Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Publication attributes of leadership: what do they mean?

  • Published:
Scientometrics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The article evaluates 48 approaches to leadership for the first time for the period of 1965–2016 using bibliometric methods. Our analysis combines four parameters: the number of publications, citations, self-citations, and dispersion of literature (a new parameter). The question of what is the most influential approach to leadership is addressed. We argue that the interplay among the four attributes observed in this study shows that transformational leadership is the most influential and popular approach to leadership in leadership studies today. However, there is a question of whether the excessive self-citations in this approach to leadership play a role in its augmented visibility.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

(Source SCIE 2016)

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Angawi, G. (2012). Neo-charismatic leadership: A new theory for effective leadership in higher education. Educate, 12(2), 34–47.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bartneck, C., & Kokkelmans, S. (2010). Detecting h-index manipulation through self-citation analysis. Scientometrics, 87, 85–98.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bass, B. (1990). Bass and Stogdill`s handbook of leadership: A survey of theory and research. New York: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bass, B., & Riggio, R. (2006). Transformational leadership. New York: Lawrence Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bryman, A. (1992). Charisma and leadership in organizations. London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Burns, J. (1979). Leadership. New York: Perennial.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dansereau, F., Graen, G., & Haga, W. (1975). A vertical dyad linkage approach to leadership in formal organizations. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 13, 46–78.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Day, D., & Antonakis, J. (2012). Leadership: Past, present and future. In D. Day & J. Antonakis (Eds.), The nature of leadership (pp. 3–29). Thousand Oaks: Sage.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Dinh, J. E., Lord, R. G., Gardner, W. L., Meuser, J. D., Liden, R. C., & Hu, J. (2014). Leadership theory and research in the new millennium: Current theoretical trends and changing perspectives. The Leadership Quarterly, 25(1), 36–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fiedler, F. E. (1964). A contingency model of leadership effectiveness. Advanced Experimental Social Psychology, 1, 149–190.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fiedler, F. E. (1967). A theory of leadership effectiveness. New York: McGraw Hill.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fowler, J. H., & Aksnes, D. W. (2007). Does self-citation pay? Scientometrics, 72(3), 427–437.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gardner, J. (1990). On leadership. New York: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gardner, W. L., Lowe, K. B., Moss, T. W., Mahoney, K. T., & Cogliser, C. C. (2010). Scholarly leadership of the study of leadership: A review of the leadership quarterly’s second decade, 2000–2009. The Leadership Quarterly, 12(6), 922–958.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garfield, E. (1979). Citation indexing as a research tool. In E. Garfield (Ed.), Citation indexing - Its theory and application in science, technology, and humanities. (no. 04; C, Z697. S5 G37). Philadelphia: USI.

  • Glanzel W. (2004). Bibliometrics as a research field. A course on theory and application of bibliometric indicators. http://nsdl.niscair.res.in/jspui/handle/123456789/968. Accessed 4 September 2016.

  • Goleman, D., & Boyatzis, R. E. (2008). Social intelligence and the biology of leadership. Harvard Business Review, 86(9), 74–81.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gray, P. B., & Campbell, B. C. (2009). Human male testosterone, pair-bonding and fatherhood. In P. Elison & B. Gray (Eds.), Endocrinology of social relationships (pp. 270–293). Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grint, K. (2010). Leadership: A very short introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Harris, K., Wheeler, A., & Kasmar, K. (2009). Leader-member exchange and improvement: direct and interactive effects on job satisfaction, turnover intentions, and performance. Leadership Quarterly, 20, 371–382.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hyland, K. (2003). Self-citation and self-reference: Credibility and promotion in academic publication. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 54(3), 251–259.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ilies, R., Gerhardt, M., & Le, H. (2004). Individual differences in leadership emergence: Integrating meta-analytic findings and behavioral genetics estimates. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 12, 207–219.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • JCR. (2015). http://wokinfo.com/essays/journal-self-citation-jcr/ Accessed 12.9. 2016.

  • Katz, D., Maccoby, N., & Gurin, G. (1951). Productivity, supervision and morale among railroad workers. Oxford: Survey Research Center.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lawani, S. M. (1982). On the relationship between quantity and quality of a country’s research productivity. Journal of Information Science, 5(4), 143–145.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maccoby, M. (2003). The Productive narcissist: The promise and peril of visionary leadership. New York: Broadway.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mann, R. (1959). A review of the relationships between personality and performance in small groups. Psychoanalytic Bulletin, 56, 241–270.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meadows, A. J. (1998). Communicating science. London: Academic Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Meuser, J., Gardner, W., Dinh, J., Hu, J., Liden, R., & Lord, R. (2016). A network analysis of leadership theory: The infancy of integration. Journal of Management, 42(5), 1374–1403.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mumford, M. (2006). Pathways to understanding leadership: A comparative analysis of charismatic, ideological and pragmatic leaders. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Narin, F. (1976). Evaluative bibliometrics, the use of citation and publication analysis in the evaluation of scientific activity. Cherry Hill, NJ: Computer Horizon Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Northouse, P. (2010). Leadership. Los Angeles: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nye, J. (2010). The powers to lead. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rizzolatti, G. (2007). Mirrors in the brain: How our minds share actions and emotions. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stogdill, R. (1948). Personal factors associated with leadership: a survey of the literature. Journal of Psychology, 25, 35–71.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stogdill, R., & Coons, A. (Eds.). (1957). Leader behavior: Its description and measurement. Oxford: Ohio State University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Dyke, V. (1960). Political Science: A philosophical analysis. Stanford: Stanford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Raan, A. (1998). Assessment of social sciences: The use of advanced bibliometric methods as a necessary complement of peer review. Research Evaluation, 7, 2–6.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • World of science. (2002). available online in: http://wokinfo.com/essays/journal-self-citation-jcr/.

  • Yukl, G. A. (2010). Leadership in organizations. London: Pearson.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Israel Studies, School of History, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel

    Diana Tal

  2. Department of Political Science, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

    Diana Tal

  3. National Security Studies Center, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel

    Diana Tal

  4. Information and Library Science Studies and the Information and Knowledge Management Departments, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel

    Avishag Gordon

Authors
  1. Diana Tal
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Avishag Gordon
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Avishag Gordon.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Tal, D., Gordon, A. Publication attributes of leadership: what do they mean?. Scientometrics 112, 1391–1402 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-017-2425-8

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-017-2425-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation