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What does it mean to be responsible? Addressing the missing responsibility dimension in ethical leadership research

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  • Christian Voegtlin

    (Audencia Business School)

Abstract

This paper extends research on ethical leadership by proposing a responsibility orientation for leaders. Responsible leadership is based on the concept of leaders who are not isolated from the environment, who critically evaluate prevailing norms, are forward-looking, share responsibility, and aim to solve problems collectively. Adding such a responsibility orientation helps to address critical issues that persist in research on ethical leadership. The paper discusses important aspects of responsible leadership, which include being able to make informed ethical judgments about prevailing norms and rules, communicating effectively with stakeholders, engaging in long-term thinking and in perspective-taking, displaying moral courage, and aspiring to positive change. Furthermore, responsible leadership means actively engaging stakeholders, encouraging participative decision-making, and aiming for shared problem-solving. A case study that draws on in-depth interviews with the representatives of businesses and non-governmental organizations illustrates the practical relevance of thinking about responsibility and reveals the challenges of responsible leadership.

Suggested Citation

  • Christian Voegtlin, 2016. "What does it mean to be responsible? Addressing the missing responsibility dimension in ethical leadership research," Post-Print hal-01481471, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:journl:hal-01481471
    DOI: 10.1177/1742715015578936
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://audencia.hal.science/hal-01481471
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    Cited by:

    1. Zhiyong Han & Qun Wang & Xiang Yan, 2019. "How Responsible Leadership Motivates Employees to Engage in Organizational Citizenship Behavior for the Environment: A Double-Mediation Model," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-13, January.
    2. Bambang Mantikei & Usup Riassy Christa & Lelo Sintani & Danes Jaya Negara & Meitiana ⠀, 2020. "The Role of Responsible Leadership in Determining the Triple-Bottom-Line Performance of the Indonesian Tourist Industry," Contemporary Economics, University of Economics and Human Sciences in Warsaw., vol. 14(4), December.
    3. K. V. James & R. G. Priyadarshini, 2021. "Responsible Leadership: A New Paradigm for Organizational Sustainability," Management and Labour Studies, XLRI Jamshedpur, School of Business Management & Human Resources, vol. 46(4), pages 452-470, November.
    4. John G. Cullen, 2020. "Varieties of Responsible Management Learning: A Review, Typology and Research Agenda," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 162(4), pages 759-773, April.
    5. John G. Cullen, 2022. "Moral Recovery and Ethical Leadership," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 175(3), pages 485-497, January.
    6. Mehmet Yildiz & Nicola Pless & Semih Ceyhan & Rob Hallak, 2023. "Responsible Leadership and Innovation during COVID-19: Evidence from the Australian Tourism and Hospitality Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-21, March.
    7. Xinyue Zhang & Dian Li & Xintong Guo, 2022. "Antecedents of Responsible Leadership: Proactive and Passive Responsible Leadership Behavior," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-22, July.
    8. Katrin Muff & Coralie Delacoste & Thomas Dyllick, 2022. "Responsible Leadership Competencies in leaders around the world: Assessing stakeholder engagement, ethics and values, systems thinking and innovation competencies in leaders around the world," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(1), pages 273-292, January.
    9. Mark Crosweller & Petra Tschakert, 2020. "Climate change and disasters: The ethics of leadership," Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 11(2), March.
    10. Cheng, Ken & Wei, Feng & Lin, Yinghui, 2019. "The trickle-down effect of responsible leadership on unethical pro-organizational behavior: The moderating role of leader-follower value congruence," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 34-43.

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    Keywords

    Ethical leadership; responsible leadership; social responsibility; stakeholder engagement; shared leadership;
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