The Journal of Leadership Studies –Publishing Cross/Inter/Multi/Trans-Disciplinary Leadership Research

• In Event: Interactive Roundtable Discussions & Member Community Information Tables
  In Interactive Roundtable: Leadership Scholarship Interactive Roundtable Discussions

Short Description

The Journal of Leadership Studies (Wiley) editors will lead an interactive discussion sharing how the journal is providing publishing opportunities for leadership research that may or may not be ensconced within a single discipline. Ideal outcomes include receiving feedback regarding how to better serve cross/inter/multi/trans-disciplinary scholars interested in publishing.

Detailed Abstract

As leadership research increases in complexity, leadership journals must show a commensurate evolution in complexity in order to accommodate this research. The challenge many leadership researchers face is that their research does not fit neatly into a single discipline, but is often cross/inter/multi/trans-disciplinary. Researchers struggle to find a journal that matches the orientation of their research. That is, many journals are limited in scope and orientation creating a mismatch between the cross/inter/multi/trans-disciplinary research and the journal.

The Journal of Leadership Studies (JLS) provides multiple publishing venues for cross/inter/multi/trans-disciplinary research. The roundtable discussion is an ideal forum to discuss the multiple publishing opportunities the JLS offers (i.e., feature articles, Symposia, Media Reviews (Thinking About Leadership), Leadership in Practice), regardless of whether the research is cross/inter/multi/trans disciplinary. During the roundtable we would also seek feedback on how to change the JLS to better address scholars’ publishing needs.

Below are the journal sections that will guide our discussions.

Feature Articles
The feature article section of JLS has been the section where most of the manuscripts would be labeled as traditional scholarship. Based on manuscripts submitted and feedback from authors, the feature article section is evolving to receive and publish research that goes beyond a single discipline or approach (though one can still publish research involving a single discipline).

As part of the conversation we would solicit ideas regarding how the JLS could change to further accommodate cross/inter/multi/trans disciplinary research.

Symposium
The defining section in the JLS is the Symposium. A recent JLS Symposium (Provoking Perspectives on Creativity and Innovation) was Scholar Sourced in which a call for short (1 – 2 page) reaction papers was made. The response was overwhelming and many of the submissions were cross/inter/multi/trans-disciplinarian.

As part of the conversation we would solicit possible methods/approaches to obtain cross/inter/multi/trans disciplinary symposia.

Media Reviews (Thinking about Leadership)
The JLS has broadened the definition of media in order to provide a more inclusive forum for manuscripts that are cross/inter/multi/trans-disciplinary. Broadening the definition of media has allowed for additional perspectives in the leadership conversation. We are still seeking to re-envision the section so as to better serve the cross/inter/multi/trans-disciplinary scholarship we are seeing more of.

As part of the conversation we would be interested in hearing how we can evolve the section to better serve cross/inter/multi/trans-disciplinary scholars who have valuable contributions to make that do not necessarily fall into the limiting definition of media.

Leadership in Practice
A new section the JLS is considering adding is a section tentatively labeled Leadership in Practice. This new section would be primarily for applied leadership activities as many of those activities often exceed a single orientation. The primary audience would be leadership practitioners who have developed cross/inter/multi/trans-disciplinary activities.

As part of the conversation we would be interested in hearing from practitioners regarding how to best organize and develop a section devoted to applied leadership activities.

Via these conversations, our goal is to provide a collaborative and interactive environment to discuss issues, concerns, and questions from scholars about publishing. The overarching intent of the roundtable is exchange ideas with participants regarding how the JLS can better serve leadership scholars conducting cross/inter/multi/trans-disciplinary research.

Scholars and practitioners who may be challenged to find a good fit for publishing their cross/inter/multi/trans disciplinary research are the primary audience for the roundtable discussion. Participants are encouraged to bring questions and ideas. We will also share some ideas and insights on pragmatic and conceptual concerns of authors regarding the publishing and reviewing process.

Participants

• Mark R. Ludorf, Stephen F. Austin State University

• Hinrich Eylers, University of Phoenix

• Mark McCaslin, University of Phoenix

• Anthony Middlebrooks, University of Delaware

• Daniel Jenkins, University of Southern Maine

• Clinton M. Stephens, Emporia State University