Tradycyjne i współczesne podejścia do procesu wyłaniania się przywództwa politycznego

Traditional and modern aspects of selecting political leaders

One of the fundamental issues raised in the study of political leadership is to seek determinants of becoming a political leader. Presented article shows a detailed analysis and the statement of the traditional and contemporary approaches to the process of the emergence of political leadership, organizing research considerations into four trends: the personal, situational, relational and reactive. The last suggestion is the author proposal. Political leader creates own role in interactions with the needs and expectations of potential voters, and modifies the current process of adapting to any changes in these needs and expectations. To a large extent, political leader is treated as a product, for which the fundamental task is to find consumers who “buy it”. Its crystallization is done indirectly, mainly through the media. This combination approach also shows the evolution of the research in this area and emphasizes the relevance of changes with regard to the socio-political environment.