Conclusion

Abstract

Chapter 11 aggregates the conceptual developments and theoretical argument and research findings presented in the previous chapters into a theoretical framework for studying the political leadership of elected politicians in the age of governance. The framework suggests that interactive political leadership holds the potential to promote robust political authorization in the age of governance through a promotion of interactive democracy, political learning accountability, interactive political entrepreneurship, and socio-political implementation. Conditioning factors are multi-level governance, an increased mediatization of political communication and access to interactive political platforms and arenas. Moreover, the chapter provides twenty propositions regarding the prospects for, and dilemmas and challenges related to the performance of interactive political leadership that can guide and inspire future research. Finally, the chapter proposes an agenda for future research and highlights the need for empirical studies on the scope for interactive political leadership in different contexts, discourse analyses of current understandings of political leadership and followership, process studies of the interplay between politicians and citizens, and studies of the impact of institutional design on political leadership styles.