Unit IV Leadership Theory

LDR 7301, Leadership Theory and Practice 1

Course Learning Outcomes for Unit IV At the end of this unit, you should be able to:

4. Summarize the practical application of leadership research in the workplace. 4.2 Outline the ways leadership theory research can be applied to motivate others.

Required Unit Resources Chapter 9: Follower Motivation (ULO 4.2) Chapter 10: Follower Satisfaction and Engagement (ULO 4.2) Unit Lesson Lesson: Motivation and Inspiration within Leadership (ULO 4.2) Having studied several components of leadership, this unit shifts the focus to practical applications of leadership research within the workplace by examining how leadership theory research can be applied to motivate and engage others. There is a relationship between motivation, satisfaction, and engagement and many theories of motivation are also theories of job satisfaction and employee engagement (Hughes et al., 2022).

Motivation Just as there are multiple approaches and theories that focus on effective leadership, there are also multiple approaches to motivation, many of which have been around for some time (Hughes et al., 2022). From equity theory (Adams, 1965, as cited in Wung & Nanfosso, 2023) to Maslow’s (1943) hierarchy of needs (as cited in Canbolat & Hisar, 2022), these concepts influenced the application of leadership research in the workplace. Employees generally fall into three types of intrinsic or extrinsic motivations as follows:

Figure 1: Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivators (adapted from Hughes et al., 2022).

UNIT IV STUDY GUIDE Leadership Tools

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Transformational leadership theories explain how leaders motivate subordinates to perform above average by operationalizing effective leader behaviors (Carless, 2001). Kouzes and Posner (1987) developed the five practices of leadership model, which emerged from research as behaviors and strategies used by effective leaders:

1. Model the way: Setting an example by behaving in ways consistent with stated values and planning small wins that enable followers to experience tangible success.

2. Inspire a shared vision: creating and communicating a vision of the future and enlisting others to share that vision.

3. Challenge the process: seeking new solutions to problems by searching for opportunities and encouraging innovation and risk-taking.

4. Enabling others to act: fostering collaboration and cooperation within a group and strengthening others’ capabilities to perform.

5. Encourage the heart: recognizing contributions, holding, and communicating high expectations, linking performance and rewards, and celebrating accomplishments (Benson, 2023; Shoemaker, 1999).

Dang et al. (2023) further state that both leaders and their perception should result in a greater follower engagement and more productive behaviors. Effective leaders strengthen the relationship between leader and follower and then create a stronger influence between leader and follower (Oktarini, 2023). The focus of the leader is to find the right alignment of power, motivation, and leadership style that correlates to the strongest potential outcome (Friederichs et al., 2023) The primary focus of research for doctoral students is to acquire information that contributes to the body of knowledge (Chung et al., 2022). Some researchers receive funding for a specific type of research whereas others receive recognition research findings. Regardless of what motivates a researcher, most researchers realize that the understanding of research and its uses can be vital to others.

Engagement Engaging leadership is described as behavior that facilitates, strengthens, connects, and inspires others (Schaufeli, 2021). Research indicates that work engagement is an important indicator of sustainable employability (van der Klink et al., 2016). Ismail et al. (2021) state that employee engagement is affected by differences in leadership style and becomes a driver of the creation of a positive work culture. Ismail et al. (2021) further maintain that engagement will also foster higher trust levels and better productivity. The following figure illustrates the impact of a leader’s behavior on organizational outcomes. The leader’s behavior directly impacts the followers’ motivation, satisfaction, and engagement, which, in turn influences organizational citizenship behavior (OCB), such as assisting other employees with tasks or projects, or covering a shift for a fellow worker (Hughes, et al., 2022). Positive OCB results in better follower performance, higher levels of customer satisfaction and unit and team effectiveness. The level of unit/team effectiveness then feeds back into employee motivation, creating a circular influence of the leader’s use of motivation techniques. Additionally, poor use of the techniques by the leader can lead to follower retaliation and higher levels of follower turnover.

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Figure 2: Leadership Effect on Organizational Outcomes (adapted from Hughes et al., 2022). Followers will disengage from leaders for the following reasons:

1. Limitations of recognition and praise. 2. Compensation and benefits. 3. Poor business or organizational atmospheres. 4. Repetitiveness in their work (Hughes et al., 2022).

The leader is responsible for determining the follower’s dissatisfaction. Data collected through questionnaires can help inform a degree of dissatisfaction, however, leaders may need to find the why through open-ended questions to discover what root cause is driving follower dissatisfaction. Im (2022) contends that research can assist with identifying the sources of dissatisfaction so they can then be addressed. Research topics and questions come from the gaps or questions that remain unanswered in research. The appropriate hypothesis and research questions come from examining previous research and identifying areas that need answering, leading to the identification of variables and the building of the study from the findings (Roy, 2023).

