PBL 2: Follower-Leader Behaviour

Leader-Member Exchange Theory: LMX

role-making processes between leader and each individual subordinate, and the relationship that occurs overtime (mutually define subordinates role)

What are exchange relationships built on overtime

• Personal Compatibility (extroversion and agreeableness of sub)

• Follower competence and dependability

High Exchange Relationships

leaders control over outcomes that are desirable to a subordinate, and in return the subordinate provides various types of benefits to the leader (loyal)

What are the Benefits and Costs of LMX relationships for leaders

Pros: Managers have extra assistance, and they need subordinates commitment to be a successful leader

Cons: Time consuming (provide attention and remain responsive to their feelings)

Low Exchange Relationship

less mutual influence, subordinates conform with formal role requirements and receive only standard benefits for doing their job

Subordinate vs Leader LMX ratings

Subordinate: how fair and supportive the leader is

Leader: judgements about subordinates dependability and competence

How is LMX related to leader and subordinate behaviour (favourable-exchange theory and high LMX subordinate)

Favourable Exchange Theory: leader is more supportive and provides more mentoring and less close monitoring

• This results in more role clarity, higher satisfaction, better performance, trust and stronger organisational commitment

High LMX subordinate: more support and honest communication with the leader

Two Stage Attribution Theory:

1. Manager tries to determine the cause of poor performance

• Internal vs External attribution

2. Manager tries to select an appropriate response to correct the problem

• If attributed to external respond by trying to change situation

• If attributed to internal punish or give incentives (attributed to lack of effort), monitor behaviour more closely and provide assistance (attributed to lack of ability)

Other determinants of leader attributions

Leaders Power Position: effective performance by a subordinate is due to external factors

Exchange Relationship: Poor and Effective performance internal and external attributions of subordinates are based on High or Low LMX

How can a leaders influence followers mood and emotion

emotion contagion: acting positive to express optimism when individuals are discouraged

Guidelines for Correcting Performance Deficiencies

Corrective Feedback: feedback is given in a way to preserve favourable relationship or improve a relationship that is strained

• Done through providing feedback promptly, agreeing on specific action steps, gather information on performance problem, no attribution bias, stay calm and act professional

Factors that determine how followers assess leader effectiveness:

• Situation, indicators of performance and leaders actions

  • Indicators: judged competent if unit is successful, improving performance and performance improvement soon after leader term of office begins

Followers Judgements on Leaders Actions:

• Leaders who take direct actions that appear relevant get more credit for performance improvements

• Acts decisively gets more credit

• Makes innovative changes in strategy, gets more credit for success and blame for failures

How do Leaders leave a good judgement call to followers

• more concerned about mission and followers than personal gain

• expresses strong and consistent convictions without exaggerating

• takes personal risks to accomplish objectives and not personal gain

Implicit Leadership Theories:

beliefs and assumptions about the characteristics of ideal leaders that involve prototypes

How do prototypes influence

beliefs about the ideal qualities for a particular leader

Impression Management by Leaders and Followers

the process of influencing how others see you

• tactics used are exemplification, ingratiation and self-promotion

What are Exemplification, Ingratiation and Self-Promotion

Exemplification: behavior showing dedication and loyalty to the mission of the organisation or to followers (arriving to work early, making self-sacrifices)

Ingratiation: behaviour influencing target agents to like you and make them see you to have desirable social qualities (agree with their opinions, providing praise)

Self-Promotion: behaviour intended to influence favourable impressions about your competence and value to the organisation (displaying diplomas)

Impression Management By Followers:

supervisor focused tactics (ingratiation), Job-focused tactics (exemplification) and Self-Focused Tactics (self-promotion)

Impression Management by Leaders:

Praise (ingratiation): used to build confidence of followers and improve their performance

Self-promotion: increase follower optimism and commitment to make the change successful

Exemplification: inspires follower commitment to vision or strategy

Highly Visible Symbolic Actions

creates the impression that a leader is dealing with problems and making progress towards attaining objectives, despite delays and setbacks (eg. visiting a disaster site)

What do Effective Followers do

1. Implement decisions made by leaders

2. Challenge decisions that are misguided/unethical

Good Leader-Follower Relationship

Leader sees criticism as an effort to facilitate attainment of shared objectives and values, rather than an expression of personal rejection or disloyalty

Self-Management

strategies used to influence and improve individuals own behaviour

• done through comparing current behaviour and desired behaviour in an effort to reduce any discrepancy , monitor progress and make necessary correction

Self-Leadership

individual determines what tasks will be done and how the work will be done

Self-Management Strategies:

Both Behaviour Strategies (used when reluctant to complete a task) and Cognitive Strategies (used when to want to build self-confidence)

What are Behaviour Strategies useful for

when you are reluctant to do a necessary task and want to change your behaviour

• self-goal setting, self-monitoring, self-reward or criticism, manipulation of cues, rehearsal of planned actions

What are Cognitive Strategies useful for

help build confidence and optimism for doing a difficult task

• Positive Self-Talk and Mental Imagery (feel to experience satisfaction)

Abusive Supervision:

subordinates perception to which supervisors engage in sustained display of hostile verbal and non-verbal actions, excluding physical contact

Four Categories of Abusive Antecedents:

