Resumo

JOWAH, LE. Botho values and beliefs as a leadership style: the maturation of the studies in effective leadership. JCMAN [online]. 2015, vol.12, n.1, pp.208-225. ISSN 1815-7440.

Botho as a culture is a way of life which informs the way a typical African would lead, interact and socialise. Culture is not genetic but we all are born into a culture, yet culture affects human behaviour and dictates how people perceive things. The originality of cultural values becomes questionable with such diverse values, beliefs, and attitudes in this global village. Inter-cultural interactions and cross-cultural mobility compounded by education, technology, and political interactions has influenced the botho value systems and beliefs. Botho cannot claim to be original given the colonisation of Africa and subsequent impact on cultural values. However, there are remnants of botho value systems in different varieties throughout the African continent. The fundamental beliefs and values are largely unshaken, though tainted with uncomfortable colonial intrusions which distort the traditional African perceptions about behaviour. The paper extracts the current botho values that inform leader-follower relationships, which are in agreement with the modern leadership philosophies in our current leadership. The African values are based on the philosophy that; "you are who you are because of other people." Emphasis is on respect for the elderly, communalism (team-work), and the philosophy of one-hand-washes-the-other as norms found in the botho value system.

Palavras-chave : botho; culture; emotional intelligence; interdependency; leadership theory; management concepts; team work; value.

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