Assessment

Trait Approach

The early trait approach theories were called “Great Man” theories because they focused on identifying the innate qualities and characteristics possessed by great social, political, and military leaders such as Catherine the Great, Mohandas Gandhi, Abraham Lincoln, Moses, and Joan of Arc. Studies of leadership traits were especially strong from 1900 to the early 1940s and enjoyed a renewed emphasis beginning in the 1970s as researchers began to examine visionary and charismatic leadership. In the 1980s, researchers linked leadership to the “Big Five” personality factors while interest in emotional intelligence as a trait gained favor in the 1990s. (For a discussion of emotional intelligence as a leadership skill, see Chapter 6, pages 126–127.)

Behavior Approach

In the late 1930s, leadership research began to focus on behavior—what leaders do and how they act. Groundbreaking studies by researchers at The Ohio State University and the University of Michigan in the 1940s and 1950s analyzed how leaders acted in small group situations. Behavior approach theories hit their heyday in the early 1960s with Blake and Moulton’s (1964) work exploring how managers use task and relationship behaviors in the organizational setting.

Situational Approach

The premise of this approach is that different situations demand different kinds of leadership. Serious examination of situational approach theories began in the late 1960s by Hersey and Blanchard (1969) and Reddin (1967). Situational approaches continued to be refined and revised from the 1970s through the 1990s (Vecchio, 1987). One of these, path–goal theory, examines how leaders use employee motivation to enhance performance and satisfaction. Another approach, contingency theory, focuses on the match between the leader’s style and specific situational variables.

Relational Approach

In the 1990s, researchers began examining the nature of relations between leaders and followers. This research ultimately evolved into the leader–member exchange (LMX) theory. LMX theory predicts that high-quality relations generate more positive leader outcomes than low-quality relations. Research in the relational approach to leadership continues to generate moderate interest today.

“New Leadership” Approach

When these approaches began appearing in the mid-1980s—three decades ago—they were, and continue to be, called “new leadership” approaches (Bryman, 1992). Beginning with the work of Bass (1985, 1990), leadership studies generated visionary or charismatic leadership theories. From these approaches developed transformational leadership theory, which describes leadership as a process that changes people and organizations.

Emerging Leadership Approaches

A diverse range of approaches to leadership is emerging during the 21st century:

· Adaptive leadership examines how leaders help people address problems, face challenges, and adapt to change. Adaptive leadership stresses that the leaders don’t solve the problems, but rather encourage others to do the problem solving and adapt to change.

· Authentic leadership is an approach that looks at the authenticity of leaders and their leadership and is currently enjoying strong interest.

· Spiritual leadership considers how leaders use values, a sense of “calling,” and membership to motivate followers.

· Servant leadership emphasizes the “caring principle” with leaders as “servants” who focus on their followers’ needs in order to help these followers become more autonomous, knowledgeable, and like servants themselves.

· Gender-based studies, which have gained much momentum as women continue to become more dominant in the workforce, especially on a global level, view how one’s gender affects and differentiates one’s leadership.

The historical timeline in Figure 1.1 is not intended to represent these approaches as separate and distinct eras, only to disappear from the picture when a new theory appears. Instead, many of these theories occur concurrently, building upon one another. Even when a certain approach’s period of popularity has waned, the theory continues to influence further study and the development of new leadership approaches.

Figure 1.1 Development of Leadership Theories Through History

Source: Adapted from Antonakis, J., Cianciolo, A. T., & Sternberg, R. J. (Eds.). (2004). The nature of leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, p. 7.

Key Theories

An example of leadership as ability is the legendary University of California at Los Angeles basketball coach John Wooden, whose teams won seven consecutive National Collegiate Athletic Association titles. Described first as a teacher and then as a coach, Wooden implemented four laws of learning into his coaching: explanation, demonstration, imitation, and repetition. His goal was to teach players how to do the right thing instinctively under great pressure. Less visible or well known, but also an example of leadership as ability, is the unheralded but highly effective restaurant manager who, through years of experience and learning, is able to create a successful, award-winning restaurant. In both of these examples, it is the individuals’ abilities that create outstanding leadership.

