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For seventeen years and through two editions, this Handbook has been the indispensable "bible" for every serious student of leadership. This third edition reflects the growth and changes in the study of leadership since the 1981 edition. There have been shifts in both content and method. Senior managers, for example, have become an increasing subject of inquiry. Distinctly separate fields of inquiry, such as political science and psychology, have been joined in this edition to build a broader appreciation of the phenomenon of leadership. Throughout the Handbook, the contributions from cognitive social psychology and the social, political, communications, and administrative sciences have been expanded.

As in the second edition, Bernard Bass begins with a consideration of the definitions and concepts used, and a brief review of some of the better-known theories. Professor Bass then focuses on the personal traits, tendencies, attributes, and values of leaders and the knowledge, intellectual competence, and technical skills required for leadership. Next, he looks at leaders' socioemotional talents, interpersonal competencies, and the differences in these characteristics in leaders who are imbued with ideologies, especially authoritarianism, Machiavellianism, and self-aggrandizement. A fuller examination of the values, needs, and satisfactions of leaders follows, and singled out for special attention are competitiveness and the preferences for taking risks. In his chapters on personal characteristics, Bass examines the esteem that others generally accord to leaders as a consequence of the leaders' personalities. The more general examination of the personal factors associated with leadership has been extensively reorganized and expanded, and increased attention has been paid to knowledge, information, and intellectual ability, as well as to power and political tactics.

The many developments in theory and research about charisma since 1974 have now made possible an entire chapter devoted to charismatic and inspirational leadership. Bass argues that a new paradigm of leadership -- transformational leadership -- has arisen that makes possible the inclusion of a much wider range of phenomena than when theory and modeling are limited to reinforcement strategies.

Studies of women increased dramatically during the 1980s. Accordingly, Chapter 32 on women and leadership has been considerably expanded over the chapter in the second edition. Completely new to this edition are studies by European and Japanese investigators on the accelerating internationalization of management.

Finally, a glossary has been included in this edition to assist specialists in a particular academic discipline who may be unfamiliar with terms used in other fields.

Average Customer Rating:

Exceptional Leadership Resource

Customer Rating:

I am currently finishing my coursework for a PhD in Organizational Leadership and purchased this text with the hope that it may help me prepare for my general exams early next year. I was not disappointed. Bass may be best known for his contributions to transformational leadership, but this compilation of leadership theory is very in-depth and written exceptionally well. Leadership studies have become crucial for organizations to remain competititve and effective. In addition, leadership studies are becoming a solid academic discipline. This book is truly an outstanding resource.

A must read for all serious scholars of leadership

Customer Rating:

I have found the "Handbook" to be most useful. I disagree with my Swedish friend above about the book. In fact below is a snippet from THE journal of leadership about the book. According Schriesheim, Scandura, Gardiner and Lankau (1993) the Handbook is "the outstanding foundation source for information on leadership theory and research" (p. 104). Schriesheim et al. state further that the handbook is "the source which scholars should consult first in attempting to understand any of the subsidiary topics...subsumed under the general rubric of 'leadership theory and research'" (p. 108). Reference: Schriesheim, C. A., Scandura, T. A., Gardiner, C. C., & Lankau, M. J. (1993). Book Review: Bass & Stogdill's handbook of leadership: Theory, research & managerial applications by Bernard Bass. Leadership Quarterly 4(1), 103-113.

A classic, comprehensive work	Customer Rating:
Bass presents a thorough, but brief synopsis of the findings in leadership research. His chapter on stress and leadership ignores the positive effects stress has on leader behavior and its relationship to subordinates.

Social science back 60 years?

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This text displays a plethora of simplistic, presumptuous and shallow typologies purporting to explain what is a leader and why it has to be so. Without any concern for contemporary social studies the author tells us about what inborn qualities signifies a female leader, why there are fewer black leaders than white ones ("scientifically proven" low cognitive ability according to the author, pp. 740-741), and the litany goes on. It is baffling that this stuff is still available in the book market as anything else than obscure reminiscences of American social science in a time we rather forget about.

A most in Leadership learning and training	Customer Rating:
Its multiple models presentation, allows a better approach and understanding. Teaching at our university system, and helping organizations, this book is a fundamental reference for help.