About this Research Topic
Leadership is a fundamental aspect of team functioning across a broad range of performance domains including sport, physical activity, and exercise and health. Indeed, there is increasing recognition that high-quality leadership at all levels within organizations is crucial to the growth and performance of teams. Over the past 25 years, the majority of research has examined leadership from the perspective of the top-down approach that relies on a leader-centric approach. However, this only represents one aspect of leadership within performance domains. Equally important, although far less examined, is the concept of shared leadership within teams, specifically termed ‘athlete leadership’ or ‘peer leadership’. Leaders within teams have been suggested to have a significant impact upon a range of team-related factors, including satisfaction, cohesion, team dynamics, performance, health, and well-being. There is limited clarity, however, regarding the best mechanisms through which to develop the leadership capacity and potential within a team.
In this Research Topic, we wish to explore shared leadership within performance contexts. We welcome researchers and practitioners to submit manuscripts of original research, case studies, or systematic reviews with meta-analysis on the following shared leadership topics:
• Effective interventions for developing/enhancing leadership capacity within both teams and individuals.
• Clarifying the roles of different leaders within a team, and the interaction between different levels of leadership within an organization (e.g., leaders within a team and coach/managers).
• The link between shared leadership and positive group and individual-level outcomes.
• Research on the characteristic attributes and behaviors of leaders within the team.
• The role of the coach in cultivating a structure of shared leadership and empowering the team members.
• Cross-cultural research or research conducted in Eastern cultures as the main evidence to date pertains to evidence found in Western cultures.
• Longitudinal evolution of leadership (structures/roles) over time.
Keywords: peers, performance, teams, groupwork, leadership
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