“Leadership Is a Skill”

Third, leadership is a skill. Conceptualized as a skill, leadership is a competency developed to accomplish a task effectively. Skilled leaders are competent people who know the means and methods for carrying out their responsibilities. For example, a skilled leader in a fund-raising campaign knows every step and procedure in the fund-raising process and is able to use this knowledge to run an effective campaign. In short, skilled leaders are competent—they know what they need to do, and they know how to do it.

Describing leadership as a skill makes leadership available to everyone because skills are competencies that people can learn or develop. Even without natural leadership ability, people can improve their leadership with practice, instruction, and feedback from others. Viewed as a skill, leadership can be studied and learned. If you are capable of learning from experience, you can acquire leadership.

“Leadership Is a Behavior”

Leadership is also a behavior. It is what leaders do when they are in a leadership role. The behavioral dimension is concerned with how leaders act toward others in various situations. Unlike traits, abilities, and skills, leadership behaviors are observable. When someone leads, we see that person’s leadership behavior.

Leadership Behaviors

Research on leadership has shown that leaders engage primarily in two kinds of general behaviors: task behaviors and process behaviors. Task behaviors are used by leaders to get the job done (e.g., a leader prepares an agenda for a meeting). Process behaviors are used by leaders to help people feel comfortable with other group members and at ease in the situations in which they find themselves (e.g., a leader helps individuals in a group to feel included). Since leadership requires both task and process behaviors, the challenge for leaders is to know the best way to combine them in their efforts to reach a goal.

“Leadership Is a Relationship”

Another, and a somewhat unusual, way to think about leadership is as a relationship. From this perspective, leadership is centered on the communication between leaders and followers rather than on the unique qualities of the leader. Thought of as a relationship, leadership becomes a process of collaboration that occurs between leaders and followers (Rost, 1991). A leader affects and is affected by followers, and both leader and followers are affected in turn by the situation that surrounds them. This approach emphasizes that leadership is not a linear one-way event, but rather an interactive event. In traditional leadership, authority is often top down; in the interactive type of leadership, authority and influence are shared. When leadership is defined in this manner, it becomes available to everyone. It is not restricted to the formally designated leader in a group.

Leadership and Change

Thinking of leadership as a relationship suggests that leaders must include followers and their interests in the process of leadership. A leader needs to be fully aware of the followers and the followers’ interests, ideas, positions, attitudes, and motivations. In addition, this approach has an ethical overtone because it stresses the need for leaders to work with followers to achieve their mutual purposes. Stressing mutuality lessens the possibility that leaders might act toward followers in ways that are forced or unethical. It also increases the possibility that leaders and followers will work together toward a common good (Rost, 1991).

“Leadership Is an Influence Process”

A final way of thinking about leadership is as an influence process. This is the perspective that will be emphasized in this book.

Leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal.

Leadership Development

Defining leadership as an influence process means that it is not a trait or an ability that resides in the leader, but rather an interactive event that occurs between the leader and the followers. Influence is central to the process of leadership because leaders affect followers. Leaders direct their energies toward influencing individuals to achieve something together. Stressing common goals gives leadership an ethical dimension because it lessens the possibility that leaders might act toward followers in ways that use coercion or are unethical.

Finally, in explaining what leadership is, it is important to make a distinction between leadership and management. In discussing what leadership is and can be, the concepts of leadership and management sometimes overlap. Both leadership and management involve influence, but leadership is about seeking constructive change, and management is about establishing order. For example, it is often said that “managers are people who do things right, and leaders are people who do the right thing.” Since both leaders and managers are engaged in influencing people toward goal accomplishment, our discussion in this book will treat the roles of managers and leaders similarly and not emphasize the differences between them.

