Abstract
Purpose. The four purposes of this study were to determine (a) which leadership behaviors Iraqi Arab immigrants to the U.S. working as foreign language educators would rate as inhibiting or contributing to effective leadership; (b) which behaviors rated by these immigrants are considered universally positive, negative, or culturally contingent; (c) what were the differences in the ratings of cultural dimensions between the Middle Eastern and Anglo participants in the GLOBE study and participants in this study; (d) whether the length of time Iraqi immigrants spent in the U.S. affected their positive or negative ratings of leadership behaviors. Methodology. The study sample consisted of 67 Iraqi Arab foreign language educators from the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California. The descriptive, ex post facto study used a questionnaire adapted from the international GLOBE study published in 2004. The response rate was 92%. Findings. Participants identified 24 behaviors that inhibit effective leadership and 25 behaviors that contribute to it. Scores of four leadership dimensions (Charismatic/Value-Based, Team-Oriented, Humane-Oriented, and Autonomous) were closer to the scores of the Anglo cluster than to the Middle Eastern cluster in the GLOBE study. Scores of behaviors associated with Participative and Self-Protective leadership dimensions were closer to the scores of the Middle Eastern cluster. The length of time study participants lived in the U.S. affected their ratings of leadership behaviors. Participants with the longest time in the U.S. identified the largest number of behaviors that had a positive or negative effect on leadership. Conclusions. This study generated three conclusions: (a) Study participants consider behaviors from Charismatic/Value-Based and Team-Oriented dimensions to be the most effective; (b) Iraqi Arab participants also respond positively to Participative and Humane-Oriented leadership behaviors; (c) the assimilation process of living in the U.S. modified participants' perception about effectiveness of leadership behaviors, such as participation and inclusiveness in the decision-making process. Recommendations for future research. Replicate this study with a larger sample of Iraqi Arab immigrant leaders in a different occupational field (e.g., business). Implications for action. Learning about employees' norms and values will be a major asset to leaders who work with culturally diverse groups.