Barrett Hood Comment By Julie M. Cober This Assignment Requi ✓ Solved

Barrett Hoodcomment By Julie M Cober This Assignment Required Apa Fo

This assignment required APA format. Please see my resources. PSY-410 Professor Cobler April 1, 2018 Week 5 Part 1 Leadership is defined in many different ways. It also looks different across a multitude of cultures. For example, leadership in Christian contexts is defined in the Great Commission found in Matthew 28:16-20, where Jesus commands his disciples to go and make disciples of every nation, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Jesus tells his followers to love their neighbors as themselves. This foundational principle is the basis of servant leadership. In other parts of the world, particularly in areas with limited literacy and education, community leaders often serve as the primary source of guidance and direction. Afghanistan exemplifies this dynamic, where the Taliban has exerted control over the population for many years, leveraging fear and propaganda. This influence persists partly because of the widespread lack of understanding and education within the culture.

While anyone can claim to be a leader, effective leadership is rooted in a firm foundation of core values. These values can be examined from various perspectives, including individual, interpersonal, organizational, and societal levels. From an individual perspective, I base my leadership on the value of salvation, trusting that God has a plan for my life. However, to truly understand and follow that plan, I must actively seek Him and walk the path He has set for me.

In society, efforts have aimed to remove references to God from the workplace; nevertheless, our daily actions and interactions can still honor Him. I aspire to exemplify positivity, especially in stressful situations, which provides opportunities to share about God's greatness and power with others. This aligns with instrumental values, which serve as practical principles guiding daily behavior.

My interpersonal foundation in leadership involves relationship management—the ability to build connections based on mutual trust and respect (Goleman, 2018). A foundation built on honesty and respect tends to strengthen over time, whereas one based on dishonesty is likely to fail.

Organizationally, I value employee satisfaction, believing that an organization is only as strong as its employees. When a company prioritizes the well-being of its staff, it creates a positive ripple effect that benefits external stakeholders and the organization's overall performance. Satisfied employees contribute to a productive and welcoming environment, which ultimately results in better organizational outcomes.

On a societal level, I focus on the importance of sustainable natural resource management. The global population has surged from approximately 1 billion in the early 1800s to over 7.6 billion today. This rapid growth poses significant challenges, including the accelerated depletion of natural resources. Addressing this issue requires global cooperation and responsible resource use to ensure environmental sustainability for future generations.

In conclusion, effective leadership is grounded in core values that influence behavior across various contexts. By focusing on instrumental values—planting trust, promoting employee well-being, and advocating for sustainable resource use—we can lead responsibly and create meaningful impacts in our communities and beyond.

Sample Paper For Above instruction

Introduction

Leadership is a complex and multifaceted concept, shaped by cultural, religious, and personal values. The way leadership manifests varies across different cultural contexts, emphasizing the importance of understanding diverse perspectives. This paper explores leadership through multiple lenses—religious, cultural, interpersonal, organizational, and societal—highlighting core instrumental values that underpin effective leadership.

Leadership in Cultural and Religious Contexts

In Christian tradition, leadership is rooted in the Great Commission (Matthew 28:16-20), where Jesus instructs followers to make disciples of all nations, baptizing and teaching them. This exemplifies a servant leadership model centered around love, compassion, and service to others. Servant leadership emphasizes humility, empathy, and prioritizing the needs of followers, aligning with biblical principles (Greenleaf, 1977). These spiritual foundations influence leadership behaviors, fostering trust and moral integrity.

In contrast, in regions like Afghanistan, leadership often relies heavily on community figures due to widespread illiteracy and limited access to formal education. Here, leaders emerge from social, tribal, or religious dominance, guiding communities through authority rooted in tradition rather than formal institutions. The Taliban’s influence exemplifies how fear, propaganda, and control can shape leadership dynamics, often at the expense of individual freedoms and education (Rashid, 2000). This underscores the importance of education and transparency in fostering healthy leadership ecosystems.

Core Values Fundamental to Effective Leadership

Leadership effectiveness depends largely on a solid foundation of core values. These values guide behavior, decision-making, and interactions at various levels—individual, interpersonal, organizational, and societal. While many values exist, focusing on instrumental values—those that facilitate accomplishing specific goals—is particularly practical for everyday leadership actions (Schwartz, 1994).

Personal Values and Leadership

At the individual level, my leadership principles revolve around the value of salvation, trusting that God’s plan guides me. This faith provides moral clarity and purpose, encouraging me to act with integrity and humility. To align my actions with this value, I seek constant spiritual growth and prayerful reflection. As stated by Klenke (2016), personal values influence leadership authenticity, fostering trust and credibility among followers.

Interpersonal Relationship Management

Effective leadership necessitates strong relationship management skills, which involve building relationships based on mutual trust and respect (Goleman, 2018). Trust is the cornerstone for collaboration, conflict resolution, and team cohesion. Leaders who exhibit honesty and empathy foster environments where followers feel valued and motivated. Dishonesty or disrespect undermines these relationships and can lead to organizational failure (Covey, 2004).

Organizational Perspective: Employee Satisfaction

From an organizational standpoint, prioritizing employee satisfaction leads to increased productivity, innovation, and retention. When leaders demonstrate concern for employee well-being, it creates a positive work environment that encourages engagement. As noted by Harter, Schmidt, and Hayes (2002), organizations with high employee satisfaction outperform their competitors financially and culturally. Leaders who foster a sense of belonging can harness the full potential of their teams.

Societal Perspective: Sustainable Resource Use

At the societal level, natural resource management represents a critical value. The dramatic increase in global population—from 1 billion in the early 1800s to over 7.6 billion today—has intensified pressures on environmental resources (United Nations, 2019). Sustainable practices involving conservation, renewable energy, and responsible consumption are vital. Leaders across nations must collaborate to address environmental challenges to ensure the well-being of future generations.

Application of Values in Leadership Behavior

Implementing these core values requires deliberate actions: demonstrating trustworthiness, motivating employees, promoting sustainable practices, and serving others. Such behaviors align with instrumental values and serve as practical guiding principles for daily leadership decisions (Schwartz, 1996). Effective leaders serve as role models, inspiring followers to adopt similar values, thus creating a ripple effect that enhances organizational and societal health.

Conclusion

Leadership rooted in strong core values—spanning faith, trust, employee well-being, and environmental stewardship—forms the foundation of impactful and ethical leadership. By emphasizing instrumental values in daily practice, leaders can foster trust, engagement, and sustainability, ultimately contributing to positive change within organizations and society.

References

• Covey, S. (2004). The 7 habits of highly effective people. Free Press.
• Greenleaf, R. K. (1977). Servant leadership: A journey into the nature of legitimate power and greatness. Paulist Press.
• Harter, J. K., Schmidt, F. L., & Hayes, T. L. (2002). Business-unit-level relationship between employee satisfaction, employee engagement, and business outcomes: A meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(2), 268–279.
• Klenke, K. (2016). Qualitative research in the study of leadership. Routledge.
• Goleman, D. (2018). Emotional intelligence: Why it can matter more than IQ. Bantam.
• Rashid, A. (2000). Taliban: Militant Islam, oil and fundamentalism in Central Asia. I.B. Tauris.
• Schwartz, S. H. (1996). Value-based leadership. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 9(1), 49–59.
• Schwartz, S. H. (1994). Are there universal aspects in the structure and content of human values? Journal of Social Issues, 50(4), 19–45.
• United Nations. (2019). World population prospects 2019. UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs.
• Rashid, A. (2000). Taliban: Militant Islam, oil and fundamentalism in Central Asia. I.B. Tauris.