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I follow, therefore I lead: A longitudinal study of leader and follower identity and leadership in the marines
Author(s) -
Peters Kim,
Haslam S. Alexander
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
british journal of psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.536
H-Index - 92
eISSN - 2044-8295
pISSN - 0007-1269
DOI - 10.1111/bjop.12312
Subject(s) - psychology , followership , identity (music) , social psychology , social identity theory , perspective (graphical) , transformational leadership , leadership , leadership style , test (biology) , longitudinal study , sample (material) , leader development , social group , mathematics , paleontology , statistics , physics , chemistry , chromatography , artificial intelligence , computer science , acoustics , biology
It is acknowledged that identity plays an important role in a person's leadership development. To date, however, there has been little consideration of the possibility – suggested by the social identity perspective – that individuals who identify as followers may be especially likely to emerge as leaders. We test this possibility in a longitudinal sample of recruit commandos in the Royal Marines. Recruits rated their identification with leader and follower roles five times over the course of their 32‐week training programme. Recruits’ leadership and followership were evaluated by their commanders, and their leadership was assessed by their peers. Analysis indicated that while recruits who identified as leaders received higher leadership ratings from their commanders, recruits who identified – and were perceived – as followers emerged as leaders for their peers. These findings suggest that follower and leader identities underpin different aspects of leadership and that these are differentially recognized by others.