Akademika 93(3), 2023: 85-98 https://doi.org/10.17576/akad-2023-9303-07 Leadership Attributes of Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, The Eighth Malaysian Prime Minister Ciri-ciri Kepimpinan Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, Perdana Menteri Malaysia ke-8 SYED ARABI IDID * , ZETI AZREEN AHMAD & SSEMUDDU IMRAN ABSTRACT This study examines the leadership and personality traits of Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, the 8 th Prime Minister of Malaysia, based on an open-ended response provided by Malaysian voters. Studying leadership contributes to a greater understanding of the leaders’ role in society as they supposedly inspire others towards attaining citizenship goals. Still, if wrongly led, they would also damage the country. Leadership has gained importance as a feld of study, although the focus is still Western-centric. There are studies on good and bad leaders covering various sectors. Despite the outcome of the recent 15 th general election, Malaysia is still regarded as one of Asia’s most politically stable countries, having had one-party leadership since independence. Studies on Malaysian leadership have been scarce. This study focuses on Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, a seasoned politician whose strategy brought him to occupy the highest ofce in Malaysia. The exploratory research using a qualitative approach probed how Malaysians perceived his leadership and personality traits when he was the Prime Minister. A research design using a questionnaire was used in this study to collect data on 822 respondents from a nationwide survey. The fndings showed that Malaysians identifed certain traits of leadership and their prime minister’s personality. Still, there were diferences in identifying them among the three racial groups in the country. The characteristics collected were then collapsed into categories to understand the Malaysian leader. Keywords: Leadership; leadership attributes; personality; Muhyiddin Yassin; Malaysia ABSTRAK Makalah ini mengkaji ciri kepimpinan dan personaliti Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, Perdana Menteri Malaysia ke- 8, berdasarkan respons terbuka yang diberikan oleh pengundi Malaysia. Kajian kepimpinan menyumbang kepada pemahaman yang lebih besar tentang peranan yang dimainkan oleh pemimpin dalam masyarakat kerana mereka memberi inspirasi dalam mencapai matlamat rakyat. Kajian tentang kepimpinan semakin mendapat tempat walaupun tumpuan masih kepada penekanan ala Barat. Terdapat kajian tentang pemimpin yang baik dan sebaliknya meliputi pelbagai sektor. Malaysia dianggap sebagai salah sebuah negara paling stabil walaupun terdapat beberapa gangguan selepas Pilihan Raya Umum ke-15. Walaupun merupakan sebuah negara yang stabil, kajian tentang kepimpinan di Malaysia masih kurang. Kajian ini memberi tumpuan kepada Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, seorang ahli politik berpengalaman yang menyandang jawatan tertinggi di Malaysia. Kajian menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif menilai bagaimana rakyat Malaysia melihat ciri-ciri kepimpinan dan personaliti beliau semasa beliau menjadi Perdana Menteri. Soal selidik digunakan dalam kajian ini dengan melibatkan 822 responden dari seluruh negara. Penemuan menunjukkan bahawa rakyat Malaysia mengenal pasti ciri kepimpinan tertentu dan keperibadian Perdana Menteri mereka. Namun begitu, terdapat perbezaan dalam kalangan tiga kumpulan kaum di negara ini. Ciri-ciri ini kemudiannya dikategorikan bagi pemahaman yang lebih mendalam. Kata kunci: Kepimpinan; ciri kepimpinan; personaliti; Muhyiddin Yassin; Malaysia INTRODUCTION Leaders emerge in various ways, as leadership does not occur in a vacuum. In a democratic-elected country, leaders assume the ofce of the president or the prime minister through the electoral process, which is diferent under a monarchical system when the monarchy appoints the ofces. In an Islamic setting, leaders and their personality attributes take shape from the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad