Theoretical background

While organizational leaders are often considered individuals characterized by self confidence and high self esteem, studies indicate that this assumption may hold true only for some leaders. For others, however, entering leadership positions may be viewed as means to enhance their self esteem through the support and appreciation they expect to receive on the job (Popper 2000, 2002; Post, 1993). The literature offers a significant amount of data testifying to the significance of self esteem for leaders' professional conduct.  It was found that self esteem has a positive correlation with effective leadership performance (Hill & Ritchie, 1977) and is a good predictor for leadership behavior in general (Atwater et al., 1999; Younger, 2002) and of successful leaders in particular (Paunonen et al., 2006). Moreover, it was found that a positive sense of self esteem among leaders is correlated with their willingness to trust others, with their ability to work without the need to obtain the recognition of others (Bass, 1990), with courage (Wein, 2007), with entrepreneurial conduct (Baumeister et al., 2003), and with a positive sense of self efficacy (Luszcynska, Gutierrez & Schwarzer, 2005). Therefore, it is hardly surprising that the debate regarding the implications of unbalanced self esteem and its influences on leaders' professional conduct captures much attention in the current leadership literature (Pittinsky & Rosenthal, 2006). Yet, in considering the high stress that leaders experience on the job, maintaining and strengthening the sense of self esteem is not an easy task. Based on Kohut’s psychology of the self (1971, 1977), which considers the sense of self esteem an independent dynamic and evolving dimension of personality requiring nourishment and maintenance through life, the following study explores the ways whereby leaders preserve and promote their sense of self esteem while faced with stressful circumstances. 

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