Bass & Stogdill's Handbook of Leadership

If you're taking leadership courses, this book has it all. It has helped me with papers and is a great reference for managers who seek to make that leap to becoming great leaders.

I am currently finishing my coursework for a PhD in Organizational Leadership and purchased this text with the hope that it may help me prepare for my general exams early next year. I was not disappointed. Bass may be best known for his contributions to transformational leadership, but this compilation of leadership theory is very in-depth and written exceptionally well. Leadership studies have become crucial for organizations to remain competititve and effective. In addition, leadership studies are becoming a solid academic discipline. This book is truly an outstanding resource.

I have found the "Handbook" to be most useful. I disagree with my Swedish friend above about the book. In fact below is a snippet from THE journal of leadership about the book. According Schriesheim, Scandura, Gardiner and Lankau (1993) the Handbook is "the outstanding foundation source for information on leadership theory and research" (p. 104). Schriesheim et al. state further that the handbook is "the source which scholars should consult first in attempting to understand any of the subsidiary topics...subsumed under the general rubric of 'leadership theory and research'" (p. 108). Reference: Schriesheim, C. A., Scandura, T. A., Gardiner, C. C., & Lankau, M. J. (1993). Book Review: Bass & Stogdill's handbook of leadership: Theory, research & managerial applications by Bernard Bass. Leadership Quarterly 4(1), 103-113.

Bass presents a thorough, but brief synopsis of the findings in leadership research. His chapter on stress and leadership ignores the positive effects stress has on leader behavior and its relationship to subordinates.

Its multiple models presentation, allows a better approach and understanding. Teaching at our university system, and helping organizations, this book is a fundamental reference for help.