Global Leadership Attributes

We probably all wonder at the differences in leadership around the world. Why do some countries gravitate toward the distributed leadership of a democracy, while others seem content with the hierarchical leadership of a monarchy or dictatorship? The definition and concepts of leadership outlined in this chapter are from an American perspective. If you were to travel to nations across the world, you would no doubt encounter different views of leadership specific to those ethnic and political cultures.

Universal Leadership Attributes

In 2004, Robert House led a group of 160 researchers in an ambitious study to increase our understanding of the impact culture has on leadership effectiveness. The GLOBE (Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness) studies drew on the input of 17,000 people in 62 countries in determining how leadership varies across the world. Among the many findings generated by the GLOBE studies was the identification of positive and negative leadership characteristics that are universally accepted worldwide (see Table 1.1).

Source: Adapted from House, R. J., Hanges, P. J., Javidan, M., Dorfman, P. W., & Gupta, V. (Eds.). (2004). Culture, leadership, and organizations: The GLOBE study of 62 societies. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, pp. 677–678. Reprinted with permission.

The Dark Side of Leadership

Those same characteristics and behaviors that distinguish leadership can also be used by leaders in nonpositive ways (Conger, 1990). The dark side of leadership is the destructive side of leadership where a leader uses his or her influence or power for personal ends. Lipman-Blumen (2005) suggests that such leaders are “toxic,” where their leadership leaves their followers worse off than they found them, often violating the basic human rights of others and playing to their followers’ basest fears. Dark leadership is able to thrive when three conditions exist, according to Padilla, Hogan, and Kaiser (2007): a destructive leader, susceptible followers, and a conducive environment. Destructive leaders will prevail when the checks and balances of an organization are weak and the rules of the institution are ineffective. While many cite Adolf Hitler as the prime example of the dark side of leadership, there are many current examples in the world today from the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria, whose leadership has led to violent civil war that has left hundreds of thousands dead, to religious extremist groups, such as ISIS and al-Qaeda, who use their followers to engage in mass murder of innocents.

The Dark Side of Leadership

The meaning of leadership is complex and includes many dimensions. For some people, leadership is a trait or an ability, for others it is a skill or a behavior, and for still others it is a relationship or a process. In reality, leadership probably includes components of all of these dimensions. Each dimension explains a facet of leadership.

Destructive Leadership

In considering these various definitions of leadership and based on the results of your Conceptualizing Leadership Questionnaire (page 14), which dimension seems closest to how you think of leadership? How would you define leadership? Answers to these questions are important because how you think about leadership will strongly influence how you practice leadership.

There is a strong demand for effective leadership in society today. This demand exists at the local and community levels, as well as at the national level, in this country and abroad. People feel the need for leadership in all aspects of their lives. They want leaders in their personal lives, at school, in the work setting, and even in their spiritual lives. Everywhere you turn, people are expressing a need for strong leadership.

When people ask for leadership in a particular situation, it is not always clear exactly what they want. For the most part, however, they want effective leadership. Effective leadership is intended influence that creates change for the greater good. Leadership uses positive means to achieve positive outcomes. Furthermore, people want leaders who listen to and understand their needs and who can relate to their circumstances. The challenge for each of us is to be prepared to lead when we are asked to be the leader.

Leadership Snapshot: Indra Nooyi, CEO, PepsiCo

Mark Wilson/Staff/Getty Images News/Getty Images

The daughter of a conservative, middle-class family in southern India, Indra Nooyi didn’t seem destined to one day run one of the world’s largest snack food and beverage companies. But Nooyi does just that as the CEO and president of PepsiCo, making her one of the top female executives in the United States and probably the highest-ranking woman of Indian heritage in corporate America. Nooyi, who grew up in Madras (now Chennai), India, admits she always pushed social conventions. She played on an all-girls cricket team and was a guitarist in a rock band at a time when it was deemed inappropriate for Indian girls to do such things. Despite graduating from college with bachelor’s degrees in chemistry, math, and physics from Madras Christian College in 1974 and a Master of Business Administration from the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, Nooyi was reportedly remembered for being only a “mediocre student” (Pandey, 2006).

