Study: Most Teens Do Not Want to be a Leader
A new nationwide survey conducted by the Girl Scouts of the USA found that most young people in the United States are not interested in becoming a leader. In fact, they rate leadership behind “fitting in,” “making money,” and “helping the environment.”
A majority of the girls and boys involved in the study identified themselves as leaders. They defined leaders as people who stand up for their beliefs, try to improve the world, and work well with others.
Their low rating of leadership seemed to come from their views of the adults they know who are considered leaders. They described adult leaders as having a traditional top-down leadership style that tells people what to do instead of working with people to come up with the best plan.
The study also found that African American and Hispanic girls and boys were more likely to consider themselves leaders than the white youths involved in the survey. Three quarters of the African American and Hispanic youth said they had leadership ability while only 50 percent of the white youth saw themselves as leaders.
The study included a random sample of 4,000 youth ages 8 to 17. The participants completed a survey and then were involved in focus group discussions.
The survey comes at an interesting political time in the U.S. For the first time ever, there is a chance that a woman or an African American may become the country’s president. The study provides some insights about how future voters may respond to how leaders function.
Peter Levine is the director of the research center at the University of Maryland that studies young people and their involvement in government. Mr. Levine is not surprised by the research findings.
He said, “The millennial generation has ambivalent, even negative, feelings about formal leadership. They prefer horizontal leadership where everyone’s a leader.”
Source: MSNBC
BLOG QUESTION
What are some of the characteristics of a good leader?
A majority of the girls and boys involved in the study identified themselves as leaders. They defined leaders as people who stand up for their beliefs, try to improve the world, and work well with others.
Their low rating of leadership seemed to come from their views of the adults they know who are considered leaders. They described adult leaders as having a traditional top-down leadership style that tells people what to do instead of working with people to come up with the best plan.
The study also found that African American and Hispanic girls and boys were more likely to consider themselves leaders than the white youths involved in the survey. Three quarters of the African American and Hispanic youth said they had leadership ability while only 50 percent of the white youth saw themselves as leaders.
The study included a random sample of 4,000 youth ages 8 to 17. The participants completed a survey and then were involved in focus group discussions.
The survey comes at an interesting political time in the U.S. For the first time ever, there is a chance that a woman or an African American may become the country’s president. The study provides some insights about how future voters may respond to how leaders function.
Peter Levine is the director of the research center at the University of Maryland that studies young people and their involvement in government. Mr. Levine is not surprised by the research findings.
He said, “The millennial generation has ambivalent, even negative, feelings about formal leadership. They prefer horizontal leadership where everyone’s a leader.”
Source: MSNBC
BLOG QUESTION
What are some of the characteristics of a good leader?
2 Comments:
I think being a leader is a very hard job. People should have a lot of bravery to attempt to become president. Sometimes a person might have a lot of work as a leader, so it would be good if a leader was ambitious and hard-working. It's also nice to be able to work with people the right way. Just plain kindness can also qualify as a trait of a leader or president. a person should be passionate about becoming a leader, too.
Being a good leader means that the leader is responsible for all hte work in his/her group and taking care of everything. The leader should be well-liked by the members. The leader should be the person who can do what they need to do and should make right and clear decision all the time to make a good group. The leader should be the person who think about all the people in the group and responsible for whatever the group does.
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