLOBE) and in Table 14.1 (Cultural Clusters Classified on Cultural Dimensions). Then, he discusses leadership behavior and culture clusters. He points out universally desirable and undesirable leadership attitudes and shows them in Table 14.2 (Universally Desirable Leadership Attitudes) and in Table 14.3 (Universally Undesirable Leadership Attitudes). Next, the author argues the strengths and weaknesses of GLOBE. He also mentions the implications of this chapter in leadership training and provides case studies. Finally, he presents “Dimensions of Culture Questionnaire” for the readers.
In Chapter 15, “Leadership Ethics,” Northouse describes the chapter and then defines the meaning of ethics. The author points out some ethical theories and shows them in Table 15.1 (Domains of Ethical Theories). Then, he argues that ethics is central to leadership and shares some prominent scholars' perspectives in the area of ethics and leadership with the readers. He also discusses the principles of ethical leadership and illustrates them in Figure 15.2 (Principles of Ethical Leadership). Then, he speaks of the strengths and weaknesses of ethics and leadership and its application. Following, he provides some case studies. Later, he points out “Perceived Leader Integrity Scale” (PLIS) and gives it as an example instrument for the readers.
In conclusion, this book is intended for graduate and undergraduate students in education, educational leadership, and policy analysis; educators, administrators, and researchers in the field of education; and policy makers.
