ABSTRACT
In this chapter we will develop a theoretical framework that explains the appearance, evolution and practice of leadership. Before going further, though, we need to consider the motivation behind the development of a leadership theory and whether one is even possible. Regarding our motivation, we need to remember that theories are good as conceptual abstractions of practices and, as such, help to convey their message in a concise and convenient way. Being aware of them will hopefully make us more exible in their adoption depending on the scenario we are facing. What we do with them is of course up to each of us. We have seen in the previous chapters that as a distinct and identiable characteristic of human behaviour in social contexts, leadership is observed and, as such, it exists as a discrete phenomenon with an underlying cause and effect relationship, meaning a representation in the form of a theory.
