Description:

This seminar course is designed for individuals who are interested in exploring the concepts of leadership using discussion, film, exercises and works of classic literature. The course will lead to the development of a personal leadership philosophy. 3 hrs./wk.

Supplies: Refer to the instructor’s course syllabus for details about any supplies that may be required.

Prerequisites: NONE

Textbook(s): TBA

Course Fees: NONE

Course Objectives:

Upon successful completion of this course the student should be able to:

1. Compare definitions of power, authority, and charisma offered by leadership writers and group them under the categories zero-sum and non-zero sum, and attempt to explain why the latter might be more popular today.
2. Discover how zero-sum concepts of obtaining and retaining power flourished in pre-modern societies, while examining examples from them and the classic leadership advice of Machiavelli.
3. Describe the origins and components of the Athenian Democracy, and evaluate the role of rhetoric in it, Plato’s criticisms of it, Thucydides’ theory of human nature, and democracy’s possible relationship to imperialism; then summarize and evaluate contemporary discussions of types of leadership and of the role of rhetoric in it.
4. State the origins and nature of non-zero-sum higher leadership concepts and contrast these with the traditional zero-sum concepts.
5. Explore the concept of Servant-Leadership as found in the Indian classic, the Bhagavad Gita, how this could benefit leaders, and show how Gandhi used this idea in the Indian independence movement.
6. Describe the several diverse concepts of leadership that emerged from Chinese Civilization—the Legalist, Confucian, Daoist, Buddhist, and Neo-Confucian, and relate them to one’s own leadership methods.
7. Utilize examples from Japanese history to demonstrate how leaders can use religions to further their own ends, and vice versa; and how leaders can create unity amid chaos.
8. Describe the causes and effects of the sense of leadership crisis that had emerged in the United States by the 1990’s; discuss the development of leadership programs and reactions to them.
9. Cite four types of leaders’ functions; the kinds of traits, definitions, and analogies various authors have used to describe leaders; and the problems defining leadership can incur.
10. Cite six assumptions found among contemporary leadership models, evaluate them, and cite criticisms of each.
11. Examine what one can learn about oneself and one’s society by studying leaders and leadership.

Content Outline & Competencies:

I. Compare traditional definitions of power, authority, and charisma
offered by leadership writers with contemporary definitions, categorize
them using the zero-sum and non-zero sum game models, and attempt to
explain why the latter might be more popular today. 
   A. Define authority according to Max Weber.
   B. Relate Weber’s concept of ideal types, and his definitions of
bureaucratic, traditional, and  charismatic authority.
   C. Define and contrast the zero-sum definition of power with the
non-zero-sum.
   D. Contrast contemporary definitions of power as empowerment and
charisma as something that can be learned, and attempt to explain why
American society has attempted to redefine these terms.
   E. Cite examples of zero-sum and non-zero sum power in actual
leadership today and show why they should be so categorized.

II. Discover how zero-sum concepts of obtaining and retaining power
flourished in pre-modern societies, while examining examples from them and
the classic leadership advice of Machiavelli.
   A. Contrast conditions under pre-modern cultures of scarcity and modern
cultures of abundance, and show why zero-sum concepts of power were favored
under the former while non-zero-sum concepts are favored under the latter.
   B. Use examples form the Old Testament , the ancient Near East, and the
Roman Empire to illustrate how power was conceptualized in pre-modern
times, and consider whether any of these concepts is still employed in the
United States today.
   C. Discuss Machiavelli’s advice to rulers on how to obtain and keep
power, and discuss whether it qualifies as zero-sum or not.
   D. Compare and contrast Machiavelli’s advice with that offered by
contemporary American writers about power and credibility.
   E. State Machiavelli’s definitions of Vertu, Fortune, and Necessity,
and show how these might be applied to any leader.

