Leadership styles of uae deans and department heads

This study investigated the deans and department heads’ self-perception of their leadership styles at three universities in the UAE and whether these leadership styles differ by demographic characteristics. Twenty-two deans and forty-three department heads at the chosen Emirati universities voluntarily completed an online questionnaire. The Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) was used to measure participants’ leadership style. Data were analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. Deans and department heads perceived their leadership style to be transformational. Further, participants’ perceptions did not significantly vary across demographic characteristics such as gender, nationality (Emirati vs. non-Emirati), age group, marital status, rank, experience in present job, and job title (Dean vs. Department Head). This study is unique because it is the first attempt to explore the leadership styles of deans and departments heads in an Arab setting, which is different from Western and Eastern settings.