The Ethic of Care as a Uniting Factor in Leadership Education

Abstract

Educational leaders must face moral dilemmas in their decision-making process.  The ethic of care has been one of the ethical paradigms to solve these dilemmas in leadership education.

Several studies suggested that the use of the ethic of care can guide to improved students’ satisfaction, academic performance, and discipline problems. This article aims to investigate the ethic of care and its repercussions on leadership education through a uniting outlook. The main objectives of this study are (a) evaluating the question of ethical dilemmas; (b) examining the concept of the ethic of care; (c) establishing a uniting perspective on leadership education; (d) investigating caring leadership as a model of ethical leadership in education; (e) reviewing previous studies on the ethic of care; and (f) attaining a series of conclusions on the use of the ethic of care in leadership education. The review of the literature shows that the implementation of the ethic of care in leadership education promotes empathy, motivation, productivity, collaboration, and unity among members of school communities.