Nooyi’s first job after college was for Tootal, a British textile company in India, but she was hired away as a brand manager for Johnson & Johnson to oversee the company’s Stayfree account in India. It was a job that would have challenged the most seasoned marketing executive because, at the time, advertising women’s feminine products was not allowed in her country (Murray, 2004).By 1978, Nooyi felt she needed more preparation for the business world and applied to and was accepted to the Yale School of Management in the United States. To her surprise, her parents agreed to let her go, although it would essentially make her an unmarriageable commodity in her culture. She received financial aid from Yale, but still struggled to make ends meet, working as an overnight receptionist. She didn’t have the money to buy a business suit, so she wore her traditional sari to work and later in job interviews, choosing to be herself rather than adhere to expected cultural norms.

Nooyi did not earn an MBA from Yale, choosing instead to get a master’s degree in public and private management. Her first jobs after graduation were for the prestigious Boston Consulting Group and Motorola. In 1990, she joined ASEA Brown Boveri (ABB), a Swiss-Swedish industrial conglomerate. Her success in directing ABB’s North American operations caught the attention of PepsiCo CEO Wayne Calloway who wooed her away to become his company’s chief strategist.Nooyi quickly left her mark at PepsiCo. She was the chief deal maker for two of PepsiCo’s most important acquisitions: the Tropicana orange juice brand in 1998 and Quaker Oats in 2001. The Quaker Oats deal added a huge range of cereals and snack foods to the PepsiCo empire. Nooyi also helped the company acquire beverage maker SoBe, beating out a competing offer from Coca-Cola. Her deal-making talents elevated her to the job of PepsiCo’s chief financial officer in 2000, and a year later she was given the title of president.

Nooyi’s vision for PepsiCo—that “for any part of the day, we will have a little snack for you” (Byrnes, 2001)—has been implemented through development of new products and acquisitions. The company now sells a wide range of foods and beverages from Cap’n Crunch and Doritos to Mountain Dew and Gatorade. The company’s 18 brands are sold in 200 countries, and it employs 198,000 people worldwide.But the strategist in Nooyi has also foreseen the effect that growing lifestyle diseases such as obesity could have on her company. Again, she has chosen to follow an unconventional path, looking to create healthier products in an industry dominated by salt, fat, and sugar. She invested heavily in the creation of a research and development lab that took five years to complete, drawing criticism from stockholders and industry analysts. So far, the investment has had some success: PepsiCo introduced a “mid-calorie” cola, Pepsi True, which has 30% less sugar and uses stevia extract instead of artificial sweeteners, and has created potato chips that taste just as salty as the original but have less sodium. The company has also introduced a new line of craft sodas called Stubborn Soda, which contain natural flavors and sugarcane instead of high-fructose corn syrup.

Summary

All of us at some time in our lives will be asked to show leadership. When you are asked to be the leader, it will be both demanding and rewarding. How you approach leadership is strongly influenced by your definitions of and beliefs about leadership. Through the years, writers have defined leadership in a multitude of ways. It is a complex, multidimensional process that is often conceptualized in a variety of ways by different people. Some of the most common ways of looking at leadership are as a trait, as an ability, as a skill, as a behavior, as a relationship, and as a process. The way you think about leadership will influence the way you practice leadership.

Glossary Terms

· ability 2

· adaptive leadership 4

· approach 3

· authentic leadership 4

· behavior approach 3

· “Big Five” personality factors 3

· contingency theory 4

· dark side of leadership 9

· emotional intelligence 3

· gender-based studies 4

· “Great Man” theories 3

· leader–member exchange (LMX) theory 4

· leadership 7

· path–goal theory 4

· process behaviors 6

· relational approach 4

· relationship behaviors 3

· servant leadership 4

· situational approach 4

· skill 5

· spiritual leadership 4

· task behaviors 3, 6

· theory 3

· trait 2

· trait approach 3

· transformational leadership theory 4

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Application

1.1 Case Study: King of the Hill

Denny Hill’s career as a high school swimming coach didn’t start out well. The seniors on his team quit in the first season because he required them to come to all the workouts. The team only won three meets the whole season. That was 40 years ago. Since that time, the high school chemistry teacher’s success as a swimming coach has been extraordinary; his winnings include more than 900 boys’ and girls’ dual meets and a phenomenal 31 state titles.

