Cultural variation of leadership prototypes across 22 European countries

This study sets out to test the assumption that concepts of leadership diff er as a function of cultural differences in Europe and to identify dimensio ns which describe differences in leadership concepts across European countr ies. Middle-level managers (N = 6052) from 22 European countries rated 112 questionnaire items containing descriptions of leadership traits and behavi ours. For each attribute respondents rated how well it fits their concept o f an outstanding business leader. The findings support the assumption that leadership concepts are culturally endorsed. Specifically, clusters of Euro pean countries which share similar cultural values according to prior cross -cultural research (Ronen & Shenkar, 1985), also share similar leadership c oncepts. The leadership prototypicality dimensions found are highly correla ted with cultural dimensions reported in a comprehensive cross-cultural stu dy of contemporary Europe (Smith, Dugan, & Trompenaars, 1996). The ordering of countries on the leadership dimensions is considered a useful tool with which to model differences between leadership concepts of different cultur al origin in Europe. Practical implications for cross-cultural management, both in European and non-European settings, are discussed.