The politics of space: An Arendtian Framework for Leadership development

Based on Hannah Arendt’s distinctions between thinking, action and judgment this paper develops a framework for leadership development. Leadership and leadership development are approached from a political perspective, which implies emphasizing the collective, relational and material aspects of leadership. Leadership is defined as the collective actions in in which unique subjects, who can think, act and judge for themselves, are engaged. Practices of thinking, action and judgment are seen as different dimensions of leadership development, which enables people to take part in politics. These dimensions help empower actors to lead themselves and to engage, interact, collaborate, communicate and to give space for others in collective action.