Toward an Affirmative Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Leadership Paradigm

This article presents an affirmative paradigm for understanding the leadership of sexual minorities-that is, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people. Although research on LGBT issues in leadership to date is almost nonexistent, there are several bodies of literature that can contribute...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The American psychologist 2010-04, Vol.65 (3), p.201-215
Main Authors: Fassinger, Ruth E, Shullman, Sandra L, Stevenson, Michael R
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Affirmative action
Bisexuality
Female
Gays & lesbians
Gender Identity
Gender Issues
Gender roles
Homosexuality
Homosexuals
Human
Humans
Leaders
Leadership
Lesbianism
Male
Marginalization
Minority Groups
Negative Attitudes
Prejudice
Self Disclosure (Individuals)
Sex Role
Sexual Identity
Sexual Orientation
Sexuality
Social Bias
Social Identification
Social roles
Social Status
Social Support
Stigmatization
Subcultures
Transgender persons
Transsexualism
Work Environment
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Summary:This article presents an affirmative paradigm for understanding the leadership of sexual minorities-that is, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people. Although research on LGBT issues in leadership to date is almost nonexistent, there are several bodies of literature that can contribute to an understanding of the unique leadership challenges faced by sexual minority people. These include the literatures on stigma and marginalization, leadership in particular status groups (e.g., college students, women), and LGBT vocational issues (especially workplace climate and identity disclosure). We propose a new, multidimensional model of LGBT leadership enactment that incorporates sexual orientation (particularly regarding identity disclosure), gender orientation (including leader gender), and the situation (conceptualized here as group composition); the model also is embedded in context, the most relevant factors that affect the enactment of leadership being stigma and marginalization. We explicate this model with findings and concepts from relevant literatures, and we conclude the article with recommendations for building a scholarly literature in LGBT leadership.
ISSN:0003-066X
1935-990X
DOI:10.1037/a0018597