Abstract

Servant leaders emphasize collaboration, trust, empathy, and the ethical use of power, and their motivation is not to increase their own power but rather to better serve others (James, 2011). The current study addresses servant leadership with regards to gender and age between people in Mexico and the United States. Studying culturally-linked leadership styles leads to a greater understanding of working in a diverse workforce, and examining demographic differences within those cultures helps to better operate in a global environment, which is a critical component for today’s leaders. Typical perceptions are that women are more relationship oriented while men are seen as more task oriented. Are there really differences in their values? Is age a factor in determining them? Additionally, cultural norms that might fit the servant leadership model in one county might not work in another country. Using data from the World Values Survey, the purpose of this exploratory research was to examine how cultural values that are related to servant leadership change for men and women of different ages in the United States and Mexico.