Denny is noted for creating a team effort out of what is usually considered an individual sport. He begins every season with a team sleepover, followed by “Hell Week,” a two-week grueling regimen in which team members swim at least 5 miles a workout and 10 miles a day. He acknowledges this is a bonding experience for the swimmers, regardless of their skill, because they are “all in the same boat.”

Denny passes the mantle of leadership onto his team members. Seniors are expected to be mature leaders who inform the freshmen of the team goals and expectations. Juniors are to be role models, while sophomores serve as quiet leaders who are still learning but have a foundation in the team culture. Even the freshmen members have a job: They are required to pay attention to the coaches and other team members as they learn the team’s culture and what’s expected.

Denny holds a 20-minute team meeting each Monday where every member has the opportunity to present a rose or a complaint to anyone on the team including the coaches. He is tough on swimmers and makes them work, but when they need support he is always there to put an arm around them. Denny also uses humor, often making jokes that help take the edge off long, hard workouts.

And despite his teams’ successes, Denny isn’t about winning; he’s more about preparing to win—telling his swimmers that by preparing to win, everything takes care of itself. When you do win, he says, you’ve done it the right way.

Questions

1. What leadership traits account for Denny Hill’s success?

2. How would you describe Denny Hill’s leadership abilities?

3. Leadership includes administrative skills, interpersonal skills, and conceptual skills. How does Denny Hill stack up on these skills?

4. How does Denny Hill integrate task and relationship behaviors in his leadership?

5. From a relational perspective, how would you describe Denny Hill’s leadership?

6. In what way does Denny Hill’s coaching exemplify leadership as an influence process?

1.2 Conceptualizing Leadership

Questionnaire

Purpose

1. To identify how you view leadership

2. To explore your perceptions of different aspects of leadership

Directions

1. Consider for a moment your own impressions of the word leadership. Based on your experiences with leaders in your lifetime, what is leadership?

2. Using the scale below, indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with the following statements about leadership.

Scoring

1. Sum scores on items 1, 7, 13, and 19 (trait emphasis)

2. Sum scores on items 2, 8, 14, and 20 (ability emphasis)

3. Sum scores on items 3, 9, 15, and 21 (skill emphasis)

4. Sum scores on items 4, 10, 16, and 22 (behavior emphasis)

5. Sum scores on items 5, 11, 17, and 23 (relationship emphasis)

6. Sum scores on items 6, 12, 18, and 24 (process emphasis)

Total Scores

1. Trait emphasis: _________________

2. Ability emphasis: ________________

3. Skill emphasis: __________________

4. Behavior emphasis: ______________

5. Relationship emphasis: ___________

6. Process emphasis: _______________

Scoring Interpretation

The scores you received on this questionnaire provide information about how you define and view leadership. The emphasis you give to the various dimensions of leadership has implications for how you approach the leadership process. For example, if your highest score is for trait emphasis, it suggests that you emphasize the role of the leader and the leader’s special gifts in the leadership process. However, if your highest score is for relationship emphasis, it indicates that you think leadership is centered on the communication between leaders and followers, rather than on the unique qualities of the leader. By comparing your scores, you can gain an understanding of the aspects of leadership that you find most important and least important. The way you think about leadership will influence how you practice leadership.

Improve Your Leadership Skills

If you have the interactive eBook version of this text, log in to access the interactive leadership assessment. After completing this chapter’s questionnaire, you will receive individualized feedback and practical suggestions for further strengthening your leadership based on your responses in this questionnaire.

1.3 Observational Exercise

Defining Leadership

Purpose

1. To develop an understanding of the complexity of leadership

2. To become aware of the different ways people define leadership

Directions

1. In this exercise, select five people you know and interview them about leadership.

2. Ask each person to give you his or her definition of leadership, and to describe his or her personal beliefs about effective leadership.

