Molly TurnerDr. Cornwell

Chapter 9: Transformational Leadership –

In chapter nine of Leadership: Theory and Practice, 6th Edition, Peter Northouse (2013) discusses the transformational perspective on leadership. The transformational approach offers practices and generalizations that are typical leaders who transform their followers. It is not a to-do list for leaders—instead, it gives observations of leaders who effectively transform and inspire.

After defining transformational leadership, Northouse discusses the many features of the perspective. He compares charismatic and transformational leadership. He explores Bass’s model—a core model of transformational leadership. Then, he discusses and includes the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ)—the most common assessment of transformational leadership.

Northouse finally discusses how transformational leadership works, its pros and cons, as well as a few case studies demonstrating its application. In a nutshell, a transformational leader seeks to transform and inspire the follower, organization, and society beyond the interests of the leader.