Date of Award

12-2012

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Department

Executive Leadership

First Supervisor

Richard Maurer

Second Supervisor

Mary Alice Donius

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore leadership development training as it relates to the attributes and skills of middle managers in law enforcement agencies. The Skills Approach theory will be discussed relating to how middle managers in a county in New York State, with no middle management leadership development training, assume their positions. A qualitative method was used to capture data about the need for leadership development training versus the attributes and skills law enforcement middle managers already possess. The result of this study revealed that leadership development for this county is cultivated, not through formal training, but from attributes, skills, and informal development. Middle managers in this county seek ways in which to develop their attributes and skills to reach their full potential. Many depend on their life experiences, guidance from their superiors and some have turned to a graduate level of study. Recommendations for this study include leadership training courses geared to middle manager concerns; the use of Mumford’s Skills Inventory to evaluate promoted lieutenants; future research in other geographic areas in New York State; research conducted to capture a larger sample size and also to obtain the views of female middle managers who were not included in this study. This study concludes that law enforcement middle managers in a county in New York State are performing their duties based on attributes, skills, and informal training.

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