Successful hiring, training, and pairing or grouping of staff requires administrators to consider the relationship between their programs' goals and the specific outdoor leadership skills of individual leaders. Authors have divided outdoor leadership skills into a three-category structure, and models of outdoor leadership have focused on skills…

Outdoor leaders model their values, and their ethical frameworks and moral development help shape their influence on others. Outdoor leaders face many obstacles as they seek to define ethical standards, including the challenge of defining common ethics, lack of professional certifications, the limits of professional ethics, and issues of power and…

Presents a problem-solving model for outdoor group leaders. Describes assessment, analytical and creative phases of the model, and emphasizes the importance of experience-based judgment. Discusses ways of providing experiential problem-solving opportunities in outdoor leadership preparation programs. (SV)

To help with the teaching of wilderness expeditionary leadership, this book contains knowledge regarded as essential for Wilderness Education Association (WEA) instructors. WEA courses are educational expeditions of 28-35 days designed to teach outdoor leadership in wilderness environments. Chapters focus on the "whys" behind fundamental…

A leadership simulation model, patterned after the avalanche simulator used by the United States Forest Service and applicable within a variety of field situations (outdoor camps, church groups, commercial enterprises) can augment the development and observation of outdoor leaders. The model includes both a broad base of practitioner inputs and an…

Paul Petzoldt, an early pioneer in outdoor education, saw the need for trained outdoor leaders. This paper presents material from unpublished papers retrieved after his death that clarify and expand on his philosophy of leadership development. Key ideas such as: judgment, 20-20 vision, and use of wilderness expeditions, are expanded upon and…

A review of research in cognitive and social psychology reveals the importance of situation assessment in the development of decision-making expertise. A naturalistic training model is presented for outdoor leaders that includes training for ill-structured problems, a heavy workload, time stress, and high stakes, as well as multiple players and…

Petzoldt's "grasshopper" method of teaching was a systematic adaptation of opportunity teaching or using the teachable moment. An excellent example of effective experiential education, it presented small, manageable bites of information which were immediately relevant. His emphasis on the importance of judgment and decision making and the first 24…

Paul Petzoldt, co-founder of the Wilderness Education Association (WEA), helped mold the profession of outdoor leadership as we know it today. After his death in 1999, numerous field journals, old speeches, and personal correspondence were salvaged in order to refresh, clarify, and preserve Petzoldt's philosophy and teaching methods. The…

A case study of an outdoor leader training expedition illustrates how the experiential leadership education model works. A leadership style inventory shows which leadership styles are strong and which need practicing. Data from participants compare leader perceptions of group dynamics with those of the group. A journal of leadership decisions…

Analyzes characteristics of outdoor leaders. Lists outdoor program types. Suggests course content, areas of competency, and 38 personal leadership traits for prospective leaders. Describes human resources, natural resources, and cultural awareness as parts of the "holistic domain" of the outdoor leader. Intended for training purposes. Includes…