Charismatic posture camouflaged kibbutz leaders dysfunction

What is it about?

The Kibbutz Movement's two prime leaders dominated it for about half of a century while their prolonged tenure was explained in the literature by their charisma. However, my research has found that initially they were trusting transformational phronetic leaders but after 12-14 years deteriorating job functioning curbed members’ trust, competing leaders threatened their power and it was defended by adopting an extreme ideology which they had previously rejected that legitimized autocracy. This autocracy was camouflaged by charismatic posture.

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Why is it important?

Leadership is elusive phenomenon especially because characteristics of prolonged successful leadership of a radical movement may change radically with tenure without authors' noticing this and failing to explain its strategy. In the case of the Israeli Kibbutz Movement research missed how its prime leaders self-servingly adopted extreme ideology which legitimizes their autocracy while marginalizing their movement. Research missed how they maintained power while derailing their Movement while camouflaging ineffectiveness by radicalization. Research fell pray to this camouflaging, depicted these leaders as charismatic and the adoration of Stalinism as a minor mistake rather than a ruinous strategy.

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