Papering the Cracks with Discourse: The Narrative Identity of the Authentic Leader

Abstract

Authentic leadership has been described as ‘the root construct underlying all positive forms of leadership and its development’ (Avolio & Gardner, 2005: 316). Authentic leadership revolves around the somewhat clichéd idea of ‘being true to the self ’, or more precisely, ‘being true to one’s core beliefs and values and exhibiting authentic behaviour’ (Gardner et al., 2005: 345). Authenticity ‘involves “owning” who one truly is’ (Sparrowe, 2005: 421). But who is one ‘truly’? What constitutes this true self? Narrative theory has been invoked to explore this question of identity. This article examines and critiques the use of narrative as an exploratory mechanism in the search for authenticity and the authentic self. It argues that the current methodologies have a tendency to replicate existing paradigms rather than discover new possibilities. This article then proposes an alternative perspective on narrative based on the work of Adriana Cavarero, offering a new configuration of what constitutes the self, including a recognition of the unique existent and an acknowledgement of the distance between the existent and narrative identity. In conclusion, this article presents some implications and possibilities for further leadership research.