The Value(s) of Civil Leaders : A Study into the Influence of Governance Context on Public Value Orientation

Abstract

The main research question of the dissertation is: What values motivate and direct civil leaders and to what extent are the values shaped by the institutional context in which these leaders operate? This central question was divided into three research questions. 1. Do civil leaders have a common value pattern that explains their focus on the public interest and the way in which they pursue their activities? 2. Do key governance contexts within society typically conduce towards distinct value patterns? 3. To what extent can the observed value patterns of civil leaders be explained by the location of these leaders in particular institutional contexts (governance context)? These questions are relevant for three research areas. First, the research of civil leaders and especially what motivates and directs civil leaders in their orientation on societal issues. Second, the research of the influence and characteristics of different governance contexts and especially how differences in and changes in governance context influence the societal orientation of civil leaders. And, finally, the research on how these civil leaders operate and especially how they combine this inner drive with the influence of their institutional context and with external pressures and influences. These questions were researched in a study that consisted of two parts. First, a theoretical part following five elements. These were the analysis and definition of the habitat of civil leaders (where to find them?), of values and a relevant set of values, of the kind of leadership involved, of a typology of governance contexts (for-profit, non-profit and active citizen were distinguished as what was defined as meso-governance) and of public value. This lead to a conceptual model for the empirical investigation. The empirical part then consisted of a comparative case study and a comparative survey. The comparative case study was executed by means of interviews and data collection on 30 civil leaders. Main elements that were investigated were their values and values patterns, a description and analysis of their societal case or project, their realized public value, their institutional context, the resistance they encountered and their leadership style and tactics. The comparative survey used a standardized value scorecard that was used in the interviews with the civil leaders and amongst a reference group of 230 respondents through a web survey. The study found that the institutional contexts certainly differ in their influence on values and distinct patterns of values were found (research question 2). There was also a remarkable common value pattern found amongst the civil leaders (research question 1), to be defined as a combination of entrepreneurial and societal values. This deviated from the value patterns based on their respective institutional contexts. This made them 'a breed of their own', and was mainly explained by the high score they gave on values like 'freedom of choice', 'entrepreneurship', 'self-realization' and 'independence'. These values, that are not uncommon for leaders in general, suggest that civil leaders operate with a certain distance from the typical influence of institutional contexts (research question 3).