Developing a Culturally Appropriate Measure of Effective Leadership for Sri Lanka

Abstract

Research has shown that characteristics of effective leadership differ in different national cultures. Measures available for evaluating effective leadership are limited. There are tools developed in South Asian countries such as India. However, research has shown Sri Lankan cultural values differ from these countries. This paper identified behaviours and traits of leadership that are perceived as important for an effective leader in the Sri Lankan context. It also presents a Questionnaire for Evaluation of Effective Leadership (QEEL) to assess effective leadership in Sri Lanka, and explains the development process of this questionnaire. The QEEL covers eight aspects: motivation, guidance, communication, decision-making, empathy, integrity, and change management. It was designed in three steps: Item generation, Item identification and Validation.  QEEL can also be used by organisations and researchers in other countries with similar cultural values.