DOI: https://doi.org/10.62204/2336-498X-2023-4-9

LEADERSHIP IN THE CONTEXT OF SOCIAL ACTIVITY

AND ACTIVISM: PERSPECTIVES FROM HIGHER EDUCATION STUDENTS

Anastasiia Kotelevets,

lecturer,

Borys Grinchenko Kyiv Metropolitan University, Ukraine,

a.kotelevets@kubg.edu.ua; ORCID: 0000-0002- 0177-0440

Mariia Vyzhva,

postgraduate student,

Mykhailo Drahomanov Ukrainian State University, Ukraine,

mariacherpack@gmail.com; ORCID: 0000-0003-4596-4164

Annotation. The article provides an overview of leadership within higher education and highlights the significance of understanding students’ perceptions of leadership within educational contexts. It studies different views on leadership and social activity, emphasizing the diversity of interpretations and the influence of factors such as cultural backgrounds and personal experiences on students’ perception of the concept. In the article it is explored similarities and differences in defining leadership and social activity with the use of a comparative analysis. The relationship between these concepts is described, highlighting the role of social activism as a sign of leadership skills. It is important that the results of a survey conducted among higher education institution students are provided. The analysis suggests that students believe that helping others is both a sign for social activity and activism as well as one of the main outcomes of leadership activity. Moreover, organizing different events and engaging others is believed to be a component of leadership. Future research directions are presented in the article, including the development of training programs to enhance social activity and leadership among young people.

Keywords: social activity, youth, leadership, leader, initiative, Russian-Ukrainian war.

Introduction.  Leadership can be defined and interpreted in different ways. However, despite the diverse approaches’ universities tend to underline a key role of leadership development as the ultimate outcome of higher education (Melissa R. Shehane, Kathryn A. Sturtevant, Lori L. Moore, Kim E. Dooley, 2012). Understanding how students perceive leadership within the contexts of education, peer engagement and other forms of social interactions is essential for fostering an efficient environment for personal development, collaboration, and community development.

As there is not a unique theoretical framework to define leadership, there is not a single factor influencing students’ understanding of this concept. Among them are cultural backgrounds, personal experiences, and institutional contexts (Wielkiewicz, Richard M, 2000). According to the study by John E. Shertzer & John H. Schuh (2004) student leaders view leadership as an individual-centered concept associated with holding positions of authority and influence. They believe that it demands special traits.

Further research by Paige Haber (2012) showed that students leaned towards seeing leadership more as hierarchical and centered around individual leaders rather than as collaborative and team-oriented. Another trend noticed in this research is the participants’ emphasis on leadership being associated with achieving a goal or completing a task, as reflected in the prevalence of themes related to shared goals and tasks.

Latest study by Jestine Philip and Mariya Gavrilova Aguilar (2021) studied the skills which students define as important for leaders. Their conclusion is that younger people choose digital literacy as a key skill for corporate leaders alongside the skills traditionally described as acquired by a leader.

Among other scholars who paid attention to students’ perception of leadership are Senka Borovac Zekan, Ivan Peronja, Andrea Russo, John Garger, Paul H. Jacques and others. However, we can see the lack of studies on students’ views on leadership and social activism and social activity.

The purpose of the article is to explore how students perceive leadership in the context of social activity and activism. Understanding students’ vision can provide insights into how higher education institutions can foster an efficient environment for students to help them develop their leadership skills and encourage their activism.

The research methodology is based on theoretical data analysis. Methods of generalization, synthesis and systematization are applied.

Results of research. As educational systems are complex and adaptive they require appropriate leadership approaches, hence Scott Eacott (2011) emphasizes the importance of viewing leadership as a complex social activity that is not directly observable. It is necessary to define two concepts – leadership and social activity (social activism).

In the textbook «Social work in Ukraine» (Zvereva, I.D., Bezpalko, O.V., Kharchenko, S.Ya, 2004), we see the following explanation of the concept of social activity: it is a conscious, purposeful activity of a person, focused both on the transformation of objective social conditions and on the formation of social qualities of one’s own personality (active life position).

Social activity is a necessary condition for an individual’s versatile development, an element which accelerates social development. It can be implemented in various forms, not only as an individual, but also as a group, collective, organizational, aimed at realizing the opportunities and interests of certain social groups.

