Research

Student Leadership CompetenciesStudent Leadership Competencies® Study

The purpose of this study was to develop a universal set of leadership competencies tailored for students in an educational context. This study began in with a review of standards set by the Council for the Advancement of Standards (CAS) in Higher Education and outcomes from the ACPA/NASPA 2004 document, Learning Reconsidered along with an analysis of three contemporary student leadership development models to create a framework of common leadership competencies. Using this framework, the researchers analyzed nearly 18,000 outcomes across 522 academic programs accredited by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. Go to the Student Leadership Competencies® website for more details on this study OR check out the article in the Journal of Leadership Studies for the first iteration of this study. Dr. Seemiller served as the PI for this study.

Youth Leadership Competency Model Study

This study was designed to contribute to the development of a theoretically grounded framework for youth leadership competency development. The research involved conducting a meta-analysis of the leadership competencies embedded in four professional preparation frameworks, three research-based studies on youth leadership, and objectives of four large national youth leadership organizations, yielding 11 frameworks for analysis. Findings from the study informed the creation of a competency-based youth leadership development model. Both the methodology and findings from this study are published in the Journal of Leadership Education.

Student Leadership Competencies® Taxonomy Study

The purpose of this study was to provide a multi-stage taxonomy that takes into account complexity and developmental sequencing to help leadership educators design and offer developmentally appropriate curriculum that builds on core leadership competencies and ends with advanced competencies. Using an expert model methodology, 49 seasoned leadership educators in the U.S. completed an online ranking exercise indicating their perspectives on the developmental scaffolding of each of the 60 Student Leadership Competencies®. Data was analyzed, looking for themes, and an initial developmental taxonomy was created. More information to be presented at the 2017 International Leadership Association on this study. Dr. Seemiller served as the PI for this study. Dr. Richard Whitney joined the PI team after round 1 and is assisting with analysis for round 2.

Student Leadership Competencies® Inventory Study

The Student Leadership Competencies® Inventory version 1 was beta tested in 2011 in an effort to validate the measurements on the Inventory. As the Student Leadership Competencies® Study advanced and there were changes to the competencies and dimensions, the Inventory changed, resulting in a need to continue to validate the changing instrument. In 2014, the Inventory was moved to a new platform and launched again for data collection and analysis. In 2016, an updated version of the Inventory was piloted using an extended Likert scale and separating the Inventory into mini assessments by competency cluster. Dr. Seemiller served as the Co-PI of this study with Dr. Dave Rosch. Results are published in the Journal of Leadership Education.