Student Leadership Development Research Articles

The important role of distortion recognition in student advocacy leadership development.

Though promoting student advocacy has become an essential part of leadership education, few studies explore development of advocacy in leadership education. This article offers how distortions, an aspect of a Black feminist reframing of dissonance, is related to existing leadership education literature. It then introduces students' voices demonstrating the importance of the realization of distortions in student advocacy development and links distortions with how power communicates and upholds systemic oppression. Finally, we offer practical recommendations based on a case scenario that utilize Black feminist perspectives of dissonance in refining student advocacy leadership education. Such insight prompts more effective strategies in student advocate development.

Examining a leadership development initiative for college students with intellectual and developmental disability: A brief report

BACKGROUND: The number of inclusive college programs for students with intellectual and developmental disability (IDD) in the United States has steadily increased in recent years. As access to college becomes a more realistic prospect for people with IDD, there is a pressing need to examine the offerings and impacts of these programs critically. OBJECTIVE: One potential offering of inclusive college programs that has not been given much attention is opportunities for student leadership development (LD). The purpose of this brief report was to evaluate the perspectives of staff members in a program geared towards providing a paid LD opportunity to students with IDD in an inclusive college program in the southeastern United States. METHODS : Semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten student-employees staffing this LD opportunity and constant comparative analysis was employed to organize interview content by themes. RESULTS: Four primary themes arose as a result of the analytic process: character development, communication, opportunities for leading and mentoring others, strategic reflection, and individual empowerment. Each is explored in summation and through exemplary quotes from participants. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study provide important implications for professionals and future research to support maximizing the positive impact of these programs on the lives of students with IDD.

Creating student leaders through civics

Building on the literature of student leadership development, Natalie Sew, Adrianne Billingham Bock, and Danielle Allen share an approach to civic education: Deeper Civic Learning. This approach offers students the opportunity to develop the knowledge, skills, and key civic dispositions needed to engage in their communities and develop their leadership capacities. This article shares insights from the authors’ work co-designing an 8th-grade civics curriculum with Massachusetts educators. It highlights student perspectives on their experiences with the curriculum through extended stories of the application of civic skills and dispositions in their lives.

An international snapshot of peer leadership in higher education

PurposeThis paper describes an exploratory, international research collaboration that seeks to gain a deeper understanding of the development and experiences of peer leaders in higher education across different international contexts, namely the USA, Canada (CAN), Australasia (Australia and New Zealand) (ANZ), the United Kingdom (UK) and South Africa (SA).Design/methodology/approachData are summarized and compared across each of the participating countries, providing a more global context and depth of perspective on peer leadership (PL) in higher education than is currently available in the literature.FindingsThe findings highlight some apparent differences between countries in relation to student engagement in peer leader roles and the ways in which PL is supported by higher education institutions, as well as some similarities across the different international contexts, particularly in the way peer leaders view the benefits of their involvement in PL.Originality/valueThese insights provide a valuable addition to the literature on PL and practical information to higher education institutions for supporting student leadership development and involvement.

Implementation and evaluation of a learner-driven leadership initiative for pharmacy students and pharmacy residents.

Introduction: Leadership training is a crucial component of the pharmacy education curriculum. The Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) emphasizes and encourages the use of different leadership initiatives, and universities employ tactics with varying levels of success to implement these initiatives. "Leadership theory" debates if leadership can be learned or if it is a natural-born skill. This article explores learned leadership and describes a small study deployed to different levels of pharmacy learners to foster leadership confidence and self-awareness. Educational Context and Methods: Second- and third-year didactic students in a leadership elective, voluntary fourth-year Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience (APPE) students on an ambulatory care rotation, and first postgraduate year (PGY1) pharmacy residents were included in this initiative. Each cohort facilitated a leadership book club discussion and completed professional development activities over the course of their experience. Learners' perspectives on leadership were surveyed utilizing a pre-post survey study, administered prior to beginning the initiative and after completing the initiative. Findings and Discussion: Results demonstrated learners' perceived confidence and self-awareness in their leadership skills increased from pre-survey to post-survey. Evaluation of qualitative responses exhibited that participants found value in adding more leadership development to their pharmacy training. Most participants noted leadership book discussion facilitation as the most valuable part of the initiative and posited they would utilize skills gained through these discussions nearly every day in their careers. Results suggest PGY1 pharmacy residents showed the most significant increase in their scores from pre- to post-study, while didactic students showed the least significant increase. Implications: Our findings suggest learner-driven leadership initiatives, specifically learner-facilitated book club discussions, are beneficial to incorporate into both didactic and experiential coursework. Implementation of these discussions could be applied in many aspects of the curriculum with minimal resources and a reasonable expectation of perceived benefit to student leadership development.

