Photo credit to : Blueprint Capital Advisors http://www.bcaalternatives.com/

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Research on leadership has evolved over the years, with several prominent theories emerging to lead in the field.

The leading theories I researched and will integrate in this portfolio are: Great Man theory (Carlyle), Trait theory (Goldberg), Contingency theory (Fiedler), Transactional theory (Burns), and Transformational theory (Burns), Authentic Leadership Theory (Shamir & Eilam).

Each of these theories enables me to provide an academic evaluation of my college experiences. The foundation of my theoretical framework is the Great Man theory.

It analyzes how I felt about myself coming to UNC Charlotte with the idea of succeeding without challenges.

The Trait theory portrays the Big Five as I analyze how I exemplify each trait throughout my artifacts.

I can now label instances in those artifacts where I was exemplifying, or not exemplifying, extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness.

Contingency theory provides academic analyzation of how versatile I had to be specifically as a Resident Advisor.

Every task was dependent on many factors and were not always easy to deal in a generic manner. Every resident I associated myself with required a variation to how I engaged them and it wasn’t because I wanted to be different but every individual has different needs and interaction tendencies that call for different approaches.

Last, but not least, Transformational and Transactional theories examine the manner of interactions I chose to pursue most.

I desired a more transformational approach where it was me guiding my peers and providing insight to my ideas versus exchanging for the sake of receiving something in return.

Hence, I utilize these theories to analzse and elaborate on how the case study of myself exemplified these theories through real life experiences.