1. (A) Select the country in which you have spent the majority of your time up to now. Is the type of leadership in that country/culture changing? What is the basis/ evidence for your answer? (B) Select a large and influential country (in terms of the world's economy) other than the country you name in part A. Is the type of leadership in you (A) country becoming more or less similar the type of leadership in the (B) country/culture? Explain your reasoning. This question works best in a class with high ethnic and national diversity.
2. Think of a specific leader in your work situation, in a friendship group, on a sports team, or in the news. What types of power does he or she appear to use? How does he or she use these different types of power? Would you consider this person to be an effective leader? Why or why not?
3. Do you think people are born leaders? Are there specific traits that can be seen early in a person's life or career that identify that person as leader? Can someone without these specific traits go on to become a leader? 4. How would you characterize yourself - as a transformational, transactional, or charismatic leader? Which would you rather be? Can you change your style?
5. Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Jim Jones, Kenneth Lay (Enron), Bernard Ebbers (WorldCom) - all were "leaders." Were they effective leaders? Why or why not?
6. Think of a leader you have had at work, school, or some other situation. How did you actions as a follower help or hinder that leader's effectiveness? What kind of a relationship did you have with the leader? Did it differ from the relationships the leader had with other members of the group? If there were different relationships, did this situation contribute to the group's effectiveness? Did is seem fair to you?
7. Using a specific situation, analyze the contributions of the leader, the followers, and the effectiveness of the leader.
8. Which of the many approaches to leadership do you think is the best? Defend your reasoning.