III. Describe the origins and components of the Athenian Democracy, and
evaluate the role of rhetoric in it, Plato’s criticisms of it, Thucydides’
theory of human nature, and democracy’s possible relationship to
imperialism; then summarize and evaluate contemporary discussions of types
of leadership and the role of rhetoric in it.
   A. Discuss the social, political, and economic conditions that produced
the Athenian Democracy.
   B. Contrast the components of the Athenian Democracy with our own.
   C. Evaluate Plato’s criticisms of the Athenian Democracy.
   D. Use Thucydides’ Peloponnesian War  to examine his views of human
nature and political rhetoric.
   E. Trace the relationship between democracy and the rise of political
rhetoric.
   F. Evaluate Thucydides’ portrayal of the relationship between democracy
and imperialist expansion.
   G. Evaluate the contemporary theory of Authoritarian, Democratic, and
Laissez-faire leadership.
   H. Summarize contemporary discussions of the role of rhetoric in
leadership.

IV. State the origins and nature of non-zero-sum higher leadership
concepts and contrast these with the traditional zero-sum concepts.
   A. Discuss the contextual origins of concepts of higher leadership:
ethical leadership, mission, vision, and servant leadership.
   B. Contrast these original concepts with definitions of the same and of
followership used by contemporary leadership writers.
   C. Contrast the traditional, zero-sum concepts of power and leadership
with the non-zero sum higher-leadership concepts introduced of ethical-
and servant-leadership, and evaluate their use in leadership.

V. Explore the concept of Servant-Leadership as found in the Indian
classic, the Bhagavad Gita, how this could benefit leaders, and how Gandhi
used this idea in the Indian independence movement.
   A. Describe the context of the leadership crisis in Ancient India.
   B. Relate the story of the Kurus and the Pandavas in the Mahabharata
and how it led to a showdown of good against evil.
   C. Show how the Bhagavad Gita portrays Arjuna’s ethical dilemma as he
leads the fight for righteousness.
   D. Name the three types of yoga the Bhagavad Gita offers as solutions
to this dilemma, differentiate among them, and show how they might aid
leaders.
   E. Illustrate how the career of Mohandas Gandhi was inspired by the
leadership concepts found in the Bhagavad Gita.

VI. Describe the several diverse concepts of leadership that emerged from
Chinese Civilization—the Legalist, Confucian, Daoist, Buddhist, and
Neo-Confucian, and relate them to one’s own leadership style(s).
   A. Explain the centrality of the emperor/ruler in all Chinese
leadership models, using the first Qin Emperor as an example.
   B. Relate the Legalist theory of leadership through careful control of
the population.
   C. Trace the close and abiding relationship between political power and
religion in Chinese Civilization.
   D. Describe the humane, activist Confucian approach to leadership,
based on the leader’s role-modeling of virtue and ren.
   E. Contrast the more passive Daoist approach to leadership, exemplified
by the concept wu-wei (action that is not action).
   F. Describe how Neo-Confucian philosophers used their won concept of
sincerity and ren, the  Buddhist concept of the “Buddha Nature,”
Boddhisattva compassion, and meditation; and the Daoist  Religion’s and
their own concept of investigating nature, to synthesize the concept that
everyone could become a Sage, and thus lead themselves.
   G. Show how Mao Zedong, combined western concepts with traditional
Chinese to take over China, and how he employed the Qin Emperor as his
model.
   H. Contrast the Confucian, Daoist, Buddhist, and Neo-Confucian models
with the authoritarian Chinese reality.

VII. Utilize examples from Japanese history to demonstrate how leaders can
use religions to further their own ends, and vice versa; and how leaders
can create unity amid chaos.
   A. Describe how early Japanese rulers used the newly imported Buddhist
religion as a tool 
In their attempt to unify Japan. 
   B. Describe how these rulers used monks, monasteries, edicts, Buddhist
scriptures, temples, and statuary to demonstrate the power of their
religion.
   C. Show how monks used monastic armies to raid competing monasteries
and to intimidate political authorities.
   D. Indicate the entreprenurial power of Buddhist monks and missionaries
in medieval Japan to preach new Buddhist sects and reform old ones.
   E. Cite the techniques and strenuous efforts of Nobunaga Oda, Toyotomi
Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu to unify Japan during the chaotic 1500s.
   F. Describe how the Meiji reformers politicized Shinto as a tool to
restore imperial authority.

