The effects of the Shibboleth experiment

Julia Romanowska

Chapter 9 in Leadership, Art, and Responsibility, 2026, pp 65-74 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: A year-long, randomised leadership experiment showed that the Shibboleth programme produced substantial psychological, behavioural, and biological improvements – not only in the participating leaders but also in their subordinates. The influence proved transmissive: changes in the leaders’ ways of being were mirrored in the health and behaviour of their employees. Eight months after the programme, both leaders and subordinates in the Shibboleth group reported fewer stress-related symptoms, better sleep, greater vitality, and improved mood. These psychological gains were mirrored biologically in markedly higher levels of DHEA-S – a hormone associated with resilience, regeneration, and prosocial capacity – that were significantly higher than those observed in the control group. Behaviourally, leaders and subordinates in the Shibboleth group showed reduced performance-based self-esteem and a pronounced reduction in covert coping, indicating strengthened self-worth and an increased ability to face strain constructively. Leaders also demonstrated heightened assumption of responsibility, improved stress management, increased prosocial motivation, deeper self-knowledge, and enhanced psychological resilience (sense of coherence). The control group showed the opposite trajectory. Leaders and their subordinates displayed worsening stress-related symptoms, increased sleep disturbance and exhaustion, and higher levels of covert coping. Leaders also exhibited increased laissez-faire behaviour, declining stress tolerance, weakened self-insight, and no gains in prosocial capacity or resilience. Taken together, the findings reveal a mutually reinforcing relationship between ethical awareness, emotional attunement, prosocial motivation, and both psychological and biological resilience – suggesting that what strengthens ethical responsibility and human responsiveness also strengthens health.

Keywords: Randomised Leadership Intervention; Art-based Pedagogy; Shibboleth Experiment; Stress-related Health Outcomes; Neurobiological and Psychological Resilience; DHEA-S; Prosocial Orientation; Sense of Coherence (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781049403991
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