University presidents' leadership frame and giving

The purpose of this study was to examine potential relationships between presidential leadership frames as defined by Bolman and Deal and financial giving to the universities over a six-year period. Presidents (n = 70) of doctoral degree granting universities were classified by the Bolman and Deal leadership survey instrument as primarily structural, symbolic, political, or human resource types. Financial giving to a university was a six-year average change in the percentage of philanthropic giving to the institution.;A significant difference (F (3 ,66) = 5.35, p <.01) was detected among university leadership frames and financial giving to their respective universities. A post hoc test revealed that fundraising by presidents classified as human resource type differed significantly ( p < .01) from structural and symbolic frames and (p < .05) from political frame. Specifically, leaders framed primarily as human resource types were presidents of universities receiving a higher percentage in financial gain over the six-year period. No differences in percentage change in gifts to universities were found among the other three leadership frames.;An alternative data interpretation using one standard deviation (17 percentage point difference in giving) as a financially important effect size confirmed that the statistical significant was also of practical importance. Presidents classified as human resource leaders served in universities that experienced gains in financial gifts of more than a standard deviation above presidents classified in the other three frames. Consequently, giving to universities showed a strong tendency to favor those institutions lead by presidents self-classified in a human resource frame.