Perceptions of leadership and management competencies requisite for directing Centrifuge camps

Abstract

This dissertation is a comparative analysis of the perceived leadership and management competencies needed to serve as a camp director at Christian children and youth camps. A comparative analysis was done utilizing data from camp coordinators, camp directors, and camp staff.

A biblical understanding of leadership serves as a foundational section of the precedent literature. This biblical understanding of leadership was derived from the Old and New Testament segment of the Bible. Nineteen leadership and management competencies have been reviewed and they serve as the nineteen leadership and management competencies that appear on the survey instrument.

A descriptive survey that studies the relationships between perceptions of camp coordinators, camp directors, and camp staff was utilized to capture research data. A list of nineteen competencies derived from precedent literature was used to collect the data on the survey instrument and demographic information that is relevant to the study was captured also. Camp coordinators, camp directors, and camp staff who have worked a Centrifuge camp since 2001 were mailed the survey. The procedures for how this research was conducted have been clearly explained to allow for future researchers to replicate this study.

The research findings were analyzed in order to observe relationships that may exist between camp coordinators, camp directors, and camp staff. The following competencies consistently received higher scores: "Integrity", "Modeling", "Motivator/Inspiring", "People Skills", and "Team Builder". While there was some variance in the scoring of the competencies, the overall scoring of each competency was relatively high, indicating that camp coordinators, camp directors, and camp staff believe that all of the competencies are needed to serve as a camp director.

The perceived leadership and management competencies as observed through camp coordinators, camp directors, and camp staff clearly places an emphasis on the importance of leadership competencies in serving as a camp director. For Christian camps to be successful, they must have camp directors who possess and develop their leadership skills. The results of this study can be useful in helping camping organizations in the process of hiring, training, and evaluating camp directors. Recommendations have been made concerning how this research can be extended for further study.