Publication

The New GLOBE Project Integrative Model of Outstanding Leadership: A Springboard for Large-Scale Comparative Research in 134 Societies

Implicit leadership theory
Outstanding leadership
Multi-level model
Comparative research
2026
R. COTTON ,
M. JAVIDAN ,
C. EGRI ,
P. W. DORFMAN ,
A. BULLOUGH ,
A. KAR ,
M. S. KUMAR ,
S. FITZSIMMONS ,
M. LAZAROVA ,
A. DASTMALCHIAN ,

2026, Journal of World Business, pp.101731

Résumé

Based on Implicit Leadership Theory (ILT), we expand on the Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness (GLOBE) 2004/2014 leadership model and present a reconfigured and updated GLOBE Integrative Model of Outstanding Leadership. This new model measures the contributors and inhibitors of outstanding leadership across 134 countries/societies – more than twice the number of societies included in the original GLOBE model and accounting for over 99% of world GDP and over 95% of world population - in the hopes of fueling comparative research in a much larger set of societies around the world. The new leadership model is based on a sample of 44,971 managers and professionals who participated in surveys (118 versions of 60 languages). In this paper, we report on our attempt to replicate the GLOBE 2004/2014 leadership model and then describe the methodological approach utilized to create the new, reconfigured model and its eight dimensions – six “light side” behavioral dimensions to aspire to and two “dark side” behavioral dimensions to avoid/curtail. This model is valid and reliable at both individual and societal levels and scores are provided for each of the eight leadership dimensions for each society. We provide descriptions for each leadership dimension along with survey items, a methodology supplement, and a world map supplement with maps for each of the eight dimensions. We describe theoretical implications, limitations, and future research directions, and include example direct and moderator hypotheses for the eight dimensions. We also offer managerial recommendations to foster more adaptive, integrative and contextualized leadership practice.