Data
THE FACTS WE’VE GATHERED
Methodology
The ALS research was carried out in two phases. The first phase involved administering a 93-question survey to 8,041 respondents. The survey results helped us identify African Christian leaders and African-led Christian organizations that were seen as having an unusually positive impact in their communities. The second phase of research consisted of in-depth interviews with many of these individuals and organization leaders. The data collected in both phases is available. Findings drawn from this data by the ALS team are available on the “Findings” page of this website.
Phase One: The Survey
The Africa Leadership Study began the effort to understand the complex issues of leadership development in Africa by asking African Christians to tell us what they know and have observed. The whole team worked together to design and implement a 93-item questionnaire to gather information. It was provided in English, Swahili, French and Portuguese. We asked 8,041 respondents not only to tell us about themselves and the churches they attended but to identify key clergy and non-clergy Christian leaders, as well as key African-led Christian organizations that were having a high level of positive impact in their communities. Questions focused on the leaders and organizations identified: their characteristics, relationships, and leadership development efforts. There were also questions included which related to the availability and accessibility of books, digital resources, and other training options.
Phase Two: Interviews
With the data from the surveys in hand, the ALS group was able to identify the pastors, non-clergy leaders, and organizations selected by the African respondents as having significant impact. An interview process including questions specific to background, development and life experiences with a protocol for its implementation was developed. Fifty-seven in-depth interviews were conducted, and detailed reports prepared. These interviews and personal stories provided a wealth of observations and wisdom to draw on in comparing and contrasting similarities and dissimilarities across the three countries, with their differing histories, cultures, and languages.
The ALS data from the survey is available for download free of charge. Leader and Organization reports based on the interviews are also available for download. The “More” button will take you to details regarding the download process. The “Access Survey and Interview Reports Bar” will take you to an overview of all the available download selections.