Currently there is a great variety of models, theories, and philosophies of leadership which cover different aspects of the concept. Earlier approaches defined leadership through the set of unique traits which a certain number of people held, however the contemporary trend in the field is that leadership can be demonstrated by individuals irrespective of their official titles or positions (Brooks et al., 2019; Komives et al., 2006; Kouzes & Posner, 2012) and it’s a skill that can be developed if the individual has access to relevant opportunities (e.g., Avolio, 2010; Bok, 2020; Elmuti et al., 2005; Komives et al., 2006; Mumford et al., 2000; Shek et al., 2021).

Peter Northouse (2021) believes that leadership «is a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals in order to achieve a common goal». Likewise, other researchers have defined leadership and leadership skills as the ability to employ social influence and perceptions to unite a group towards achieving a shared objective, and includes a set of other skills like communication, conflict resolution, self-management (e.g., Chemers, 2014; McCormick, 2001; Oyinlade, 2006; Pellegrino & Hilton, 2013; Ruben & Gigliotti, 2016). Additionally, it involves an individual’s capacity for critical thinking and problem-solving, the ability to make decisions during challenging situations (e.g., Mumford et al., 2000; Reed et al., 2019).

1. Kyzymenko and L. Bidna in the «Social Worker’s Dictionary» (2000, p.3) define social activity as a conscious, purposeful activity of a person, which is oriented both on the transformation of objective social conditions and on the formation of social qualities of one’s own personality (active life position).

Viewing leadership as a skill underlines the importance of the abilities, capabilities, and knowledge necessary for effective leadership (Northouse, 2021). Dugan (2017) has provided clarification by suggesting that skills, and set of skills (attributes), transition into competencies when they are essential for performing a particular task (Bass, 2008). Similarly, Kragt and Day (2020) regard «leadership competency» as extending beyond general leadership skills that are not tailored to a specific context; instead, it relies on the specific tasks and goals of a particular role.

1. Kharchenko (2006, p.251) notes that social activity is precisely a personal quality through which a person’s views on values are manifested and is a desire to show social interest in the life of society.
2. Bazilenko (2018, p.33) notes that currently several approaches to the concept of «personal activity» are distinguished: activity as a social position, as a process of social activity, as internal self-determination and a means of self-education, as a property of the subject of life activity, as a path to self-realization and self-creation of an individual, etc.

According to J. Scouller (2011), who developed an integrated model of leadership, argues that current theories explain only some aspects of leadership. They can be either incomplete, emphasizing the significance of vision and inspiration while overlooking the practical aspects of implementing it. Alternatively, they can be subjective, inflexible, and narrow-minded, dictating a specific model of leadership in action, which does not fit for every situation. He defines leadership as: «the process of addressing four dimensions simultaneously: setting a motivating purpose that inspires people to combine and work towards willingly; paying attention to the means, pace and quality of progress towards the aim; and upholding group unity and individual effectiveness».

In the psychological aspect, social activity can be defined through the motives of behavior, semantic systems, value orientations, its influence on the solution of social tasks, the ability of an individual to be represented in others, the continuation of oneself in others. This side of social activity aligns with the definition of leadership by J.Scouller and others who view leadership not only as a set of skills or a mere group process but combination of those two as well as a set of behaviours needed to unite the group and motivate them to achieve a common goal.

Having analyzed the concept of social activity, we consider it as a necessary condition for the versatile development of the individual, a characteristic of the individual’s way of life, which is oriented both on the transformation of objective social conditions and on the formation of social qualities of one’s own personality (active life position). Leadership, in turn, is a set of qualities and skills that allow an individual to be socially active.

To study the students’ perception of both of these concepts we have conducted a survey among eighteen students of higher education institution. The students voluntarily agreed to participate in the survey as a member of a focus group in studying leadership and social activism.

To conduct research study, we used a specially developed questionnaire which contained ten questions and the statement of participant’s consent for using their answers in the research.

Fig. 1. Year of studying

The most participants of the survey are first-year students – 72.2%, 16.7% –secondyear of studying, students of the third year of studying and master-degree students together make 5.6%. All the participants defined themselves as females.

Next, we offer to consider the answers to the questions directly related to the topic of our article and determine the extent to which the understanding of the concepts of leadership and social activity by scientists and students coincides (see Figure 1).

When asked what social activity is for you, 88.9% of respondents said that it is to participate in community social initiatives (cities, countries). The second place was taken by answering «help others» – 77.8%. The third most popular answer was «volunteering» – 72.2% (see Figure 2).