Middle School Student's Leadership Skills and Their PE Class Participation

The research areas of physical participation (participatory discussions, sports and outdoor activities, collaborative activities) and leadership (self-confidence, communication skills, intelligence, cooperation and teamwork, decision-making skills, value formation) provide the basis for improving students' Learning efficiency and autonomy. They deepen student engagement in participatory discussions, physical and outdoor activities, and collaborative activities and increase the effectiveness of student leadership development. These areas have improved the academic standards of Nanyang middle school students, contributed to teaching input, and helped students develop classroom participation and leadership skills. This study randomly selected 568 students and analyzed the data collected using a descriptive correlational design and Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Research results show that improving the level of participatory discussions, sports and outdoor activities, and collaborative activities can effectively promote the improvement of students' leadership levels, including self-confidence, communication skills, intelligence, cooperation and team spirit, decision-making skills, values, etc. formation, ultimately improving students’ academic performance. In order to better cultivate students' sports participation ability and leadership thinking ability, teachers must take relevant measures in teaching. For example, strengthen the cultivation of leadership skills of middle school students, focus on curriculum design, improve students' participation in physical education classes, optimize physical education courses, design rich sports projects, implement intervention projects, and improve the quality of middle school students. Leadership skills and participation levels in physical education classes are critical. Students need independent learning and leadership skills to increase their level of classroom participation. Ultimately, these strategies help students develop leadership skills, broaden their horizons, and become confident, adaptable thinkers.

Improved professional competencies and leadership in PhD-prepared nurses and doctoral students after participating in the cross-national and web-based Nurse-Lead program

BackgroundDoctor of Philosophy (PhD)-prepared nurses are expected to exercise leadership in their various roles. Therefore, European nurse scholars developed a cross-national web-based Nursing Leadership and Mentoring Educational (Nurse-Lead) program. PurposeTo evaluate changes in leadership practices, professional and research competencies as well as career development of PhD-prepared nurses and doctoral nursing students after participation in the Nurse-Lead program. MethodsA pre-post-test evaluation was conducted. Surveys addressed leadership, professional and research competencies, and career development. Quantitative data were analyzed with descriptive statistics and paired sample t-tests. Content analysis was used for qualitative data. DiscussionThe 30 participants showed significant improvements in all leadership practices, professional competencies, and most research competencies. Participants reported increased confidence in decision-making, taking on new responsibilities, and becoming more visible within research teams. ConclusionWeb-based, international leadership and mentoring programs are promising tools for the leadership and professional development of PhD-prepared nurses and doctoral nursing students.

Training future leaders: A qualitative study exploring leadership development in predoctoral dental curricula.

Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) accreditation standard 2-19 states predoctoral dental schools must assess students' ability to function successfully as the leader of the oral health care team. This study aimed to explore how dental schools incorporate leadership training into their curriculum to better understand the leadership skills students learn, the ways students engage in leadership training, and the opportunities students have to practice leadership skills with their peers. The aim of this 2022 qualitative phenomenology study was to use semi-structured interviews with academic Deans at CODA-accredited dental schools and one subject matter expert to uncover types of cognitive, behavioral, and environmental factors influencing leadership training through the lens of social cognitive theory. All interviews were recorded on Zoom, transcribed, de-identified, and analyzed for recurring themes using NVivo. Eight academic Deans and one subject matter expert participated in the study. Four major themes emerged from the data: leadership is essential for dental professionals, leadership is incorporated into the curricula in diverse ways, students most often engage in leadership training opportunities with dental peers and interprofessional opportunities could be expanded, and dental schools often face barriers to incorporating leadership training. Vertically integrated case presentations and team-based practice management simulations are meaningful leadership development activities. Prominent barriers include time constraints, lack of faculty champions with teaching leadership expertise, and prioritizing the development of hand skills. Standard practices for student leadership development and assessment do not appear to exist across dental school curricula. Findings support the need for a leadership development framework.

