The study suggested and conceptualized 'Compassionate Rationalism' as a
new paradigm for the adult education leadership. The major contents of the
study were: characteristics of leaders and the scope of leadership, and criteria
values pursued in adult education, the accountability of traditional approaches to
adult education leadership, concepts and limitations of rationalism and
compassionism, and the logic of generating the concept of compassionate
rationalism.
Some traditional leadership approaches to adult education, such as individual
trait theory, behavior theory, transaction theory, and transformational theory
could not sufficiently represent adult education leadership, having their
possibilities and limitations.
Compassionate rationalism refers to the leadership which offers the necessary
compassion to others based on rationalism. As a new emerging paradigm of
adult education, it will be able to realize visions of adult education leadership in
pursuit of values of ethics, freedom, efficiency, equality, and equity in the field
of lifelong education in the 21st century.