Leadership

Question 1

Define Leadership

Answer 1

The process whereby an individually INTENTIONALLY INFLUENCES others to guide structure, and facilitate activities and social relationships to ACHIEVE ORGANISATIONAL GOALS

Question 2

INTENTIONAL INFLUENCE to achieve ORGANISATIONAL GOALS is a definition of ____

Answer 2

Leadership

Question 3

What is a formal leader?

Answer 3

Someone formally appointed to lead an organisation. This means intentionally influencing others to achieve organisational goals.

Question 4

What is an informal leader?

Answer 4

Someone who eerges spontatneously due to expertise, charisma etc to intentionally influence others to achieve organisational goals.

Question 5

What is the trait perspective of leadership?

Answer 5

Traits are significantly associated with leadership effectiveness and emergence. However, the correlations are weak and only circa 30% is explained by genetic factors.

Question 6

‘Some characteristics are correlated with good leadership’. To what theory does this belong?

Answer 6

The trait perspective of leadership.

Question 7

Which personality traits correlate with leadership? How strong are the correlations?

Answer 7

Extraversion, Openness to Experience, Conscientiousness.

Agreeableness correlates negatively.

All the correlations are fairly weak.

Question 8

Extraversion, Openness to Experience and ___ correlate with leadership.

Answer 8

Conscientiousness. Agreeableness correlates negatively, and emotional stability doesn’t correlate.

Question 9

Which big 5 trait doesn’t correlate with leadership (positively or negatively)?

Answer 9

Emotional Stability (aka Neuroticism)

Question 10

Which big 5 trait correlates negatively with leadership?

Answer 10

Agreeableness.

Question 11

Which 3 big 5 traits correlate positively with leadership?

Answer 11

Conscientiousness, Extraversion and Openness to Experience. This is part of the trait perspective of leadership.

Question 12

What is the situational perspective of leadership?

Answer 12

Different leadership styles are effective in different situations. These are: democratic, autocratic, laissez-faire.

Question 13

What type of leadership is characterised by sharing power, consulting team members, encouraging participation and treating team members as equals?

Answer 13

Democratic Leadership (aka Participative or Empowering).

Question 14

Why is democratic leadership good? Why is it bad?

Answer 14

Increases intrinsic motivation with a sense of autonomy (Self-determination theory of motivation)
Facilitates development of employees.

Bad if employees are inexperienced, slow to reach decisions.

Question 15

Why is autocratic leadership good? Why is it bad?

Answer 15

Good when leader is much more experiencd, and decisions must happen quickly.

Less intrinsic motivation, employee development is poor, and employee knowledge is not used.

Question 16

When is autocratic leadership suitable?

Answer 16

When the leader knows much more than the employees. When the decision must be made urgently.

Question 17

In what leadership style do leaders give clear goals and detailed instructions, act as the sole decision maker and do not encourage feedback or suggestions?

Answer 17

Autocratic Leadership Style (aka directive)

Question 18

What leadership style is characterised by limited instructions, limited contace with team members, little feedback or goals?

Answer 18

Laissez-faire leadership style.

Question 19

When is a laissez-faire leadership style appropriate?

Answer 19

When employees are experts. It doesn’t work if workers rely on guidance or become demotivated.

Question 20

Employees are highly skilled and highly motivated. What leadership style is most suitable?

Answer 20

Laissez-faire leadership. This allows the employees to excel but can demotivate employees and doesn’t help their development.

Question 21

Employees are reasonably experienced, but demotivated and need to be developed. Which leadership style is most suitable?

Answer 21

Democratic Leadership. This allows employees to be intrinsically motivated and to develop their skills, whilst making use of their expertise.

Question 22

A leader is much more knowledgable than the employees, and a decision needs to be made urgently. Which leadership style is most suitable?

Answer 22

Autocratic leadership. The leader makes the decision, without consultation and without asking for feedback. This can demotivate employees.

Question 23

Which leadership style motivates employees most?

Answer 23

Democratic leadership. Employees feel valued and are more involved in decisions that are made.

Question 24

Why might laissez-faire leadership reduce motivation?

Answer 24

Employees feel the leader does not care - so why should they?

Question 25

What traits predict leadership effectiveness?

Answer 25

Extraversion and Openness to Experience.

Question 26

What traits predict leadership emergence?

Answer 26

Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Openness to Experience, (-vely) Agreeableness.