Abstract

Existing literature suggests several issues regarding leadership development in public administration including but not limited to the disputed definition of public administration leadership, the appropriateness of different leadership styles, and the relationship between political and administrative leadership. Research on public service motivation has revealed that public sector employees tend to be more altruistically motivated compared to their private sector counterparts. We will therefore have a closer look at spiritual leadership as a leadership style for managers in public administration. We ask in what way spiritual leadership could be a fitting model for leadership in public administration, and what distinct features from the private sector require the further development of public sector leadership.