Communication styles of rectors and vice-rectors of German public universities during the COVID-19 pandemic
In a recently published study, the communication styles of rectors and vice-rectors of German public universities during the COVID-19 pandemic were examined in order to better understand the influence of gender on leadership communication.
![Woman smiling at the camera](/images/18.7d27c198169493e3199e5c7/1551973149969/Adele-2.jpg)
Adele Berndt
MMTC member Adele Berndt Opens in new window. together with her coauthors Angelos Angelakis (University of Vienna), Petra Inwinkl (University of Vienna), Selcen Öztürkcan-Özdinç (Linnaeus University), Anna Zelenajova (University of Vienna), and Veronika Rozkopal (University of Vienna) collected data from social media and university websites; and analysed the language used to identify transformational, transactional, and servant leadership styles. Their results show that female leaders demonstrated more positive communication than men and a stronger preference for transformational leadership, while male leaders tended to use a transactional style. Additionally, the authors found that both male and female leaders exhibited a high degree of empathetic concern for their stakeholders, contributing to the overall positive tone of communication. These findings suggest that gender may play a role in how university leaders communicate during times of crisis, highlighting the importance of inclusive and compassionate leadership in higher education.
The article "Gender differences in leaders’ crisis communication: a sentiment-based analysis of German higher education leaderships’ online posts" is part of a larger research collaboration between scholars of Linnaeus University, University of Vienna and Jönköping University, and was, published in Studies in Higher Education (ABS3). The article is open-access and is available via this link External link, opens in new window.