Native American Leadership Practices in Comparative Perspective: Toward a Relational, Ethical, and Intergenerational Paradigm of Leadership

Abstract

This paper examines Native American leadership practices as a framework for rethinking dominant paradigms in leadership theory. While Western leadership models have historically emphasized individual agency, hierarchical authority, and organizational performance, Indigenous leadership traditions foreground relationality, collective responsibility, spirituality, and intergenerational stewardship. Drawing on examples from multiple Native American nations, including the Lakota, Cherokee, Haudenosaunee, Pueblo, Navajo, Coast Salish, and Nez Perce, this study explores key dimensions of Indigenous leadership, including service-based authority, consensus governance, relational accountability, and long-term ethical responsibility. Rather than treating Indigenous leadership as an isolated cultural exception, the paper integrates these practices into broader theoretical discourse, showing how they both align with and extend existing frameworks such as servant leadership, transformational leadership, authentic leadership, ethical leadership, and collaborative governance. The analysis identifies several theoretical contributions, including the decentering of the individual leader, the expansion of leadership ethics beyond human systems, the reframing of leadership across temporal and spiritual dimensions, and the reconceptualization of leadership development as a relational and experiential process. The paper argues that Indigenous leadership offers a more holistic and sustainable paradigm, with significant implications for addressing contemporary global challenges such as climate change, social inequality, and institutional trust.