ERIC Number: EJ1369105
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2023-Mar
Pages: 26
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0952-8733
EISSN: EISSN-1740-3863
Toxic Leadership: A Slow Poison Killing Women Leaders in Higher Education in South Africa?
Higher Education Policy, v36 n1 p164-189 Mar 2023
Despite women's increased participation in academic employment patterns, a global gender gap on senior leadership in universities remains. This mixed methods study explores toxic leadership as a potential contributing factor to the gender gap on senior management levels in universities in South Africa. The Schmidt Toxic Leadership Scale (2008) is used to collect data for the quantitative component, while open-ended questions regarding women's experiences with toxic leaders guided the qualitative component. The quantitative findings suggest that the women surveyed experience high levels of toxic leadership. The qualitative findings advance understandings of women leaders' perception and experience of toxic leadership in the higher education landscape of South Africa. The triangulation of the findings reveals that the personal characteristics and behaviors of toxic leaders in universities conform with the literature on toxic leadership. The multiple toxic behaviors of leaders identified in this study could cause serious and enduring harm for women and universities in South Africa. Since toxic leadership has proven to lead to various distressing outcomes, a disconcerting conclusion of the study is that it impedes women's advancement. The article concludes with recommendations for future research and actions to mitigate workplace toxicity.
Descriptors: Leadership, Women Administrators, College Administration, Foreign Countries, Leadership Styles, Work Environment
Palgrave Macmillan. Available from: Springer Nature. One New York Plaza, Suite 4600, New York, NY 10004. Tel: 800-777-4643; Tel: 212-460-1500; Fax: 212-460-1700; e-mail:customerservice@springernature.com; Web site: http://www.palgrave.com/us/social-science/education
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: South Africa
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A