Humanistic leadership in Thailand: a mix of indigenous and global aspects using a cross-cultural perspective

Abstract

© 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: To explore how leadership behavior in Thailand relates to humanistic leadership through indigenous and cross-cultural lenses. Design/methodology/approach: Analogically based and semi-structured interviews were used. The primary focus was on factors associated with expatriate success in leading Thais in a Thai context. As such, the main sample included 24 expatriates. Two local Thai leaders were also interviewed. Qualitative interviews were analyzed inductively using NVivo. Findings: Five interrelated themes emerged from the data: guiding, bridging, emotionally supporting, socializing and indirectly communicating. These themes relate to Asian holistic thinking, Thai culture and humanistic management. Evidence for humanistic leadership was found, albeit in culture-specific ways. Research limitations/implications: Researchers may benefit from studying local, indigenous leadership practices and determining if and how they fit etic concepts such as humanistic leadership. Limitations of this study include a small sample from only one country. Practical implications: To be successful, leaders should engage in humanistic leadership practices that fit the Thai context. Human resource departments may wish to focus their talent recruitment, selection and development on these behaviors. Originality/value: This paper adds to the nascent literature on humanistic leadership by providing an indigenous as well as cross-cultural lens to understanding humanistic leadership in the context of Thailand.