Women Students' Leadership Styles and Practices. ASHE Annual Meeting Paper.

This study assessed the leadership styles and practices of 214 women student leaders at a large public university. Specifically, the study examined: (1) what leadership practices the women embraced; (2) what influence academic aspirations had on leadership practices and sex role characteristics; (3) what sex roles the women embraced; (4) which sex role characteristics influence leadership practices; (5) what are the racial/ethnic differences in leadership styles and practices; and (6) what impact mentors had on leadership styles and practices. Subjects completed the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI), the Bem Sex Role Inventory, and a demographic data form. Results indicated that women who were leaders in high school had higher mean scores on all scales for both instruments. Women of color had slightly lower mean scores, compared to white students, on each of the LPI scales. Women who had three or more female mentors received slightly higher mean scores on each of the LPI scales than did women who had zero to two female mentors. Results supported a women's leadership ethos in which followers are empowered rather than controlled or managed, and suggest that women students should have more female role models and mentors and participate in activities to enhance their assertiveness. The special need for women of color to participate in leadership activities was noted. (Contains 30 references.) (DB)