The Israeli Defence Forces: An Example of Transformational Leadership

The transformational leadership concept differentiates between instrumental motivation and normative commitment. The high motivation levels, the relative freedom given to junior officers, and the esprit de corps in infantry units in the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) have made the concept of transformational leadership highly suitable for junior commanders. Reports on a three‐day transformational leadership workshop for officer cadets designed and conducted by civilian psychologists at the IDF School for Leadership Development. Found qualitative and quantitative attitudinal data collected for six consecutive training cycles over a period of 18 months to be very favourable. A further programme attempts to integrate the transformational leadership model as an ongoing effort throughout the infantry cadets′ six‐month training programme.