Theoretical letters
Leadership research in an international and cross-cultural context
Terri Scandura
a,
*
, Peter Dorfman
b
a
Department of Management, School of Business Administration, University of Miami, 414 Jenkins Building,
Coral Gables, FL 33124-6548, USA
b
New Mexico State University, Box 30001 MSC 3DJ, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM 88003-8001, USA
Abstract
In this exchange of theoretical letters, Terri Scandura and Peter Dorfman discuss leadership research in an
international and cross-cultural context. In particular, they focus on leadership cultural-specifics and leadership
cultural-universals in a post-Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness (GLOBE) project
world. The exchange covers theoretical, methodological, and practical issues in cross-cultural leadership research.
D 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Leadership; International; Cross cultural
Letter #1—Leadership research in a post-GLOBE world
Peter Dorfman
Department of Management
Box 30001 MSC 3DJ
New Mexico State University
Las Cruces, NM 88003-8001
Dear Peter:
In light of the recent events occurring in our country and around the world, we are once again
reminded of the significance of understanding perceptions and interpretations of leadership in a global
context. I recall how Time magazine struggled with their decision regarding who would be the ‘‘Man of
the Year.’’ If they used the usual criterion of the person who had the most impact on history that year,
they might likely have named Osama Bin Laden as the Man of the Year. However, they shied away from
1048-9843/$ - see front matter D 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.leaqua.2004.02.004
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +1-305-284-3746; fax: +1-305-284-3655.
E-mail address: scandura@miami.edu (T. Scandura).
The Leadership Quarterly 15 (2004) 277–307