Leadership Theories: An Update on Which are Most Googled

​What are the most popular leadership theories?  In 2014 Jessica Dinh, Robert Lord and colleagues answered the question of which theories are most popular among researchers. Examining 12 years of studies published in academic journals, they found the most studied were:

• Transformational 20%
• Traits 16%
• Leader-exchange 15%

Among other theories were:

• Authentic leadership 4%
• Servant leadership 1%

But which were the most popular? To answer that question, in 2014 I did a google trend search and found servant leadership, one of the most popular theories, generated very little research. I discussed the Dinh et al. study and the results of my google trend search in a blog in September of 2014. It has been one of my most popular blogs.
 
I thought it would be interesting to update the google trend search. I used the time frame September 22, 2014, to March 15, 2017, across all categories, worldwide. Which are the most googled leadership theories? The results are shown here:

• Yellow – Transformational leadership
• Blue – Servant Leadership
• Green – Leadership Traits
• Red – Authentic Leadership 

Transformational leadership remains the most googled, followed by servant leadership.
 
My take-aways:
 
1. The ranking of theories based on google searches is consistent with my 2014 trend search. Transformational and servant leadership are the two most googled leadership theories.
 
2.  More research is needed on servant leadership. I googled “transformational leadership” and “servant leadership.” In my opinion the transformational leadership search resulted in more evidence-based information.
 
3. Around the holiday season google searches on leadership theories greatly decline. My hypothesis is that students have turned in their well-googled papers on leadership and are now enjoying the holidays. 
 
Dinh, J. E., Lord, R. G., Gardner, W. L., Meuser, J. D., Liden, R. C., & Hu, J. (2014). Leadership theory and research in the new millennium: Current theoretical trends and changing perspectives. The Leadership Quarterly, 25, 36-62.
 
Image of trends for these leadership approaches made using data generated by Google Trends Tool 
 
https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=2014-09-22%202017-03-15&q=servant%20leadership,authentic%20leadership,transformational%20leadership,leadership%20traits
 
© John Ballard, PhD,  2017. All rights reserved.
 
Author of Decoding the Workplace, BEST CAREER BOOK Next Generation Indie Book Awards.