Ralph, Neil (2023) A critique of cultural context or colonial cop-out? : An open and honest reflection on an assessment intended to challenge a Western hegemony in leadership theory. In: Lancaster Partnership 2023 Education Conference, 2023-07-05 - 2023-07-06.
Full text not available from this repository.Abstract
In the Leadership Perspectives module, students on the Masters in Management at Lancaster University are introduced to foundational theories of leadership with the aim of developing their self-awareness and informing their practice as impactful leaders of the future. The curriculum endeavours to introduce a broad range of leadership concepts, however there is a strong bias towards a Western hegemony. This is partially countered by consideration of the cultural context within which students will apply their learning and an assessment that requires students to "demonstrate a critical understanding of leadership in their own cultural context and its implications for practice as a leader". The assessment encourages students to identify and analyse key cultural influences in their chosen cultural context, typically their home country. This analysis may include historical and philosophical influences as well as more current pragmatic interpretations of culture, such as power distance. This foundation is used to postulate the type of leadership that may be most appropriate in that cultural context, with a view to critiquing the dominant western theories and encouraging exploration of more culturally appropriate approaches. Having run this module and assessment for three years, I am left asking myself whether this is a positive intervention that opens an important debate about the nature of leadership in different cultural contexts and supports students to critically evaluate the impact of predominantly Western/ Global North leadership approaches, or a proxy for decolonising the leadership curriculum.