The missing link: Studying political leadership from the followers’ perspective

Recent political developments suggest that followership has played increasingly vital roles in modern democratic politics. However, scholarship seemingly lacks proper conceptual and methodological tools for analysing why how citizens follow their leaders, what the role of this relationship is personalised politics leadership. Addressing research gap, article turns to generic leadership studies help introduces its follower-centric models into field science. This venture opens with a review comparison some different perspectives about followers on personalisation, taking account limitations. It then moves assess empirical results, focusing observers’ perceptions characteristics behaviours leaders attribution Based these models, offers balanced perspective leader–follower relations. Recommendations future directions are presented concluding sections.