Based on the literature and expert interviews we developed a new measure the C-LEAD scale to capture the efficacy of leaders to assess information and make decisions in a public health and safety crisis.

In Studies 1 and 2 we found that C-LEAD predicted decision making difficulty and confidence in crisis contexts better than measures of general leadership efficacy and procedural crisis preparedness. In Study 3 our measure of crisis leader efficacy predicted motivation to lead in a crisis voluntary crisis leader role-taking and decision making accuracy as a leader.

Together the studies promote the initial construct validity of the C-LEAD scale and a deeper understanding of the factors involved in effective crisis leadership.