Topic 8: Leadership

Leadership

• as a process of influencing others, whether through direct orders or indirect means.

• a dynamic process rather than just a position power.

Leadership is based on ______ rather than coercion.

cooperation

Groups tend to accept leaders when:

• They believe success is possible,

• The rewards of success are valuable,

• The task requires teamwork, and

• An experienced leader is present.

Strong leadership improves

decision-making, considers important information, and increases group effectiveness, especially in emergency situations, resulting in better performance across various settings.

The romance of leadership:

▪ People often overestimate a leader’s influence.

▪ This romanticized view of leadership, prevalent in Western cultures, often portrays leaders as heroes or saviors, overlooking other factors that influence group outcomes.

▪ Leaders are usually seen as the solution to team failure, but leadership is only one part of group success.

▪ While influential, leaders rarely deserve all the credit or blame.

What do leaders do?

Leaders play different roles depending on the group’s needs

TWO-FACTOR MODEL OF LEADERSHIP

• Task Leadership

• Relationship Leadership

Task Leadership

→ Prioritize goal achievement and efficiency.

→ Organizing work, setting objectives, assigning roles, establishing procedures, coordinating

activities, monitoring performance, and ensuring

productivity in achieving group goals.

Relationship Leadeship

→ Prioritize team cohesion and morale.

→ Encourage members, reducing conflicts,

fostering positive relationships, and providing

emotional support, focusing on team work and

member satisfaction.

Leadership substitutes theory

» In some situations, leaders are not always necessary because other

factors can replace (substitutes) or weaken (neutralizers) their

influence.

Substitutes for Leadership

→ Highly skilled, professional, and experienced

team members may not need task leadership.

→ Cohesive teams that support each other

reduce the need for relationship leadership.

→ Structured or routine tasks lessen the need for

leaders to provide guidance.

Neutralizers of Leadership

→ Boring, repetitive tasks make it difficult for a

leader to inspire or engage members.

→ External constraints (e.g., strict company

policies) may limit a leader’s ability to lead

effectively.

Men

are generally more task-oriented, independent, and goal-focused

Agentic traits

task-oriented, independent, and goal-focused

Communal Traits

are more relationship-oriented, cooperative, and empathetic

social expectations and stereotypes influence how men and

women lead, but leadership style is not strictly determined by gender.

truth

Great Leader Theory

A view of leadership, attributed to historian Thomas Carlyle, which

states that successful leaders possess certain characteristics that mark

them for greatness and that such great leaders shape the course of

history.

Trait Approach

▪ assumes that leaders possess certain personality traits and

characteristics and that these characteristics are responsible for

their rise in the leadership ranks.

▪ explains Great Leader Theory

Zeitgeist Theory

» A view of leadership, attributed to Leo Tolstoy, which states that history

is determined primarily by the “spirit of the times” rather than by the

actions and choices of great leaders; leadership emergence and

effectiveness to the situational, rather than, personal factors.

Situational Approach

▪ suggests that leadership is determined by a host of variables

operating in the leadership situation, including the size of the

group, its cohesion, the quality of leader–member relations, and

the type of task to be performed.

▪ explains Zeitgeist Theory

Interactional Approach

» Considers both personal qualities as well as situational factors when

predicting leadership.

Leadership is a behavior, BEHAVIOR = f (P,E).

Trait approach was believed to be the strongest form assumed

that some

people were natural-born leaders.

Assertiveness

→ Individuals who are either low in assertiveness or very high in assertiveness are less likely to be

identified as leaders.

Authenticity

→ Individuals who are more aware of their

personal qualities are more likely to be accepted

as leaders.

Birth Order

First born and only children= seek leadership;

middle-born= followers;

later born= rebellious and creative.

Character Strength

→ Military organization= high in honesty, hope, bravery, industry, and teamwork.

Dominance

→ High in desire to control, influence, and express opinions are more likely to act as leaders

in small groups.

5F Personality

→ More extraverted, conscientious, emotionally stable, and open to experience.

Gender Identity

→ Masculine > Feminine.

Self-Efficacy

→ Confidence increases the willingness to accept

leadership roles and success in role.

