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Engaging “Care” Behaviors in Support of Employee and Organizational Wellbeing through Complexity Leadership Theory

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  • Merike Kolga

    (Garnet Learning Solutions, Vancouver, BC V6C 1H2, Canada)

Abstract

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the attributes of nurturing, empathy, and relating rather than directing moved into the spotlight as important skills for leadership. These skills are representative of the concept of “care” that is often associated with women’s or feminine leadership. The importance of care as a component of leadership had not received significant attention in the leadership literature until the pandemic brought the need for care onto center stage. This article argues that care will continue to be an important attribute of leadership and an essential attribute of an androgynous leadership style—that includes behaviors typically classified as male and those behaviors typically classed as female—that is needed to navigate the increasing complexity of the world most effectively. The article further argues that complexity leadership theory provides the most appropriate leadership approach through which complex adaptive organizations can initiate and foster the development of “care” behaviors as part of an androgynous approach to leadership which produces system-wide benefits in complex systems more capable of addressing the global challenges of the climate crisis and increased environmental disasters, future pandemics, local wars, terrorist attacks, and other phenomena.

Suggested Citation

  • Merike Kolga, 2023. "Engaging “Care” Behaviors in Support of Employee and Organizational Wellbeing through Complexity Leadership Theory," Merits, MDPI, vol. 3(2), pages 1-10, June.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jmerit:v:3:y:2023:i:2:p:23-414:d:1161400
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Holly Blake & Mehmet Yildirim & Ben Wood & Steph Knowles & Helen Mancini & Emma Coyne & Joanne Cooper, 2020. "COVID-Well: Evaluation of the Implementation of Supported Wellbeing Centres for Hospital Employees during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(24), pages 1-22, December.
    2. Maria Laura Ruiu, 2020. "Mismanagement of Covid-19: lessons learned from Italy," Journal of Risk Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(7-8), pages 1007-1020, August.
    3. Louise Metcalf & Sue Benn, 2013. "Leadership for Sustainability: An Evolution of Leadership Ability," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 112(3), pages 369-384, February.
    4. Jessica Nicholson & Elizabeth Kurucz, 2019. "Relational Leadership for Sustainability: Building an Ethical Framework from the Moral Theory of ‘Ethics of Care’," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 156(1), pages 25-43, April.
    5. Jean-Alain Héraud & Fiona Kerr & Thierry Burger-Helmchen, 2018. "Creative Management of Complex Systems [Management créatif des systèmes complexes]," Post-Print hal-02189769, HAL.
    6. Joanne Ciulla, 2009. "Leadership and the Ethics of Care," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 88(1), pages 3-4, August.
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    Cited by:

    1. Chris T. Cartwright & Maura Harrington & Sarah Smith Orr & Tessa Sutton, 2023. "Women’s Leadership and COVID-19 Pandemic: Navigating Crises through the Application of Connective Leadership," Merits, MDPI, vol. 3(3), pages 1-21, September.

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