This research study aims to provide a basic and positive data that will shed light on developing leadership education program for university students. Based on Yukl’s research on leadership behaviors (skills), the types of leadership behaviors perce...
This research study aims to provide a basic and positive data that will shed light on developing leadership education program for university students. Based on Yukl’s research on leadership behaviors (skills), the types of leadership behaviors perceived to be in need by Korean university students and education demands are explored. Yukl’s 14 taxonomy of leadership skills and leadership measurement tool (MPS: Managerial Practice Survey) used in this study help university students consider their daily life from a leader’s perspective, and they provide sufficient feedback on how much and how often leadership behaviors are exhibited. To meet the objectives of this study, specifically, the following areas have been reviewed.First, university students’ main responses (participation rate, perceived need, motivation for participation, and types of programs they participated in) toward leadership education were examined.Second, the correlation between students’ internal factors and leadership behavior (skill) was examined.Third, the kinds of leadership education the university students perceived to be of necessity were prioritized and analyzed.For this study, 650 surveys were handed out to students currently enrolled at Seoul Y University. The surveys contained questions dealing with demographics, motivation for joining leadership education programs, types of programs they participated in, importance of leadership behavior (skill), leadership skill acquisition level, and the extent of their desire to learn leadership skills. Out of the 650 distributed, 608 were returned, and among these, 600 were used for final analysis. With SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Science) 14.0 program, frequency analysis, reliability analysis, 1 way ANOVA, and post-verification tests were performed on the data collected. The results were as follows.First, in the survey about Korean university students’ responses toward leadership training, (participation rate, perceived need, motivation for participation, and types of programs they participated in) it was found that only a small percentage of Korean university students actually participated in leadership training although the students were highly aware of the need. It also appeared that students’ motivation influenced the types of leadership training they undertook.Second, the importance students placed on 14 types of leadership skill and the leadership behaviors (skills) they attained showed significant variance depending on their departments, grades, and previous experience with leadership training. Leadership skills which were prioritized in the order of importance did not match up with the order of the leadership skills they actually acquired. Also, their understanding about the importance of leadership and their leadership acquisition level varied depending on their former experience with leadership education.Third, in the section diagnosing the extent to which students wish to learn leadership behaviors (skills), it was found that students wanted to learn the kinds of leadership skills they thought were important. The kinds of leadership education perceived to be most necessary for university students are as follows: 1) conflict resolution and team building, 2) problem solving, 3) supporting and networking, 4) planning and organizing, 5) clear goal and objective setting and others. Below are some suggestions from the study.First, the discrepancy between students’ recognition of the need for leadership training and their actual training participation rate illustrates that analysis on the kind of training most in need by Korean university students is required prior to developing a leadership training program. Also, the correlation between their motivation and the types of leadership program they participated in indicates that it is important to analyze educational needs in order to meet diverse inner needs of individual students. As can be seen through this research, learner’s needs should be considered when setting training objectives and goals.Secondly, a discrepancy has been found between the types of leadership behaviors (skills) Korean university students regard as important and the leadership behaviors (skills) they deem to have acquired. This proved the needs for leadership behavior (skill) training among Korean university students. The respondents also answered that their actual perceived leadership skill acquisition level was low compared to the importance they placed on acquiring leadership skill. The fact that students’ previous engagement in leadership program had an influence on their perceived leadership skill acquisition level demonstrated that leadership training affects the acquisition of leadership skills. This justifies the development of leadership education programs in the future.Finally, among the taxonomy on the types of leadership skills, Korean university students felt the greatest need for training in the areas of decision making and relationship building. For types of teaching, they preferred workshops or lectures where they can actually observe a leader’s behaviors (skills) and learn the main aspects of leadership skills. These are crucial factors that should be taken into account when developing university student leadership education programs in the future.