Supervisor-related, organisational-related, subordinate-related and demographic characteristics of both supervisors and followers

Supervisor Related Antecedents (Supported)

Stressors and Negative Affective State, Leader Characteristics and Styles

What falls under stressors and negative affective state

Abusing subordinates is an emotion focus coping strategy to alleviate negative state and stress

• trickle down model: supervisors with negative interactions with higher levels, influence their negative affective state and behaviour towards lower levels

• displaced aggression, subordinates are a safe place to do this because they have lower retaliatory power

Destructive vs Constructive Leadership

Destructive: leadership style that doesn’t benefit organisational goals and subordinates motivation and wellbeing

Constructive: leadership style that benefits organisational goals and subordinates motivation and wellbeing

What are the Three Types of Supervisor Characteristics:

Power, Emotional Intelligence and Machiavellianism

• High Machiavellianism: High tendency to manipulate and exploit people

Machiavellianism failed to reach significance

Organisational Antecedents: Supported

Two Types: Aggressive Norms and Organisational Sanctions

How does aggressive norms relate to social learning theory:

If their is a shared perception that organisational deviance is a proper means of expressing outrage, subordinates will adopt these hostile patterns of behaviour

Organisational Sanctions

The extent to which organisational authorities enforce that workplace aggression should be banned

Subordinate Related Antecedents: Partially Supported

Subordinates traits shape their interpretations of their supervisors actions

What Characteristics influence how subordinates interpret supervisors actions?

Cynicism, negative affectivity, cultural beliefs (traditionalism vs non), political skill and personality traits (neuroticism, narcissism, extroversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness )

How do these Characteristics Influence their perceptions of supervisor behaviour?

• Cynical attribution and negative affectivity: Employees are more likely to blame others, remember negative events and interpret ambiguous behaviour as abusive.

• Power distance and traditionalism: Employees who accept unequal power are more likely to see supervisors’ harsh behaviour as legitimate. Employees with egalitarian values perceive more behaviour as abusive.

• Political skill: Politically skilled employees can manage interactions and influence supervisors, reducing their risk of abuse.

• Personality: Narcissistic, neurotic and emotionally unstable employees are more sensitive to negative behaviour. Conscientious, extraverted and agreeable employees are less likely to interpret ambiguous behaviour as abusive.

Demographic Characteristics of Leaders and Subordinates: P Supported

• Younger supervisors and workers engage in more aggressive behaviour

• Older supervisors/employees (age and LOT) are treated with more dignity and respect (used to their behaviour so less to be interpreted as abusive)

• People tend to favour others with more similarities and are more derogatory to others who are dissimiliar

Moderators of Abusive Supervision Antecedents Behaviour (Demographic)

• Females are more likely to ask for help thereby accessing greater social support

• Individuals who have worked their longer have a higher chance of receiving social support, therefore less likely to be abused

• Confirmation bias, people process interaction behaviour differently depending on the strength of their relationship with their counterpart

Partially/Supported Information:

Supervisors age is negatively correlated with abusive supervision (small correlation)

On the employee side, only subordinates’ age is significantly related to abusive supervision.

Social Penetration Model:

provides a framework of how leader-follower relationships grow overtime as people share more information with eachother

Friendship Definition

voluntary interdependence between two persons over time that is intended to facilitate social-emotional goals of the participants, and may involve varying types and degrees of companionship, intimacy, affection and mutual assistance

Communal vs Exchange Relationships:

Communal relationships: close friends possess both a concern for the needs of one another, as well as a general concern for each other

Exchange relationships: based primarily on the expectation that benefits will be given in return for benefits receive

Stage 1: Friendship Potential/LMX Potential

Factors that Contribute to Potential Friendship: similiarity on a variety of demographical, social, attitudinal and personality characteristics, foster frequent and informal leader-follower interactions, in organisations and countries where their is a small power distance between leaders and followers

Stage 2: Exploration (Orientation)/Low LMX (Stranger)

Factors to Potential Friendship: receive both equal and high reward benefits, greater similarities in core values (more important than demographical, social, attitudinal and personality characteristics)

Social Exchange Theory related to Exploration (Orientation)/Low LMX

SET: where people evaluate social interactions using a cost-benefit analysis to maximize rewards and minimize costs

• relationships at this stage are very superficial and lack depth, breadth and richness of interactions, so if a friendship level is here it’s because there is a beneficial cost-benefit analysis

Stage 3: Casual Friend (Testing)/Medium LMX (Aquaintance)

Leader-Follower relationships will influence attributions at this level

Also the deciding stage: either keep developing and go to a high level or stop developing and go back, to lower levels

Stage 4: Close Friend (Stable Exchange)/High LMX (Maturity)

Characterised by richness of communication (both work and non-work), mutual support and disclosure, highest level of benefits, involve real friendship

Charasmatic Leaders: Close Charasmatics vs Distant Charasmatics:

Individuals in Charismatic Leadership described as ‘close charismatic’ are more likely to develop friendship relationships with followers than ones described as ‘distant charismatics’

Overclose or Exploitive Relationships:

1. Equity Concerns and developing of leader favouritism

2. Manipulation on the part of leader and follower

3. Potential of emotional disruption

4. Dependancy for decision making