**2.1 Authentic leadership**

In the context of today's challenging questions facing leadership, societal and academic focus has shifted to leaders who are optimistic, inspiring, authentic, demonstrate integrity, care for others, and are able to reflect on themselves [25–28]. The concept of Authentic Leadership (AL) has been introduced to represent this desired leadership style [19, 29–32]. Authentic leaders are guided by sound moral convictions and act in concordance with their deep-rooted beliefs and values, even under pressure. They are well aware of their self-image, strengths, and weaknesses, and strive to understand how their leadership influences peers and followers [29, 32]. Walumbwa et al. ([32], p. 94) defined authentic leadership as:

*"a pattern of leader behavior that draws upon and promotes both positive psychological capacities and a positive ethical climate, to foster greater self-awareness, an internalized moral perspective, balanced processing of information, and relational transparency on the part of leaders working with followers, fostering positive self-development."*

Scholars distinguish four components of authentic leadership. First is selfawareness, which refers to understanding one's strengths and weaknesses. Through interactions with others, leaders with a strong sense of self-awareness gain valuable personal insights, including knowledge about the impact they have on others in general, and those they lead in particular. Second, internalized moral perspective, which is a process of self-regulation guided by moral standards and values. Authentic leaders are not tempted by opportunities that require violations of their core principles and obligations. Third, balanced processing of information, implies analyzing all relevant information before making a decision. Balanced processing helps authentic leaders to make the right decision for their group, organization, or society, even if this is not personally beneficial. Authentic leaders are therefore open to feedback. Fourth is relational transparency, which denotes openness and honesty in presenting oneself to others. It allows followers to understand the reasoning behind a leader's decision, minimizing fear of the unknown and stimulating feelings of trust [32, 33].

Empirical research on Authentic Leadership has shown positive relationships between authentic leadership and many positive individual (e.g. engagement, job satisfaction, work performance), group (e.g. teamwork), organization (organizational citizenship behavior), and society (social responsibility and environmental stewardship) outcomes [32–34]. These findings lend support to the assertion that authentic leadership responds to today's leadership challenges [29–31]. A shift in leaders' mindset, so they can become more authentic leaders, can be thought of as a prerequisite underpinning the depth of leaders' self-reflection and with that promoting the effectiveness of leaders' competences [35]. Supported by research on twins [36] and meta-analytic evidence (based on 140 independent effect sizes and from 13,656 unique participants) [37], the literature suggests that individuals can change their leadership style and improve their leadership qualities over the course of their life.

## **2.2 Leadership development**

Leadership scholars have argued that intrapersonal leadership development practices are a loose collection of assumption-driven actions, rather than evidence-based programs [11, 38, 39]. Nevertheless, reviews suggest that leadership interventions can have the intended positive effects [37, 39, 40]. The most comprehensive review, a systematic meta-analysis of 200 empirical studies, suggested a 66% probability of achieving a positive outcome after leadership interventions [37]. On average, effect sizes were moderate, yet effectiveness varied widely across studies. Experimental studies have investigated specific outcomes of training or other interventions, such as task performance, job satisfaction, or persuasiveness. Yet, experimental studies have not focused on the effect of interventions on general authentic leadership style, rather than on specific behaviors or mental dispositions.

Only a few studies on the effects of leadership intervention include a thorough evaluation and measurement of leadership development outcomes [41, 42]. Studies with longitudinal measurements, which allow a systematic comparison of leadership attributes before and after intervention, are relatively rare [40]. A qualitative study by Baron and Parent [43] suggested that participants in a training program introspectively noticed development in three dimensions of authentic leadership (self-awareness, relational transparency, and balanced treatment of information). Another study used classroom trigger events and an exercise. The study concluded that these interventions stimulated a learning orientation towards authentic leadership based on a content analysis of students' narratives [44]. While these findings suggest that authentic leadership development is achievable, there is still a need for quantitative research, which allows statistical testing [10, 31, 40, 44].

The qualitative and longitudinal quantitative studies described in this chapter indicate whether interventions in natural environments can help change the mindset of leaders, resulting in a more authentic leadership style.

### **2.3 Trigger events and nature settings**

Various scholars suggest that "critical life events" – trigger events that shape people's lives – are probably an important antecedent of authentic leadership [10, 29, 31, 45]. Trigger events can induce both dramatic and subtle changes in people's perspectives and circumstances, and facilitate personal growth and development [29]. Thus, trigger events can affect mindsets [46–48]. The interaction between trigger events, initiated by a leadership development program, and reflection on them and the insight gained through coaching, for example, can lead to changes in leadership style [19, 49]. Typically, the subjective experience of trigger events can enable leaders to reflect upon their self-concept, basic beliefs, emotions, and worldview. In addition, trigger events can define anchor points from which their leadership approach and identity develop and grows [48]. In this context, Gardner et al. [29] argue that life stories and critical life events could be antecedents for authentic leadership development. Critical life events may involve childhood experiences or other major life events, such as a severe illness or a new career [29, 31, 46]. However, these experiences are described as coincidental events that can happen to a leader and not as part of a well-organized training event. Some recent studies have suggested that leadership training programs can be effective if they take place over a longer period of time and include seminars, planned trigger

#### *Wilderness Experiences Foster Authentic Leadership DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.107437*

events, and individual coaching [10, 50, 51]. Yet, these studies fail to indicate what is meant by planned trigger events and what these should look like.

The founders of major religions and renowned mystics, shamans, philosophers, romantics, and natural history writers spent long (solitary) periods in remote nature reserves. The rites of passage and initiation ceremonies found in indigenous cultures are also often associated with extended periods in wilderness [52–54]. Maslow [55] argued that wilderness settings can evoke peak experiences. Peak experiences are transforming experiences involving holistic cognition, transcendence of ordinary time and space, and profound experiences of an integrated self, accompanied by feelings of bliss and wonder [56]. In a similar vein, Csikszentmihalyi [57] claimed that nature can nurture flow experiences, in which a person performing an activity is completely immersed in a feeling of energized focus, complete involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity. Both DeMares [58] and Laski [59] have specifically noted that wildlife interaction and observation can act as causal factors for peak experiences. Empirical research supports these claims [60–63].

In addition, research indicates that spending time in nature can have profound psychological effects, including stress reduction [64] and attention restoration [65, 66]. Ulrich et al. [64] sought to investigate the extent to which exposure to different environments helped or hindered recovery from stress and determined whether exposure to natural environments promoted greater recovery than exposure to urban environments. Duvall and Kaplan [66] wrote extensively about the value of nature in restoring mental attention. The need for attention restoration is a response to mental fatigue. One way to restore the ability to mentally focus is by allowing fascination to reign for a while. Fascination is involuntary attention to something that is exciting, mysterious, or inherently interesting. The Kaplans [66] argued that immersion in a natural setting is particularly effective as nature can be a restorative environment that promotes fascination, allowing the brain's turmoil to rest. The preference for natural environments is "an expression of underlying human needs" [66]. Furthermore, research suggests that nature experiences may lead to positive psychological effects, such as emotional well-being [64, 67, 68], personal development and increased selfawareness [69–73], self-sufficiency, independence, and self-regulation [65, 74, 75], creativity and inspiration, spirituality, greater authenticity, and connectedness [76–78], increased intentions to pro-social behavior [78, 79], and potential for contributing to sustainability [80].

Typically, peak experiences may act as trigger events constituting a 'transitional space' that facilitates moments of self-focused attention, self-reflection, narrative processes with peers, and opportunities to share life stories, promoting intrapersonal change [76, 77, 81].
