Situational determinants of leadership structure

Leadership has long been a topic of considerable interest in the social sciences. Nearly every aspect of leadership has been the subject of some degree of study. The present paper is concerned with some of the situational factors which determine the form of leadership which will arise and be accepted in a group. Two basic questions will be considered: 1. Under what conditions will there be pressure toward centralized authoritarian leadership? 2. Under what conditions is a more participative democratic form of leadership likely to arise? While this is certainly not a new topic, this paper attempts to develop a somewhat more systematic approach than has ordinarily been undertaken toward this subject. I feel that the "model" developed in this paper provides a framework or structure for further experimentation and theoretical development that has perhaps previously been lacking. My initial interest in making such a study was stimulated by observations made last summer in Indonesia and Burma of a strong desire, particularly among certain high government officials, for centralized control. I observed this same trend beginning to develop in Malaya. Recent releases from Ghana suggest that this situation is not confined to Asia. Particularly in Indonesia, which is the situation most familiar to me, there was an eadership has long been a topic of conoriginal attempt at developing a free society and a free enterprise economy. In each of the countries mentioned there was no revo