3. Record each person’s response on a separate sheet of paper.

· Person #1 (name) __________________________________________

· Person #2 (name) _________________________________________

· Person #3 (name) _________________________________________

· Person #4 (name) _________________________________________

· Person #5 (name) _________________________________________

Questions

1. What differences did you observe in how these people define leadership?

2. What seems to be the most common definition of leadership?

3. In what ways did people describe leadership differently from the definitions in Chapter 1, “Understanding Leadership”?

4. Of the people interviewed, whose definition comes closest to your own? Why?

1.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet

Understanding Leadership

Reflection

1. Each of us has our own unique way of thinking about leadership. What leaders or people have influenced you in your thinking about leadership? Discuss what leadership means to you and give your definition of leadership.

2. What do the scores you received on the Conceptualizing Leadership Questionnaire suggest about your perspective on leadership? Of the six dimensions on the questionnaire (trait, ability, skill, behavior, relationship, and process), which one is the most similar to your own perspective? Which one is least like your own perspective?

3. Do you think leadership is something everyone can learn to do, or do you think it is a natural ability reserved for a few? Explain your answer.

Action

1. Based on the interviews you conducted with others about leadership, how could you incorporate others’ ideas about leadership into your own leadership?

2. Treating leadership as a relationship has ethical implications. How could adding the relationship approach to your leadership make you a better leader? Discuss.

3. Think about your own leadership. Identify one trait, ability, skill, or behavior that you could develop more fully to become a better leader.

Visit edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e for a downloadable version of this questionnaire.

References

Antonakis, J., Cianciolo, A. T., & Sternberg, R. J. (Eds.). (2004). The nature of leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Bass, B. M. (1985). Leadership and performance beyond expectations. New York, NY: Free Press.

Bass, B. M. (1990). Bass and Stogdill’s handbook of leadership: A survey of theory and research. New York, NY: Free Press.

Blake, R. R., & Moulton, J. S. (1964). The managerial grid. Houston, TX: Gulf.

Bryman, A. (1992). Charisma and leadership in organizations. London, U K: Sage.

Byrnes, N. (2001, January 29). The power of two at Pepsi. Businessweek. Retrieved from http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2001-01-28/the-power-of-two-at-pepsi

Conger, J. (1990). The dark side of leadership. Organizational Dynamics, 19(2), 44–55.

Conger, J. A., & Riggio, R. E. (Eds.). (2007). The practice of leadership: Developing the next generation of leaders. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Hersey, P., & Blanchard, K. H. (1969). Life-cycle theory of leadership. Training and Development Journal, 23(5), 26–34.

House, R. J., Hanges, P. J., Javidan, M., Dorfman, P. W., & Gupta, V. (2004). Culture, leadership, and organizations: The GLOBE study of 62 societies. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Lipman-Blumen, J. (2005). The allure of toxic leaders. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Machiavelli, N. (2005). The prince (W. J. Connell, trans.). Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin’s. (Original work published in 1531)

Murray, S. (2004, January 26). From poor Indian student to powerful U.S. business-woman. Financial Times, p. 3.

Padilla, A., Hogan, R., & Kaiser, R. B. (2007). The toxic triangle: Destructive leaders, susceptible followers, and conducive environments. The Leadership Quarterly, 18(3), 176–194.

Pandey, J. M. (2006, August 18). Nooyi: IIM-C’s “average” student turns role model. The Times of India. Retrieved from http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Nooyi-IIM-Cs-average-student-turns-role-model/articleshow/1902571.cms

Reddin, W. J. (1967, April). The 3-D management style theory. Training and Development Journal, pp. 8–17.

Rost, J. C. (1991). Leadership for the twenty-first century. Westport, CO: Praeger.

Vecchio, R. P. (1987). Situational leadership theory: An examination of a prescriptive theory. Journal of Applied Psychology, 72(3), 444–451.