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Fantasies of leadership: Identity Work

Sveningsson, Stefan LU and Larsson, Magnus LU (2006) In Leadership 2(2). p.203-224
Abstract
This article explores middle managerial talk and practice connected to expectations of leadership in a planned corporate cultural change programme. Here we explore how a middle manager positions him or herself in relation to contemporary discourse on leadership. We discuss how managerial claims of leadership in practice seem inconsistent with the actual practice. Based on these findings we suggest that leadership ideas could be seen as a kind of fantasy related to identity work, rather than actual practice. We investigate this fantasy in terms of its various sources and relate the fantasy construction to management education and to the planned cultural change in particular.
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
fantasy, identity control, identity work, leadership, managerial work
in
Leadership
volume
2
issue
2
pages
203 - 224
publisher
SAGE Publications
external identifiers
  • wos:000207636600005
  • scopus:84990330568
ISSN
1742-7169
DOI
10.1177/1742715006062935
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
5d18e943-3d1c-4402-9ae4-85eded249fb8 (old id 978901)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 11:34:52
date last changed
2023-04-03 10:38:35
@article{5d18e943-3d1c-4402-9ae4-85eded249fb8,
  abstract     = {{This article explores middle managerial talk and practice connected to expectations of leadership in a planned corporate cultural change programme. Here we explore how a middle manager positions him or herself in relation to contemporary discourse on leadership. We discuss how managerial claims of leadership in practice seem inconsistent with the actual practice. Based on these findings we suggest that leadership ideas could be seen as a kind of fantasy related to identity work, rather than actual practice. We investigate this fantasy in terms of its various sources and relate the fantasy construction to management education and to the planned cultural change in particular.}},
  author       = {{Sveningsson, Stefan and Larsson, Magnus}},
  issn         = {{1742-7169}},
  keywords     = {{fantasy; identity control; identity work; leadership; managerial work}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{2}},
  pages        = {{203--224}},
  publisher    = {{SAGE Publications}},
  series       = {{Leadership}},
  title        = {{Fantasies of leadership: Identity Work}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1742715006062935}},
  doi          = {{10.1177/1742715006062935}},
  volume       = {{2}},
  year         = {{2006}},
}