Whats the impact of effective female leadership practices during times of crisis as compared to men

Crisis Leadership: The Impact of Effective Female Leadership Practices as Compared to men, a cross-cultural evaluation.
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Crisis Leadership: The Impact of Effective Female Leadership Practices as Compared to men, a cross-cultural evaluation.
Introduction
Today’s world, whether it is the economic, societal or cultural aspect, demands competent leaders. Quick and witty decisions have to be made on a whim and in most instances of crises, there is little to no time to think. The question thus emerges of who between men and women make better leaders and ultimately who makes better choices during times of crisis. This is especially considering women are still largely underrepresented in positions of leadership even in today’s society. This paper aims to research crisis leadership. The purpose of the research is to investigate what the impact of effective female leadership practices is as compared to their male counterparts.
Background and Significance
One of the most important things for any organization or firm that is looking to hire is to understand the behavior of a chosen leader. Traditionally, agencies have been unwilling to offer women such positions based on among other reasons, how they handle pressure. Women have stepped out of men’s shadow to become a domineering force as well as make rational and competent decisions during times of crisis. In any organizational setup, a crisis is bound to occur. Thus, effective leadership and communication are needed to resolve the conditions and ensure that regular business activities are not affected by the predicament (Soieb, Othman, & D’Silva, 2013).

Literature Review
Leadership Theories
As earlier mentioned, the most significant challenge in studying leaders has been identifying specific or particular behaviors exhibited by the leaders when making decisions. Therefore, several leadership styles ought to be examined to help understand how different leaders behave. One method is authentic leadership where the person in charge is continuously aware of what they do, knows his or her strengths, weaknesses and limits. These leaders are people of high moral standing (Yukl, 2013). Then there is servant leadership whose primary actors are driven by a need to help others attain specific objectives and goals (Greanleaf, 1970). The third category is that of transformational leadership. As the name suggests, this type aims at transforming subordinates and helping them attain a higher purpose (Judge and Piccolo, 2004). Transactional leadership aims at encouraging followers that they also stand to gain by proposing tit for tat arrangements (Yankelovich and Immerwahr, 1983). These are the mechanisms employed and possessed by different leaders.
Leadership Cultures
Different cultures perceive women leaders in different lights. In America for instance, although there is an acceptance that women can and should be in leadership positions, they are not to be trusted. They are seen as weak and undeserving while many others hold the view that they are incapable of making tough decisions when need be. The Caribbean lacks enough women leaders, and this can not only be demoralizing to those who are already in place, but it also means that they have no support from their peers. In another country such as Egypt, women leaders are a respected lot but just like those in America, they are not entirely trusted and are viewed suspiciously by the general public.
Issues Unique to Women
Perhaps the most significant impediment to having more women in leadership positions is primarily due to their sex and the views surrounding it. The gender constructs that have been created by society over time mean that women, even in the 21st Century, are still expected to be caregivers rather than army generals and CEOs. Also, women are seen as the fairer sex and unable to make tough decisions when it matters.
Research Design and Method
In order to understand leadership and all its tenets, the most crucial research method employed is observation. Spending time with these leaders and seeing the challenges they face. Interviews will also be heavily relied upon to get first-hand information from the leaders. The information obtained will be analyzed and processed over time. The most prominent challenge of these methods is accessibility to the leaders. Finding them and conducting interviews will be a challenge.
Preliminary Suppositions and Implication
The study is presumed to show how effective the decisions made by women are during times of crisis are. It will seek to show that women are not inferior to their male counterparts in earning specific choices during predicaments.
Conclusions
Different cultures have different perceptions of women in leadership positions. This in no way means that they cannot or should not be leaders. They are just as capable of handling the tasks put to them. However, many are still in doubt. It thus becomes imperative to research on if the decisions made by women during times of crisis are just as effective.
References
Greenleaf, R. K. (1970). The servant as leader. Westfield, Indiana Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership.
Judge, T. A., & Piccolo, R. F. (2004). Transformational and Transactional Leadership: A Meta-Analytic Test of Their Relative Validity. Journal of Applied Psychology, 89(5), 755-768.
Yankelovich, D., & Immerwahr, J. (1983). Putting the work ethic to work: A Public Agenda report on restoring America’s competitive vitality. New York, NY: Public Agenda Foundation.
Yukl, G. A. (2013). Leadership in organizations (8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.