Narcissism

→ Individuals who take roles in turbulent

situations tend to be narcissistic, arrogant, self

absorbed, hostile, and very self-confident.

Self-Monitoring

→ High self-monitors> low self-monitors; more

concerned with status enhancement and are

more likely to adapt their actions to fit the

demands of the situation.

Social Motivation

Success-oriented and affiliation-oriented=more active group problem solver and more likely to be

elected.

Conscientious, organized, achievement-oriented, and self-controlled

individuals

more likely to emerge as leaders in situations that favor a task

oriented leader.

Extraverted, gregarious individuals

lead when the situation requires

interpersonal skills.

Some of the qualities that promote emergence as a leader

such as

temperament, intelligence, and extraversion, are not just stable, but

heritable.

A person’s leadership potential is determined more by environmental

force

exposure to mentors and role models, opportunities to take on

leadership challenges, the diligent development of leadership

competencies, and so on—but genetics creates a readiness.

Genetic marker of leadership

rs4950 located on a neuronal

acetylcholine receptor gene.

Variations among people can be conceptualized in terms of five fundamental

dimensions and these dimensions account for observed regularities in a wide

range of interpersonal behaviors, including leadership.

» Introversion/extraversion

» Friendliness/hostility

» Achievement motivation

» Emotional Stability vs. Anxiety

» Openness

are correlated at higher levels with

leadership emergence

Conscientiousness and extraversion

at lower degree.

Openness and Emotional Stability

the weakest predictor of leader emergence; leaders,

apparently, need not to be warm and kind.

Agreeableness

What predicts leadership emergence may not also predict effectiveness once

one has become a leader.

True

Agreeableness did not predict leadership emergence, but it did predict

effectiveness—even more so than conscientiousness.

Truth

Dark Triad

Set of three socially aversive personality qualities.

Machiavellianism, Narcissism, Psychotherapy

Hallmarks of General Mental Ability

abstract thinking, ability to

manipulate the environment, and foresight.

Although high intelligence may mean skilled leadership, a group prefers

to be “ill-governed by people it can understand.

Emotional Intelligence

✓ The ability to perceive emotions in self and others.

✓ To understand how emotions blend, unfold, and

✓ Influence cognition and behavior; to use emotions to facilitate thinking; and to

manage emotions in self and others

One way to measure practical intelligence

leaderless group test

Creative Intelligence

» Leaders must be able to recognize future goals and directions and take

steps to help the group accept their vision of the future.

Babble Effect

» The tendency for group members who talk at a high rate in the group

to emerge as leaders, even if the information they share with the group

is of low quality.

in determining leadership emergence

in performance-oriented, service–delivery-oriented groups

task specific skills

interpersonal and conceptual skills

important in upper echelon

leadership positions.

Physical Appearance

▪ Taller, healthier, and older than the average group member.

▪ Even hair color has been found to influence perceptions of

leadership.

▪ Blonde=less cognitively swift

▪ Red hair=mean but competent

Both men and women, when surveyed

express a preference for a

male rather than a female boss.

describe the hidden

situational and interpersonal factors that prevent women from gaining

leadership positions.

Glass Ceiling and leadership labyrinth

Exerting influence:

women=members tend to frown and tighten them

facial muscles

men=members are more likely to nod in agreement

Implicit Leadership Theory

» People unconsciously form prototypes of what a leader should be,

influencing their perceptions of leadership (Lord etal., 1984).

» These ILTs include traits such as intelligence, inspiration, integrity, and

teamwork.

Social Identity Theory

» Individuals categorize themselves as group members and develop a

shared prototypical image of an ideal leader. Leaders emerge based

on how well they represent the group’s identity.

» Groups favor leaders who embody their values (e.g., cooperative

groups prefer relationship-oriented leaders, while productivity-driven

groups prefer task-oriented leaders).

When group identity is strong,

, members prefer leaders who align with

group ideals

When identity is weak,

prototypicality matters less.

Leaders are expected to champion their group’s uniqueness and may

lose support if

they make conciliatory gestures toward rival groups.

