Leadership and bodily knowledge in expert organizations:: epistemological rethinking

Abstract

This paper argues that leadership knowledge has a bodily dimension, especially in expert organizations. Different knowledge types in leadership research are analysed and discussed on a basis of two dimensions: the nature of knowledge (tacit and explicit) and the knowledge actors (individual and collective). Bodily leadership knowledge refers to a special type of tacit knowing acquired through experience and social interaction over time. It is concluded that sensitive leadership and shared leadership describe individual and collective tacit leadership knowledge types, in which personal bodies have a central role in knowledge development. The paper suggests, among other things, that the bodily presence and distance of leaders are paradoxical elements in the leadership of expert organizations.