research. We will not only learn things like "Theory Y predicts this will happen" or "Such and such study supported this hypothesis," but also the assumptions that guide the research. We will therefore spend considerable time examining research methods per se, including the use of data and statistics to test hypotheses about leadership processes. Skills I hope you will participate actively in this course, and so develop a number of academic and scholarly skills, including gains in critical thinking, ethical thought, writing and communication, information search and retrieval, technological skills, skill in conducting scientific research (including data collection and literature review), and study skills. You may also develop lead-ership skills, but this course is not a “how to lead” course. Content Scholars and sages have long puz-zled over the nature of leadership. Philosophers raised questions about the nature of leadership itself: its rationality, its utility, and its moral implications; political theorists examined such processes as justice, rights, law, and author-ity; historians studied the life course of those individuals who were able to change the outcomes of events both large and small. But in the 1900s these scholars were joined by researchers who took an empirical, social science, ap-proach to leadership. One of the primary aims of this course is to review the results of their work, as well as examine the methods they use to extend our understanding of leadership. We will consider basic questions about human behavior, in general, and and leadership, specifically. Topics will include: - What is leadership, and how do different societies conceptual-ized leadership? - How can leadership be studied, scientifically? - Why do people follow leaders? - Do leaders have distinctive personalities? - How do leaders communicate with, and persuade, others? - Why do leaders emerge within bands, tribes, chiefdoms, and states? - Are women and men equally suited to lead? - Does leadership have genetic and/or evolutionary roots? - What theories have been devel-oped to explain leadership? Process Beyond declarative content—the facts, theories, and findings—we will also examine the process of leadership study: how social scien-tists generate theories and do Course Goals Course “Mission” The course is a key component of the overall University of Rich-mond curriculum. Hence, it sus-tains “a collaborative learning and research community that supports the personal development of its members and the creation of new knowledge. A Richmond education prepares students to live lives of purpose, thoughtful inquiry, and responsible leadership in a global and pluralistic society.” As a course in the Jepson School of Leadership Studies, this course strives to educate people “for and about leadership”. The key word in the name is studies. Don Forsyth, Instructor LDST102 Syllabus Spring 2011 Leadership and the Social Sciences Course Description Introduction to the study of leadership through theoretical and empirical explorations of social in-teraction. Readings se-lected from anthropology, economics, political sci-ence, psychology, and soci-ology. Emphasis on advanc-ing the understanding of leadership through an in-creased appreciation of the rich complexities of human behavior. This course may be taken before or after LDST 101. Contents Goals and Mission 1 Topics, Methods, and Text 2 Activities, Exams, Grades... 3 Disability Informa-tion 3 Responsibilities 4 Policies 4 Calendar 4 The grand aim of all science is to cover the greatest number of empirical facts by logical deduction from the smallest number of hypotheses or axioms. Albert EinsteinLDST101 examines the philoso-phy, history, and political side of leadership. LDST102 (this course!) examines leadership from the perspective of the social sciences, so we will be searching through all the social sciences (anthropology, economics, sociology, history, political science, geography, psy-chology, and others) for theory and research pertaining to leader-ship in all its many and varied forms. We will examine theories of human behavior,in general, and how they apply to leadership processes. Examples of topics we’ll be con-sidering follow. - Authority, Obedience, and Leadership - Dark Side of Leaders’ Personali-ties - Do Leaders Make a Difference? - Do People Need Leaders? - Empirical Procedures in Study-ing Leadership - Endorsing Leaders - Ethics of Leadership - Evolutionary Perspectives - Followership - How Effective Are Leaders? - Inequities and Leadership - Influence and Persuasion - Intelligence and Leadership - Leadership across Cultures - Leaders as Skilled Decision Makers - Men, Women, and Leadership - Neuropsychology of Leadership - Origins of Leadership in Human Society - Perceiving & Evaluating Leaders - Personality, Situations, and Ex-periences - Power and Leadership - Research Methods - Self-presentational Processes - Social Identity and Leadership - Status and Hierarchy - Strengthening the Relational Side of Leadership Since the best work in a science is published in journals and book chapters, we will supplement these books with specific read-ings. Only “real” readings will be assigned: if we aren’t going to examine the reading, then I iden-tify the reading as “optional” and you won’t be required to know its content. The readings are original source papers and chap-ters and selected to give you an “inside look” at how social sci-ence is done. You will acquire much of your infor-mation about leadership, both in this class and for the rest of your life, by reading and studying texts. This course uses books, articles, and online sources. The two required books are: Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell. New York: Little Brown (978-0-316-01792-3) How to Win Friends and Influence People. New York: Pocket Books (978-0-671-02703-2) Topics Text and Readings Teaching and Learning Methods provide you with the oppor-tunity to express your under-standing of leadership in your own words. It is essential that you prepare for class by doing reading, reviewing, and analyzing the assigned topic prior to the day class exam-ines the topic. The amount of time you need to set aside to prepare will depend on your background in social science. We will also do things beyond the confines of the class, de-pending on availability. We may, for example, conduct