Lecture 2 slides Flashcards
What is the trait approach of leadership?
It argues that leaders are born, as leadership is based on inherent traits like confidence, intelligence, extraversion. So certain people naturally possess qualities that make them effective leaders. It assumes that these traits are stable and predict leadership emergence and success
What are traits?
These have a genetic basis but are shaped by the environment. Personality traits are relative stable dispositions to behave in a particular way as it is consistent across time and situations. It is the psychological default setting
What are states?
They are temporary conditions that change depending on the situation or moment. They change more frequently short-term and are influenced by the environment. It is your psychological weather report
How did the trait approach change over time?
Individuals possess inherent traits like extraversion, confidence or charisma which make them naturally suited for leadership roles. It was the most prominent in the 1st half of the 20th century (in early leadership research) but declined due to mixed and inconclusive results. Researchers could not agree on a universal set of traits that defined effective leadership
What are relevant personality traits for leadership?
- energy level and stress tolerance are related to managerial effectiveness to cope with hectic pace, long hours, high demands. Involves staying focused and calm rather than panicking or denial
- conscientiousness is being dependable, doing what was promised, paying attention to detail
- core self-evaluations is a broad personality trait involving self-esteem, locus of control, self-efficacy & emotional stability-> job and life satisfaction, job performance, task motivation & goal setting
- power motivation is a high need for power, being more likely to seek positions of authority and advancement in higher management levels
What are the different power orientations?
- socialized power orientation is the drive to influence others for collective good
- personalized power orientation is the desire to control and dominate others for personal gain and ego
How do they differ?
Socialized power orientation: exercising power for the benefit of others, less egoistic and defensive, using influence to build up the organization and make it successful
Personalized power orientation: using power to satisfy their need for esteem and status, exercise power impulsively, dominate others by keeping them weak and dependent
What is the bright and dark side of leadership?
- Bright traits are those that are socially desirable
- Dark traits are those that are socially undesirable
- But: dark side of bright traits & bright sight of dark traits
What is the dark side of bright traits?
Socially desirable traits can have negative implications in certain situations.
Conscientious leaders: are cautious & analytical but less willing to innovate & take risks. May delay decision-making, resist change
Agreeable leaders: may avoid interpersonal conflict, may be prone to give lenient performance ratings to not hurt others
High CSE leaders: Can, at extremes, result in overconfidence (hubris) & self-love (narcissism)
What is the evaluation of the trait approach?
- most traits are not guided by a theory that explains how traits
are related to effectiveness except by examining how they relate to behaviour: few trait studies include mediating processes - Lack of attention to the leadership situation: whether traits are
helpful may depend - The relationship between traits and leadership effectiveness is not linear: a moderate amount is usually better than a maximum amount
What is the leader trait emergence-effectiveness model?
- traits influence who emerges and is effective as a leader which is influenced by evolution & behavioural genetics
- mediators explain which processes traits lead to people emerging as leaders-> getting ahead and getting along
- whether leaders that emerged are effective depends on contextual factors or moderators (traits and implicit leadership theories-> what others believe a typical leader looks/behaves like)
What is the behavioural approach of leadership?
It argues that leaders are made. Leadership is based on what people do, not who they are. So effective leadership can be learned through observing and developing specific behaviours
What are the types of behaviours?
Task-oriented is concerned with accomplishing the task in an efficient and reliable way. It focuses on setting goals, organizing work and ensuring tasks are completed efficiently.
Relations-oriented is concerned with increasing mutual trust, cooperation, job satisfaction and identification with the team or organization. It centers on building trust, supporting team members and maintaining positive relationships
What does task-oriented leadership look like in practice?
- planning work activities: deciding what to do, how to do it, who will do it and when it will be done to ensure efficient organization of the work and use of resources
- clarifying roles and objectives: defining job responsibilities, setting performance goals, assigning specific tasks to guide and coordinate work activity
- monitoring operations and performance by gathering info, progress at work, performance of individuals, success of projects, quality of products-> input for problem-solving and planning
- solving operational problems to deal with disruptions like power failure, supply shortage. This provides direction when coping with problems
What does relations-oriented leadership look like in practice?
- supportive leadership: variety of behaviours that show consideration, acceptance and concern for the needs and feelings of others to maintain interpersonal relationships
- develop subordinate skills: increase skills, facilitates job adjustment and career advancement (mentoring, coaching, developmental opportunities)
- providing praise and recognition by showing appreciation for effective performance, achievements, contributions to the organization to strengthen desirable behaviour + task commitment
Contingency approach to leadership
- contingency means something that is dependent or conditional on something else→ leadership adapting to the situation
- for new individuals at the job, a task-oriented approach is slightly better
- a leader would adapt behaviour or style based on the needs of the situation or team, but its not fixed
What is path goal theory?
focusses on how leaders can motivate followers to achieve goals by providing the right kind of support and guidance depending on the situation and individual. The leader’s job is to help their followers achieve their goals by clearing obstacles and providing the necessary resources or guidance. They are not seen as being in a position of power but more like coaches.
What kinds of styles can leaders adopt?
Directive: Giving clear instructions and expectations
Supportive: Being friendly, approachable, and showing concern for the well-being of followers
Participative: Involving followers in decision-making and seeking their input
Achievement-oriented: Setting challenging goals and encouraging high performance
Helps people reach their goals by showing the way and adjusting how they lead based on the situation
What is situational leadership theory?
Leaders should adapt their approach based on the needs and development level of their followers. development level is determined by followers’ competence (skill) and commitment (motivation). The followers’ readiness or development level determines how a leader should act
What are the 4 development levels?
D1: Low competence, high commitment -> Followers are new or
inexperienced
D2: Some competence, low commitment -> Followers have some skills but lack confidence or motivation
D3: High competence, variable commitment -> Followers are skilled but may lack consistency in motivation
D4: High competence, high commitment -> Followers are fully capable and motivated
How can leaders’ behaviours vary?
Based on supporting and directing. There are 4 categories:
S1 Directing: Do it like this! (high directive and low supportive)
S2 Coaching: I think this, what do you think? (high directive and high supportive)
S3 Supporting: So, what’s your idea? (low directive and high supportive)
S4 Delegating: I’ll see it next week! (low directive and low supportive)
