President and Chief Operating Officer – Benson’s Inc.

Dissertation Title

Is There a Relationship Between Leadership Characteristics and Service Provided Among HIS Urban Health Programs?

Dissertation Abstract

The Native American population has faced and been impacted by a wide range of actions throughout the last few hundred years. The loss of cultural norms and way of life continues to manifest itself through various socioeconomic concerns. At the center of the Native American leadership model is a disciplined and culturally specific guidance structure. The Urban Indian Health Program (UIHP) was created by the Indian Health Service to establish a culturally appropriate health care delivery model for Native Americans who have chosen to relocate into urban areas. The UIHP leaders establish and execute, in a collaborative manner with boards of directors and advisory groups, the strategy for their organizations. The planning and execution of the UIHPs strategy is dependent upon a variety of factors including the leaders’ individual characteristics, the organizational characteristics of each program, and the market factors representative of each service area. Upper Echelons Theory, a management theory that examines the characteristics of leaders, strategic decisions made by leaders, and the relationship leaders have to organizational outcomes, has been studied and researched in a variety of industries; however, the theory has not been extensively researched in either the health care industry or within the Native American population. The purpose of this study was exploratory in nature to determine if, within the UIHP, there is a relationship among the characteristics of the leaders, influenced by organizational characteristics and market factors, and the respective leader’s strategic decisions relating to services provided.