Source: Astin, Helen S. and Alexander W. Astin.
A Social Change Model of Leadership Development
Guidebook Version III.
The National Clearinghouse of Leadership Programs, 1996.
Compiled by: Timothy Rodriguez, 2010
Leadership is viewed as a process
rather than as a position.
The model explicitly promotes the
values of equity, social justice, selfknowledge, personal empowerment,
collaboration, citizenship, and
service.
Service provides a powerful vehicle
for developing student leadership
capabilities in a collaborative
environment. Learning happens by
"making meaning" of life
experiences.
Two Goals:
 Goal 1: Develop greater Self-knowledge and
Leadership Competence
 Goal 2: Facilitate positive social change
Those who hold formal leadership positions as
well as those who do not.
In this model, leadership is viewed as a
process rather than as a position
Individual
Group
Community
What personal qualities
are we attempting to
foster and develop in those
who participate in a
leadership development
program? What personal
qualities are most
supportive of group
functioning and positive
social change?
How can the collaborative
leadership development
process be designed not
only to facilitate the
development of the
desired individual qualities
(above) but also to effect
positive social change?
Toward what social ends is
the leadership
development activity
directed? What kinds of
activities are the most
effective in energizing the
group and in developing
desired personal qualities
in the individual?
Individual
Consciousness of self
Awareness of the beliefs, values,
attitudes, and emotions that motivate
one to take action.
Congruence
Thinking, feeling, and behaving with
consistency, genuineness, authenticity,
and honesty.
Commitment
Motivational energy to serve and that
drives the collective effort.
Commitment implies passion, intensity,
and duration.
What are the personal values that guide
how you interact in groups?
What strengths does your personal style
bring to working in groups?
In what ways does your style sometimes
make group work challenging?
How do you build trust and credibility
with yourself and with others?
Is it possible to always be a person of
congruence?
In what kinds of situations is it more
difficult?
What kind of circumstances would cause
you to walk away from a group?
What motivates you?
Where do your passions lie?
What topics on social issues get you excited?
If there was one job you would do for free,
what would that be?
How has your commitment and passion
been influenced?
 Have you influenced others?
Collaboration
Working with others in a common effort. It
constitutes the cornerstone value of the
group leadership effort because it
empowers self and others through trust.
Common Purpose
Working with shared aims and values. It
facilitates the group’s ability to engage in
collective analysis of the issues at hand and
the task to be undertaken.
Controversy with Civility
Recognizes two fundamental realities of any
creative group effort: that differences in
viewpoint are inevitable, and that these
differences must be aired openly but with
civility.
Group
What is the difference between collaboration
and cooperation?
How can you tell if a group is functioning
collaboratively versus cooperatively?
What distinguishes the two?
Is it possible to move a group from
cooperative to collaborative, and, if so, how?
Thinking about your own experience,
what is the difference between
embracing a predefined vision and
participating in the formulation of that
vision with others?
How does controversy arise?
How do you deal with controversy?
How could you incorporate civility into
controversy?
Citizenship
Community
Process whereby the individual and the
collaborative group become responsibly
connected to the community and the
society through the leadership
development activity.
Of what communities do you consider
yourself a part?
What does citizenship in those communities
mean to you?
What forms of active community involvement
appeal to you most?
How might you go about developing
awareness of important issues in a community
of which you are a part?
Consciousness of Self
Congruence
Commitment
Collaboration
Common Purpose
Controversy with Civility
Citizenship