Fig. 2. Social activity for you

The next question was «What is leadership for you? » The main response was «taking responsibility in a critical situation» – 83.3%. The second place was again taken by the answer «to help others» – 72.2%. The third most popular answer was «be good at organizing» – 61.1% (see Figure 3).

Fig. 3. Leadership for you

Therefore, for students helping others is the basic common value of the two concepts. However, the first place in the answers is very different as students believe that leadership is first of all manifested when one takes responsibility in a critical situation, while social activity is taking part in events organized by one’s community.

It is also interesting to note the opinion regarding the third place. Social activity is associated with volunteering while leadership with the fact that a person should be good at organizing others.

At the same time, as shown by the answer to the following question, 88.9% of respondents consider social activity a sign of leadership, and only 11.1% doubt it, but none denies this opinion (see Figure 4).

Fig. 4. Social activity as a part of leadership

However, to the question of whether you consider volunteering to be a form of leadership (see Figure 5), the answers were distributed as follows: 61.1 answered «yes», 27.8% were not sure, and 5.6% answered «no». Some of the participants introduced their own answers as: «part of leadership – yes. Form of leadership – don’t think so»

Fig. 5. Volunteering as a part of leadership

Interesting result shows the answers to the question «Have you become more socially active after February 24, 2022? » (see Figure 6) as half of the respondents said an affirmative «yes», almost 30% – answered that they started doing more, 5.6% – were active even before the full-scale invasion, but 16.7% noted that their social activity has not changed in any way.

Fig. 6. Social activity after February 24, 2022

The last question «Do you have experience demonstrating your leadership skills? Please, describe the situation in two to three sentences» was an open one. The following are some of the answers we got:

• I organized a literary social project and held literary events. This Tuesday I will conduct a training for children to encourage them to learn the Ukrainian language and be interested in Ukrainian culture 🙂
• At school I organized «book crossing week», so everyone could bring his/ her book and choose another one from available in the box. It was a great experience, and maybe I would like to try something like that again but this time at university. At school organization of it was not very difficult, I just had a conversation with head teacher. Then I and my friend made some posters (which we sent to each class) and found a box. I still have someone’s book which I took from that box.
• On my first day at the university, I became a group leader, and I was one at school as well. I always try to be active in different situations, in discussions and participate in different events. I’m always happy to join all kinds of projects. Once, when I was studying at an online English school, my teacher asked me to teach a lesson instead of him because he had some urgent business. I was well prepared with the material, learned everything I needed to know, and taught it with pleasure
• I have not had such experience yet, but I am ready to try to succeed in my studies and acquire new skills. It is important to me.
• I am not sure that this can be leadership, but I created a Telegram channel with my friends to popularize the Ukrainian language and culture
• I was the leader of my school, where we organized various activities, including volunteer activities. I also attended a leadership school.
• I was the deputy president of my school and organized all events
• I have launched an educational project about human rights activists, also I have participated in youth exchanges in a role of a team leader
• For instance, in school and university projects, simply life, in difficult psychology situations
• Yes, I have experience demonstrating my leadership qualities. As president of debate club, I organized weekly meetings, helped train new members on public speaking and argumentation techniques, and delegated tasks to ensure our events ran smoothly. This role allowed me to develop skills in team management, communication, and event planning.
• Not at all. in short, I don’t see myself as a leader, so I just do what I’m asked to do.
• I took the lead in organizing my prom at school, when I saw that my classmates were frustrated because our teacher didn’t let them do what they want. So I united them all with a speech and took on the hatred of the teacher and tried to achieve the right to choose at least a song. They all were grateful.
• I didn’t have opportunity to demonstrate my leadership skills throughout my life. But I’m looking forward to demonstrate myself in future.

Though the answers vary, some common characteristics can be noticed. A number of the participants see the opportunity to demonstrate their leadership skills through organizing different events or engage people in participating in events. A few participants shared about acquiring a position of a leader which led them to opportunities to demonstrate their leadership skills. There are also participants who haven’t had leadership experience but are expecting to demonstrate their skills.

Conclusions. Students’ answers analysis as well as the scholars’ findings lead to the conclusion that leadership as a set of skills and practices can increase and be demonstrated in the form of social activism, which, in turn, can include helping others, participating in community events as well as organizing them.

As a perspective for further research, we see the development of a training program to increase the level of social activity of young people and give them the opportunity to demonstrate their leadership qualities.

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