Self-analysis of Leadership Behaviors and Strengths Research Paper

Self-analysis of Leadership Behaviors and Strengths - Research Paper ExampleThis paper presents my potentials for good leadership in the nursing profession as I analyze and evaluate my personality strengths and behaviors in relation to the various nursing leadership theoretical models. To begin with, nursing shortage has apparently been a major problem of many countries all over the world. According to American Nurses Association (2011), the nursing population is aging rapidly and nursing shortage is expected to full point by year 2020. While the government takes effort and initiative to strengthen the healthcare system by recommending an increase in capacity on nursing procreation to encourage individuals to enter the profession, the nursing professional practice also continuously develops to meet the demands of advancement in trends and policies. Promoting nursing leadership to empower the immature nurses is of core importance not just because of the present situation of nursi ng shortage moreover for building a strong foundation of healthcare workforce for the coming generations. In connection to nursing leadership, Curtis, Vries, and Sheerin (2011) defined leadership as a collective variety of thoughts, reflections, and images including power, influence, fellowship, dynamic personality, charisma, goals, autocratic behavior, innovation, cleverness, warmth, and kindness. As the nursing education and practice develops, the same is true in nursing leadership theories. Clark (2009, pp. 6-23) presents the evolution of leadership theories from the basic leadership principles to more broader concepts and these are (1) The great man supposition leaders are born, not made (2) Trait conjecture some people are born with inherited traits suited to leadership (3) Behavioral theory leaders are made, not born (4) Role theory describes how expectations frame behavior (5) Lewins leadership styles a. autocratic (making closings without consulting anyone), b. dem ocratic (involve others in their decision), and c. laissez-faire (minimal stake in decision-making) (6) Likerts leadership styles a. exploitative authoritative (using threats and fear to achieve conformance), b. benevolent authoritative (showing concern but sugarcoats information and maintains control of decisions), c. consultative (listens to everyone but still makes the major decision), and d. participative (increases collaboration and seeks involvement of others in the decision-making process) (7) Hershey and Blanchards situational leadership theory considers motivation and capability of the followers (8) Normative leadership chooses a decision procedure from autocratic to group-based, depending on decision-acceptance and follower knowledge (9) Path-goal theory clarifies the path to a goal, removing roadblocks and increasing rewards along the way (10) Leader-member interchange theory leaders exchange informal agreements with their members (11) Transformational leadership t heory uses vision, passion, personal integrity, and enthusiasm to shape a changing social architecture by being proactive, serving as a catalyst for innovation, functioning as a team member, and encouraging organizational learning (12) Authentic leadership positive, genuine, trustworthy, credible, reliable, and