Distributed leadership in higher education: an analysis of heads of departments’ leadership practice in the UAE

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to explore the extent to which leadership styles or approaches adapted by heads of department in selected independent degree awarding institution in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates use the distributed leadership style. This study used a qualitative research approach to achieve the research aim. Evidence from the data shows that there is always no single best approach to leadership and in all places. Leaders’ approaches are driven by the context in which they practice and usually reflect a mixture of different leadership styles. Every leader is different, and they usually do not stick to one type of leadership style as evident in the findings. Leaders tend to adapt different approaches to manage different situations.