VIII. Describe the causes and effects of the sense of leadership crisis
that had emerged in the United States by the 1990’s; discuss the
development of leadership programs and reactions to them.
   A. Describe the social, political, and economic conditions from which
emerged a sense of leadership crisis.
   B. Illustrate the types of programs that were created in business,
industry, and rural; areas to meet this challenge.
   C. Discuss the four major approaches to understanding leadership
developed during the twentieth century.
      1. Describe the traits approach to understanding leadership and cite
criticisms to it.
      2. Describe the situational approach to understanding leadership,
differentiate it from the traits approach, and cite criticisms of it.
      3. Describe the functional approach to understanding leadership,
differentiate it from the traits and situational approaches, and cite
criticisms of it.
      4. Describe the transformational approach to understanding
leadership; differentiate it from the traits, the situational, and the
functional approaches; and cite criticisms of it.
   D. Evaluate the challenges the gender gap brings to American leadership
in business and government.
   E. Evaluate the challenges that diversity issues bring to American
leadership in business and government.

IX. Cite four types of leaders’ functions; the kinds of traits,
definitions, and analogies various authors have used to describe leaders;
and the problems defining leadership can incur.
   A. Discuss the four categories under which leaders’ functions might be
classified.
   B. Cite and contrast lists of leadership qualities that authors in
various times and cultures have offered.
   C. Relate various definitions of and analogies to “leader” and
“leadership” that have been offered, and criticisms of them.
   D. Show why attempting to define “leader” and “leadership ” is a risky
business, and context dependent.

X. Cite six assumptions found among contemporary leadership models,
evaluate them, and cite criticisms of each.
   A. State and evaluate the assumption that everyone has the potential to
become a leader.
   B. State and evaluate the assumption that leadership can be learned.
   C. State and evaluate the assumption that aspiring leaders require
leadership training.
   D. State and evaluate the assumption that leadership must be redefined
in egalitarian terms to fit America’s changing culture.
   E. State and evaluate the assumption that learning leadership is fun.
   F. State and evaluate the assumption that good leaders are good people
and good citizens.
   G. State and evaluate the assumption that leaders come in two or three
types.

XI. Examine what one can learn about oneself and one’s society by studying
leaders and leadership.
   A. Evaluate the necessity for self-reflection.
   B. Evaluate the need to find and follow role models.
   C. Demonstrate understanding of the constraints under which leaders
function
      1. Explain how leaders and followers create and are dependent upon
each other.
      2. Show how leaders and opponents define and validate each other. 
      3. Explain the roles of Machiavelli’s Vertu, Necessity, and Fortune
in leadership and in life.
      4. Show how cultures can blind leaders and followers who are inside
them to the significance of ideas and events by hiding their problems
under conventional public rhetoric.
      5. Describe the problems cultural outsiders face when attempting to
lead.
      6. Explain why cynicism and hypocrisy are common among leaders and
show the forces that challenge leaders’ sincerity.
      7. Recognize the role of the past in shaping all leadership contexts
and how leaders manipulate the past to suit their own ends.
      8. Recognize that understanding oneself and one’s own place in the
swirl of events are the greatest challenges.

Methods of Evaluation of Competencies:

Evaluation of student mastery of course competencies will be accomplished using the following methods:

Classroom Discussions:                          50% of grade
Written Examinations, Projects, or Assignments: 50% of grade 
 Total:                                        100%

Grade Criteria:
 A = 90 - 100%
 B = 80 -  89%  
 C = 70 -  79%   
 D = 60 -  69%  
 F =  0 -  59%    

Caveats: NONE

Disabilities:

If you are a student with a disability, and if you will be requesting accommodations, it is your responsibility to contact Access Services. Access Services will recommend any appropriate accommodations to your professor and his/her director. The professor and director will identify for you which accommodations will be arranged.

JCCC provides a range of services to allow persons with disabilities to participate in educational programs and activities. If you desire support services, contact the office of Access Services for Students With Disabilities (913) 469-8500, ext. 3521 or TDD (913) 469-3885. The Access Services office is located in the Success Center on the second floor of the Student Center.