Fostering psychological capital self-efficacy in emerging female leaders: Practical insights from an international leadership development program

Abstract

This article contributes to our understanding of how self-efficacy as a key dimension of psychological capital (PsyCap) has a critical influence in the development of emerging female leaders. To develop this critical dimension of PsyCap, organizations can consider running programs that help to accelerate the emergence of female leaders. In this article, we first introduce the key role of self-efficacy as a predictor of leadership emergence and development. We then discuss some of the identity challenges often encountered by emerging female leaders. Following this, we outline the key practical elements of a development program (intervention) that was run with emerging female leaders across two geographic regions. The positive outcomes of the program in terms of developing self-efficacy, motivation to lead and leadership identity are presented. We then distil the specific areas that practitioners need to focus on in implementing a leadership development program within their own context and how this helps towards building PsyCap.