Developing student leader emotional and social communication skills

While improving ability to communicate effectively is a given for developing student leadership potential, there are very few systematic frameworks to guide communication skill improvement. Using a model of emotional and social skills derived from research in interpersonal and emotional/nonverbal communication, tools and strategies for both assessing possession of complex and sophisticated social/communication skills and their development are discussed. This well-researched model breaks down complex communication into well-defined skills that underlie the more abstract leadership competencies of emotional and social intelligences. It provides a foundation for enhancing the emotional and social skills of students that lead them to be more effective in positions of leadership, and in social interactions more generally. Specific strategies for communication skill development are suggested, as well as discussion of formal guides and resources to aid in student leadership development.

Including student preferences in dental student leadership development opportunities.

Including student preferences in dental student leadership development opportunities.

Catalysts of Social Change: Examining Leadership Development in Service-Learning

The world direly needs leaders as agents of change in a society characterized by disparities in the quality of life due to unequal access to resources. A pedagogical practice increasingly used in higher education for students to acquire leadership skills is service-learning. However, few studies have examined the long-lasting effects of service-learning on student leadership development. Hence, this case study explores the enduring influence of service-learning on leadership development among 13 graduates engaged in a public health care setting in the Philippines as part of their coursework in 2014. Informed by the Social Change Model of Leadership Development, thematic analysis of focus group discussions revealed transformative leadership as the enduring influence of service-learning. Opportunities in service-learning for meaning-making seemed contributory for graduates to commit themselves as agents of change in society through their chosen profession. These findings support the view that service-learning is a high-impact pedagogical practice for teaching transformative leadership.

Constructing global graduate student leaders: towards a paradigm of responsible epistemic leaders

ABSTRACT University’s commitment to student leadership development has been progressively globalised and become more nuanced. Nevertheless, studies emphasising the unique possibilities and responsibilities of graduate students as aspiring leaders are scarce. These agendas, often held by non-profits and other organisations external to the university, recognise the graduate students’ role as knowledge producers, and are regularly actualised through competitive international practicum placements and fellowships with a global outlook. By examining the Trudeau fellowship in Canada as a case study, the paper provides a constructivist conceptual framework for reading graduate students as potential epistemic leaders. The paper outlines the opportunities as well as the challenges of this approach by integrating global citizenship with the current inequities of global knowledge production and dissemination.

Leadership identity development.

This article examines various applications of the leadership identity development (LID) grounded theory and model and explores the process used to apply LID to the construction of collegiate student leadership development experiences. Featured programs include those that use LID as a design element of the program, but do not explicitly teach it; those that explicitly teach the content of the LID theory and model in leadership programs and curricula; and those that use LID at the institutional level to inform university-wide leadership programming. The article concludes with critiques and considerations for leadership educators interested in applying LID in their leadership education and development programs.

A Study of Student Leadership Development in the Integration of Civic and Psychological Education Based on Social Cognitive Theory

Abstract Civic and political education and psychological education have a molding effect on students’ leadership, and the developmental study of leadership can better propose cultivation methods. In this paper, for the leadership development of the integration of civic and political education and psychological education, the SCM-LD model is proposed in combination with the social cognitive theory, and the basic assumptions and contents are established. According to the SCM-LD model, evaluation of students’ leadership development was launched by combining social cognitive theory and role theory, and an evaluation index system was constructed. The DEMATEL method was used to construct the causal diagram, which was then used as the foundation for ANP network analysis, and the indicator weights were established through the DANP method. Based on the evaluation method, we will explore the influence of ideological education and psychological education on students’ leadership development. The ANOVA test value of the goal foresight dimension was 0.467, team sharing power was 0.776, and teamwork power was 1.43. In the psychological education course grades, the grades had no significant effect on the leadership level of students, while the grades of the Civic and Political Education course had a certain effect on the leadership level of students. The direction for student leadership development-oriented Civics and Psychoeducation is presented in this study.