Leaders can gain popularity by

emphasizing ingroup superiority and

differentiating from outsiders

The most endorsed leaders balance group prototypicality with a

compelling vision for the group’s future

true

Social Role Theory

» Leadership expectations emphasize agentic, task-oriented traits such

as dominance, competition, and decisiveness—qualities traditionally

associated with men.

» Men are perceived as strong, productive, and assertive, aligning with

leadership expectations.

» Women are associated with nurturing, warmth, and emotion, which

clash with leadership stereotypes (Williams & Best, 1990).

» This role incongruity leads to the assumption that leadership is a male

role.

Double Standards for women

▪ Women must outperform men to be evaluated equally.

▪ The same behaviors and achievements are rated more

positively for men than for women (Eagly et al., 1992).

▪ When women adopt a task-oriented leadership style, they face

criticism for being "unfeminine" creating a Catch-22 (Hoyt,

2010).

» Responses to bias

▪ Women respond to these challenges by:

• Avoiding leadership roles due to societal expectations.

• Underperforming due to stereotype pressure.

• Challenging stereotypes to redefine leadership norms.

Mortality-salience condition

Ratings of the charismatic leader

climbed and ratings of the relationship-oriented leader dropped.

Control Condition

People were more positive toward the task- and

relationship-oriented leaders relative to the charismatic one.

Evolutionary Theory

» Evolutionary psychology suggests that leadership is an adaptation: a

heritable characteristic that developed in a population over a long

period of time.

» Our ancestors likely lived in small groups of genetically related

individuals, and these groups prospered only if members cooperated

with each other.

Natural selection therefore

encouraged the development of the

mental apparatus needed to evaluate those who sought the

position of leadership.

Women Leaders:

make certain that the relations within the

group were strong and that any intragroup conflicts were

minimized so that the group’s cohesion was not damaged

Men leaders:

when confronted with other rival tribes involving

intergroup conflicts

Leadership Grid

→Leaders balance concern for people and

concern for results on a 9-point scale.

1,1 Impoverished

Low concern for

both people and results.

9,1 Taskmaster

High focus on

results, low on people.

1,9 Country Club

High focus on

people, low on results.

5,5 Middle-of-the-Road

Balances

both but may sacrifice effectiveness.

9, 9 Team Leader

High concern for

both, most effective leadership style.

Situational Leadership Theory

→ Effective leadership depends on group

readiness (skills motivation)

Four leadership styles based on group

development:

» Directing: High task, low relationship (for

low-readiness groups)

» Coaching: High task, high relationship.

» Supporting: Low task, high relationship.

» Delegating: Low task, low relationship

(for high-readiness groups)

Contingency Theory

→ Leadership effectiveness depends on:

» Leader’s motivational style (task-oriented

or relationship-oriented)

» Situational control (leader-member

relations, task structure, and position

power)

→ Task-oriented leaders thrive in highly

favorable or highly unfavorable situations.

→ Relationship-oriented leaders perform best in

moderate situations.

→ Fiedler’s Leader Match training program

teaches leaders to adapt situations to their

leadership style rather than changing

themselves.

Leader-Member Exchange Theory

emphasizes the importance of one-on-one

relationships between leaders and subordinates, contrasting with

other models that apply uniform approaches to all group

members, leading to the development of two subgroups:

Ingroup

Members with strong, positive relationships with

the leader. They receive more support, resources, and

responsibilities, leading to greater loyalty, commitment, and

higher performance.

Outgroup

: Members with weaker relationships with the

leader, who do their work but are less engaged, loyal, and

recognized.

Participation Theory

» Some leaders adopt a command-and-control leadership style; they

give the orders and subordinates carry them out.

» Some leaders adopt a participatory leadership style: share their

leadership duties with the group members.

Transactional Leadership

A traditional form of leadership

that involves contributing time, effort, and other resources

in the pursuit of collaborative goals in exchange for desired

outcomes.

Transformational Leadership

An inspirational method of

leading others that involves elevating one’s followers’

motivation, confidence, and satisfaction, by uniting them in

the pursuit of shared, challenging goals and changing their

beliefs, values, and needs.