Upper and Middle Managers in the Private and the Public Sector: An Organizational Psychology Literature Review

Abstract

The study of leadership competencies is of particular importance in organisational psychology. A competent and effective leader contributes significantly to the performance of the organisation. Previous studies on leaders in organisational psychology have mostly focused on leadership personality and leadership style, leadership competencies however have been less frequently examined. The aim of our literature review is to present the main findings that literature on leadership competencies in organisational psychology have revealed. In addition to a general presentation of the literature on leadership competencies, we also review studies related to top and middle managerial competencies, pointing out the differences in competencies arising from the requirements of the two management levels. The present review touches upon the differences between managers of the public and the competitive sector, and finally the CAPTain competency test is discussed as well.