Chapter 13: Followers, Communication and Leadership

Question 1

Followership

Answer 1

a subdomain of study within leadership

it is concerned with the behaviour of followers

Question 2

Kelly (1992) defined followers in terms of two dimensions:

Answer 2

independent/critical thinking

passive/active

Question 3

Howell and Mendez’s three perspectives on followership

Answer 3

1) Interactive
2) Independent
3) Shifting

Question 4

1) Interactive

Answer 4

Effective followers complement and support the leader, demonstrate knowledge and competence, and build collaborative relationships.

Question 5

2) Independent

Answer 5

Followers are treated as independent actors in the workplace; followers substitute for leaders in the context of more highly skilled and knowledgeable followers.

Question 6

3) Shifting

Answer 6

Followers and leaders alternate roles. Followers monitor and interpret the situation to respond to dynamic changes, participate in decision making when appropriate, challenge the team, and role-model effective team behaviour.

Question 7

Carsten and Uhl-Bien (2012) Followership

Answer 7

Considers how followers view their own behaviours and roles when engaging with leaders

Question 8

Follower Behaviour and Personality

Answer 8

Personality is the starting point for understanding individual workplace behaviour.

Question 9

Personality

Answer 9

A relatively enduring pattern of thinking, feeling and acting that characterizes a person’s unique response to her or his environment

Question 10

Divide the study of personality into two broad perspectives:

Answer 10

1) nomothetic

2) Ideographic

Question 11

The nomothetic approach

Answer 11

supports the view that personalities are determined by heredity and can be measured.

This approach often describes personality in terms of the measurable traits a person exhibits

Question 12

2) Ideographic

Answer 12

a dynamic perspective that takes into account not only unique innate characteristics, but also how individual differences are moulded within a ‘society’ context.

As such, it suggests that personality can be shaped and that both personality and behaviour are determined by specific social experiences.

Question 13

Trait theory

Answer 13

Other frameworks, such as the Big Five personality (BFP), the Myers-Briggs type indicator (MBTI) and the Dark Triad also explain certain aspects of an individual’s personality. We discuss each below.

Question 14

The introversion–extroversion framework

Answer 14

Three basic factors or dimensions: introversion–extroversion, stability–instability and psychoticism

Question 15

The Myers-Briggs type indicator

Answer 15

100-question personality test to determine where a person lies between a set of four personalities.

Question 16

The Dark Triad

Answer 16

1) Machiavellianism
2) narcissism
3) psychopathy

Question 17

1) Machiavellianism

Answer 17

Describes the degree to which a person displays emotional and pragmatic behaviours and believes that ends justify the means

Machiavellian tendencies are also associated with unethical behaviour

Question 18

2) narcissism

Answer 18

describes the degree to which a person possesses a pervasive pattern of grandiosity, entitlement, self-importance, a tendency to exploit situations and perhaps to develop and manipulate others

Question 19

3) psychopathy

Answer 19

in an organizational behaviour context is defined as lack of concern for others, a lack of remorse when actions cause harm, and impulsivity

Question 20

Social-cognitive theory

Answer 20

understands personality to be fundamentally rooted in life experience, social relationships and the self-concept

Question 21

Rotter argues that a person’s decision to engage in behaviour in a given situation is determined by two factors:

Answer 21

1) what the person expects to happen following the action

2) the value the person places on the outcome

Question 22

Self-efficacy

Answer 22

part of the self that is concerned with a person’s beliefs about her or his ability to perform the actions needed to achieve desired outcomes.

It determines whether a person will engage in a particular behaviour, and also determines the extent to which she or he will sustain that behaviour in the face of adversity

Question 23

Motivation

Answer 23

the choice of a particular action, the intensity expended on it and the duration of energy.

Question 24

Motivation can be categorized as either:

Answer 24

Content theories

Process theories

Question 25

Content theories

Answer 25

assume that there exists a common set of basic needs which energises or motivates individuals

Question 26

Process theories

Answer 26

Attempt to identify and explain how work-related behaviours are stimulated or hindered

Question 27

Maslow’s (1954) hierarchy of needs theory is probably the most well known of the

Answer 27

content theories

Question 28

Maslow’s (1954) hierarchy of needs

Answer 28

physiological, safety-security, social-belongingness, self-esteem and self-actualization.

Question 29

McClelland’s (1961) theory assumed that individuals are motivated by three needs:

Answer 29

The need for achievement (nAch) is the drive to excel, to exceed expectations.

The need for power (nPow) is the need to change the behaviour of others.

The need for affiliation (nAff) is the desire for close interpersonal relationships.

Question 30

Alderfer’s (1972) ERG theory posits three categories of needs:

Answer 30

existence (E), relatedness (R) and growth (G)

Question 31

Equity Theory

Answer 31

based on the premise that an employee measures equity by looking at the effort other employees are putting into their work and the resultant rewards they receive and comparing their own experience

Question 32

social comparison (Equity Theory)

Answer 32

a process resulting in feelings of equity or inequity which lead followers to form judgements on the value or ‘valence’ of a reward or outcome.

Question 33

Expectancy theory

Answer 33

‘one of the most widely accepted explanations of work motivation’

The explanatory theory argues that the motivation to exert a high level of effort is determined by an individual’s expectation that performance behaviour will result in extrinsic or intrinsic rewards, multiplied by the preference that person has for that outcome

Question 34

Expectancy:

Answer 34

the effort–performance relationship. The probability perceived by the employee that her or his behaviour will lead to a particular performance outcome.

Question 35

Instrumentality:

Answer 35

the performance–reward relationship. The perceived probability that the performance will lead to those valued outcomes or rewards.

Question 36

Valence:

Answer 36

The perceived reward–personal goals relationship can be positive, negative or neutral.

Question 37

Transactional leadership

Answer 37

increasing the attractiveness of the reward. This could be achieved by offering promotion or additional vacation days or redesigning the job to give greater responsibility rather than a pay increase – the reward–personal goal relationship.

Question 38

Goal-setting theory

Answer 38

proposes that both motivation and performance will be high if individuals set and work toward goals that are challenging and where feedback is given on performance

Question 39

The model contains four major assumptions: (Goal-setting theory)

Answer 39

challenging goals will produce higher performance than less challenging goals;

specific challenging goals will produce higher performance than no goals or vague goals, such as ‘do your best’;

goal-setting with feedback on goal attainment will produce higher performance than goal-setting alone;

follower participation in goal-setting will produce higher performance than no engagement. In other words, an employee has to feel some ownership of the goal if the goal is to influence work motivation.

Question 40

Goals should be SMART

Answer 40

specific, 
measurable, 
agreed upon, 
realistic  
time-bound