Coast Guard Academy: The Trait Theory Of Leadership

At the Coast Guard Academy, many discussions revolve around leadership. We learn about great leaders of the past, what made them excel, and how to prepare for our own future leadership challenges. Besides learning about great leaders, cadets learn about how to make themselves world changing leaders through the study of leadership theories and lengthy self-reflection. One way for a cadet to determine who they are as a leader, is to create their own leadership philosophy. Through the creation of a leadership philosophy, it is possible for an individual to determine what leadership qualities they find important. By combining leadership theories as well as my own leadership philosophy, it is possible to determine who I am as a leader. My

The first source of this value is from the Trait Theory of Leadership. The Trait Theory of Leadership was first studied in the 20th century (Northouse, 2016). The primary purpose of this study was to determine what qualities were possessed by great leaders (Northouse, 2016). These traits varied wildly throughout the many studies in the 20th century (Colvert, Judge, Choi, Wang, 2012). However, in the late 20th century, many behavioral scientists reached a consensus on which traits are the most pertinent to success as a leader (Colvert, Judge, Choi, Wang, 2012). These traits, called the Big Five, are neuroticism, extraversion, conscientiousness, emotional stability, and openness (Colvert, Judge, Choi, Wang,

The Behavioral Approach Theory of Leadership revolves around determining what leaders do and how they should act based on situations that appear (Northouse, 2016). This is seen in Blake and Mouton’s Leadership Grid. Blake and Mouton’s Leadership Grid challenges leaders on deciding to focus on completion of a task, or focus on subordinate approval and growth (Garg & Jain, 2013). These two values combine to make a grid, which allows leaders to balance the two focuses (Northouse, 2016). A leader can use this grid to determine their dominant and secondary leadership styles (Northouse, 2016). This makes leaders more self- aware and knowledgeable of their own