NeuroLeadership in 2009

On the basis of virtually every objective measure, the applications of neuroscience to leadership: NeuroLeadership, a word first coined by one of the authors, David Rock, in 2006, are growing in recognition and acceptance. It has now been more than two decades since the first fMRI paper was published. In 1992, only four such papers were published; in 2007, there were eight published per day (Editorial, 2009). Based on our observations and discussions with leading neuroscientists and leadership scholars, there is every reason to believe those numbers will continue to increase, with advances in technologies providing us with more and more detailed information about the brain. A simple search of research databases reveals that the number of articles in virtually every media discussing neuroscience and its applications relevant to the effective practice of management and leadership are increasing rapidly. According to searching on amazon.com, in 2009, there were 230 books written on the brain; for 2010, there are more than 200 slated to be published in the first half of the year alone.