ABSTRACT

There is very little research on imagination in the context of leadership in general, and even less in relation to educational leadership. Drawing on available research on imagination in leadership and scholarship in the field of imagination, this qualitative content analysis seeks to add to foundational understanding of imagination’s role in educational leadership. First, it describes the range of meanings leaders hold about imagination and the contradictory feelings these meanings create. Second, it indicates some of the varied ways in which imagination contributes to leadership. Third, it contributes a definition of imagination that encompasses the potential value of imagination for leadership now and into the future. The paper concludes by offering recommendations for future research and identifies the improvisational imagination as an additional feature that imagination contributes to leadership practices. The research shows that imagination is not something we should call on only in times of crisis, but, rather, that it is an indispensable ally in dealing with leadership challenges of all kinds.

摘要

总体而言，关于领导力的想象力研究很少，而与教育领导力有关的研究甚至更少。利用对想象力领域的领导力和学术领域中的想象力进行的现有研究，这种定性的内容分析旨在加深对想象力在教育领导力中的作用的基本理解。首先，它描述了领导者关于想象力的含义范围以及这些含义所产生的矛盾感觉。其次，它表明了想象力有助于领导力的各种方式。第三，它为想象力做出了定义，其中包括想象力对于现在和将来的领导能力的潜在价值。本文最后为未来的研究提供了建议，并指出了即兴的想象力是想象力有助于领导实践的另一个特征。研究表明，想象力不是我们仅在危机时期才需要的东西，而是在应对各种领导力挑战时必不可少的盟友。