Good Essay About Female Leadership In US Culture

Management

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The issue of female leadership in the United States represents a knot of various topics related not only to the role and functions female leaders have in contemporary America, but also the overall differences in approach to managerial tasks and duties performed by various representatives the two genders.
Leadership per se within the context of this research may be defined as a quality characterized by several key attributes – ability to manage people and tasks, ability to lead, ability to transform respective activities and attitudes according to the changes of the political, economic, social and cultural environment. It is traditionally believed that male and female leaders differ in each of these aspects.
As stated by Eagly, in the ability to handle people and tasks it is widely believed that leaders of the male group (not necessarily physically male) tend to rely on formal hierarchical structure and respective system of relations, acquire knowledge of the situation from reasonable, logical assessment and comparison of facts (p. 570). The work that is being performed in such cases tends to be done with little or no emotional involvement. Bearers of the female behavioral pattern in leadership, on the other hand, tend to rely on gut feelings while making managerial and leadership decisions, get emotionally involved in projects and respective relations with subordinates and supervisors, and have a wider range of feelings associated with the job being done (p. 581).
Based on the findings of B.T. Johnson, the leadership potential, or the overall ability to lead, lies far beyond the formal area of management. The ability to summon people around a common, core duty or assignment, motivate them to take the aim in question as their own, and help them realize that their efforts are significant within their particular lines of duty – all these factors and the extent of their successful implementation define the true worth of any given leader. From this perspective, it is really difficult, if possible at all, to distinguish purely male or female patterns ( p.15), as the goal of leadership in this context is to organize people using all the appropriate and effective techniques, which naturally tend to vary from one situation to another. Such ability is therefore available to male and female leaders regardless of gender differences.
The third quality of leadership – transformational leadership and ability to bear responsibility for one’s actions as well as for those of her or his subordinates in the ever-changing environment, as defined by L.L. Carli (p. 820) does not have a distinct gender affiliation. The issues of responsibility, intelligence, compassion and understanding are equally significant for the leaders of both genders.
Both female leadership images in the US happen to be useful, effective and mutually complimenting.

Bibliography:

Eagly, A. H. (2003). Transformational, Transactional and Laissez-Faire Leadership Styles: A Meta-Analysis Comparing Women and Men. Psychological Bulletin 129(4): 569-591
Johnson, B. T. (1990). Gender and Leadership Style: A Meta-Analysis. University of Connecticut, CHIP Documents.
Carli, L. L. (2003). The female leadership advantage: An evaluation of the evidence. The Leadership Quarterly 14: 807-834