Approaches to the Comparative Analysis of Political Leadership

Abstract

This article opens with some general observations on outstanding features of the current literature on political leadership, especially in the United States. It then deals briefly with conceptual problems, level of analysis issues, and counter-factual questions. This is followed by a consideration of major modes of analysis for the comparative study of political leadership. The concluding section points up the principal ways to making comparative generalization about the sources and nature of leadership in politics.