Conclusion There is an existential relationship between employee motivation, engagement, and job satisfaction. Although some believe it is impossible to extrinsically motivate employees, researchers indicate a clear and convincing relationship between leaders’ behaviors, motivation, satisfaction, and employee engagement (Hughes, 2022). Theories originate from research and are used to inform the knowledgeable leader about interventions that may encourage follower motivation and engagement as a strategy to improve performance.

References Benson, J. D. (2023, May 1). Leadership and motivation. In Salem Press Encyclopedia.

https://searchworks.stanford.edu/articles/ers__89163819

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Canbolat, O., & Hisar, F. (2022, January-April). The effectiveness of counseling in the internship program according to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. International Journal of Caring Sciences, 15(1), 617– 626. https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly- journals/effectiveness-counseling-internship-program/docview/2670464399/se-2

Carless, S. A. (2001, June). Assessing the discriminant validity of the Leadership Practices Inventory .

Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 74(2), 233–239. https://doi- org.libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/10.1348/096317901167334

Chung, S., Zhan, Y., Noe, R. A., & Jiang, K. (2022, July). It is time to update and expand training motivation

theory? A meta-analytic review of training motivation research in the 21st century. Journal of Applied Psychology, 107(7), 1150–1179. https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?dire ct=true&db=pdh&AN=2021-41696-001&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Dang, C. T., Volpone, S. D., & Umphress, E. E. (2023, February). The ethics of diversity ideology:

Consequences of leader diversity ideology on ethical leadership perception and organizational citizenship behavior. Journal of Applied Psychology, 108(2), 307–329. https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?dire ct=true&db=pdh&AN=2022-42350-001&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Friederichs, K. M., Waldenmeier, K., & Baumann, N. (2023). The benefits of a prosocial power motivation in

leadership: Action orientation fosters a win-win. PLoS ONE, 18(7), Article e0287394. https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?dire ct=true&db=asn&AN=165045322&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Hughes, R. L., Ginnett, R. C., & Curphy, G. J. (2022). Leadership: Enhancing the lessons of experience (10th

ed.). McGraw Hill. https://online.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781264071470 Im, H. (2022). Come work with us: Inclusivity, performance, engagement, and job satisfaction as correlates of

employer recommendation. Journal of Personnel Psychology, 21(4), 208–214. https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?dire ct=true&db=pdh&AN=2022-66890-001&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Ismail, F., Arumugan, N., Kadir, A. A., & Alhousani, A. A. H. (2021). Impact of leadership styles toward

employee engagement among Malaysian Civil Defence Force. International Journal of Business and Society, 22(3), 1188–1210. https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?dire ct=true&db=bsu&AN=154201850&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (1987). The leadership challenge: How to get extraordinary things done in

organizations. Jossey-Bass. macrovector_official. (n.d.). Business cooperation of people worldwide [Graphic]. Freepik.

https://www.freepik.com/free-vector/business-cooperation-people- worldwide_4431367.htm#&position=1&from_view=user

Oktarini, O. (2023, July-August). The role of work motivation in mediation of leadership style on employee

performance. Dinasti International Journal of Management Science, 4(6), 1155–1166. https://doi.org/10.31933/dijms.v4i6.1952

Roy, M. (2023, Summer). Leadership development for professional services firms. TIP: The Industrial-

Organizational Psychologist, 61(1), 1–6. https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?dire ct=true&db=asn&AN=169633117&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Schaufeli, W. (2021, October 27). Engaging leadership: How to promote work engagement? Frontiers in

Psychology, 12, Article 754556. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.754556

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Shoemaker, M. E. (1999, Fall). Leadership practices in sales managers associated with the self-efficacy, role clarity, and job satisfaction of individual industrial salespeople. Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, 19(4), 1–19.

upklyak. (n.d.). Goal achievement and teamwork business concept, career growth and cooperation for

development of project [Graphic]. Freepik. https://www.freepik.com/free-vector/goal-achievement- teamwork-business-concept-career-growth-cooperation-development- project_4850064.htm#query=leadership&position=20&from_view=search&track=sph

van der Klink, J. J. L., Bültmann, U., Burdorf, A., Schaufeli, W. B., Zijlstra, F. R. H., Abma, F. I., Brouwer, S., &

van der Wilt, G. J. (2016, January). Sustainable employability—definition, conceptualization, and implications: A perspective based on the capability approach. Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment, and Health, 42(1), 71–79. https://doi.org/10.5271/sjweh.3531

Wung, E. A., & Nanfosso, R. T. (2023). Be careful with the attitude of employees in the service industry: Are

they affected by tips and tipping practices? Tourism in Southern and Eastern Europe, 7, 503–518. https://doi.org/10.20867/tosee.07.33

Suggested Unit Resources Chapter 11: Follower Performance, Effectiveness, and Potential (Optional) Although not required, reading the above chapter will strengthen your knowledge on how leaders can support and motivate teams.