Influence of College Student Association on Students’ Leadership Attributes

This paper aims to explore the influence of student associations on the leadership development of college students from the dimensions of community atmosphere, community activities, community culture and community quality. In this study, a quantitative - comparative - relevant research design was used to determine the attributes of leadership from the indicators of leading by example, sharing inspiring vision, challenging status quo, benefiting others and inspiring others through an online questionnaire survey of 405 students . The results show that college students' associations have a significant role in promoting the leadership development of college students.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF TRAINING PROGRAM TO ENHANCE LEADERSHIP PRACTICES OF STUDENT LEADERS AT NORMAL UNIVERSITIES IN HEBEI PROVINCE, CHINA

This research aimed to develop a training program to enhance student leadership practices in students in normal universities in Hebei, China. The study utilized an exploratory mixed-methods approach integrating qualitative, quantitative, and experimental methods. A total of 897 student leaders from four normal universities in Hebei participated in the study. Factors related to student leadership development in the context of China were synthesized from the literature. Levels of leadership were measured and found overall to be at the moderate level. A significant regression equation was found F (7,661) = 31.04, p<.05), with an R2 of .106. Three were significant predictors of leadership practices: Mentorship and Support, Peer Collaboration, and Supportive Environment. From the regression equation obtained, these factors explained approximately 31% of the variation in the level of leadership practices. The validity of the training program was confirmed through implementation and statistical analysis. Sixty students participated in the training program. A pre-test questionnaire was distributed to both groups and respectively and analysis of data revealed that there was no significant difference between the means of the control group and experimental group. Subsequently, the experimental group participated in the developed training program. A paired samples t-test was done to compare the means pre-and post-training. The results of the t-test demonstrated that the leadership training program was effective in enhancing the leadership practices.

Research on the Leadership Development of College Students Majoring in Design

This article is based on the analysis of the answers to the questionnaire survey on the personality and leadership development of college students in the design field in order to provide a useful reference for scholars in the design field. This paper argues that college students answers to the character and leadership development questionnaire reflect their cognition and evaluation of their character traits and leadership level and expose the problems and difficulties that affect their character formation and leadership improvement. This article hopes that through such a discussion process, it can help scholars in the design field understand what core competitiveness the current design industry needs and how to stimulate and cultivate the qualities required for such competitiveness effectively, and on this basis to better formulate course plans and optimize teaching methods, improve the quality of education, and enhance the effect of education. At the same time, it is also hoped that it can inspire college students in their future personal career planning and growth.

Introduction to Leading from the Middle in Higher Education: Mentoring

“Leading from the Middle in Higher Education: Mentoring” is a Journal of Leadership Studies Symposium dededicated to the significance of mentoring in higher education, emphasizing the role of mentoring in leadership development for undergraduate and graduate students as well as faculty. To introduce the symposium, the current article provide insights into effective mentoring practices for mentors and mentees. The article delves into the definition of mentoring, both formal and informal, and discusses the benefits of mentoring within higher education. Additionally, it highlights crucial aspects of effective mentors and offers guidance on being an effective mentee.

Using the Leadership Identity Development (LID) model to frame college student leadership development programs

Student affairs practitioners need to use theory or models to provide a framework for their work with college students. This article shows how a college campus practices leadership development within the Leadership Identity Development (LID) Model framework. In addition to providing steps for using the model in practice, some challenges are noted in its use.

Examining U.S. Higher Education’s Function in Fostering Social Justice Leadership Development among College Student Leaders of Color

This study examines the function of U.S. higher education in fostering social justice leadership development among college student leaders of color. Specifically, this study investigates various on-campus educational opportunities at postsecondary institutions that college student leaders of color identify as being meaningful for their social justice leadership development. Social justice leadership development refers to an individual’s growth in increasing motivation to lead, building leadership skills, and performing leadership with an orientation toward advancing justice. Using the Social Action, Leadership, and Transformation model framework (SALT) and a critical qualitative methodology, this study centers on the knowledge and experiences of 16 college student leaders of color at seven postsecondary institutions across New York City, Chicago, and Los Angeles. The findings suggest that (1) leadership education designed for students of color, (2) culturally relevant academic majors and classes, (3) designated institutional offices and programs serving diverse students, and (4) identity-based or political student organizations play a crucial role in fostering student participants’ social justice leadership development. The study results inform a need for broadening institutional curricular and extra-curricular leadership educational opportunities across various spaces on campus to foster meaningful leadership development for students of color especially.