Doctor of Philosophy degree (PhD) in Leadership Studies

University of the West of Scotland

Leadership Research In today’s vastly complex and evolving world, leadership is important to either combat or accelerate change and identify opportunities. Organisations that develop their leadership talent pools find that the teams associated with talented leaders have less turnover, higher engagement scores and better well-being than that of other teams with less talented leaders. Leadership is central in the creation of social, environmental, and economic value within organisations. Within the team, we supervise research across a range of leadership themes drawing on established and contemporary theories of leadership. We focus on a nuanced conceptualisation of leadership, putting into context the limitations of fixed notions of human development that have influenced a range of leadership theories and even some current work-based interventions. However, we also focus on more recent and current theories of leadership, ensuring that empirical studies that will provide more insight on new paradigms are examined. Our leadership research challenges conventional wisdom and combines with our work involving policy makers, we aim to inform and develop leadership practice(s).