David M. Keithly and
James J. Tritten

Don't confuse charisma with a loud voice. ¹ -- Harvey Mackay

Over the years the charisma motif has surfaced and resurfaced in discus-
sions of leadership. The term "charisma" continues frequently to be used
in an imprecise, even ambiguous manner, referring in a somewhat grab-
bag fashion to anyone with flair, flamboyance, or popular appeal. Partly
as a result, inquiries into the subject remain regrettably limited in scope.
The aim of this article is to determine the various meanings of charisma in
the literature, with an eye to ascertaining the distinctive implications for
military leadership. Notwithstanding the substantial amounts of litera-
ture on charismatic leadership, this remains largely uncharted territory.
We endeavor here to integrate psychological, situational, cultural, and
other factors customarily identified as consequential in examinations of
charisma.

The German Army harbored a keen interest in charisma. Early in this cen-
tury, Baron Hugo von Freytag-Loringhoven observed: "A great general is
able to substitute his own personality in the eyes of his soldiers for their
home country . . . In the long years of war the soldier finds a second home in
the camp; and as a substitute for patriotism he has his esprit de corps and

The views expressed are the authors' own.
Reprinted by permission from Journal of Political and Military Psychology, 25:1, pp.
131-146.

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