Women's Leadership in Indonesian Buddhist Organizations in Lampung Province

Abstract

This study emerges from the growing phenomenon of women's leadership within Buddhist organizations in Lampung Province, Indonesia, amid the continued prevalence of patriarchal social constructions in religious leadership contexts. Buddhist teachings, which fundamentally affirm spiritual equality between women and men, constitute a normative foundation that enables women to assume strategic leadership roles. Nevertheless, in practice, women's leadership remains shaped by complex social, cultural, and institutional constraints that influence processes of recognition, legitimacy, and acceptance. The objectives of this study are to analyze: (1) the reasons that enable women to assume leadership roles within Buddhist organizations in Lampung Province; (2) the forms of women's leadership enacted within these organizational contexts; and (3) the implications of women's leadership for the social, cultural, and religious life of Buddhist communities. To address these problems, the study draws upon gender studies and Buddhist feminism, integrated with Servant leadership and transformational leadership as analytical lenses. It is designed as a qualitative inquiry employing a case study approach within an interpretive paradigm. Data were generated through in-depth interviews with women leaders, participant observation, and systematic document analysis. The findings indicate that women's leadership is enabled by the doctrinal recognition of gender equality in Buddhist teachings, support from family and community networks, access to education and empowerment, relatively gender-responsive organizational policies, and the personal agency of women leaders. The forms of leadership that emerge reflect a hybrid model synthesizing Servant and transformational leadership, characterized by collaborative, participatory, and adaptive practices. The study concludes that women's leadership in Lampung's Buddhist organizations constitutes a strategic force in fostering more inclusive socio-religious transformation, affirming that gender is not a barrier to leadership effectiveness, but a collaborative potential activated through hybrid leadership grounded in the values of the Dharma.