Leadership Position: The Habitus Perspective

• In Event: Moscone Center North Roundtable Session 4
  In Roundtable Session: Interrogating the Theoretical and Ethical Underpinnings of the Principalship

Abstract

According to Bourdieu’s theory of action (1990), self-assurance in a leadership position is an important ingredient for leading others toward a common goal. To better understand this process, we employed a multi-case study method to investigate three experienced principals and their schools. The findings show two categories of habitual confidence: ‘natural’ assurance and ‘seeming’ assurance, which affect leadership practices differently. We conclude that habitus is reflected in self-assurance in a leadership position, which generates leadership practices, and which in turn reinforce the habitus dispositions that created that self-assurance in the first place.

Authors

• Talmor Rachel Farchi, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

• Dorit Tubin, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev