Chapter 1: Introduction to Leadership PDF

Introduction This book is about what it takes to be a leader. Everyone, at some time in life, is asked to be a leader, whether to lead a classroom discussion, coach a children’s soccer team, or direct a fund-raising campaign. Many situations require leadership. A leader may have a high profile (e.g....

Introduction This book is about what it takes to be a leader. Everyone, at some time in life, is asked to be a leader, whether to lead a classroom discussion, coach a children’s soccer team, or direct a fund-raising campaign. Many situations require leadership. A leader may have a high profile (e.g., an elected public official) or a low profile (e.g., a volunteer leader in Big Brothers Big Sisters), but in every situation there are leadership demands placed on the individual who is the leader. Being a leader is challenging, exciting, and rewarding, and carries with it many responsibilities. This chapter discusses different ways of looking at leadership and their impacts on what it means to be a leader. What is Leadership? 26 Leadership Explained At the outset, it is important to address a basic question: What is leadership? Scholars who study leadership have struggled with this question for many decades and have written a great deal about the nature of leadership (Antonakis, Cianciolo, & Sternberg, 2004; Bass, 1990; Conger & Riggio, 2007). (See Box 1.1.) In leadership literature, more than 100 different definitions of leadership have been identified (Rost, 1991). Despite these many definitions, a number of concepts are recognized by most people as accurately reflecting what it is to be a leader. Leadership Basics 27 “Leadership Is a Trait” First, leadership is thought of as a trait. A trait is a distinguishing quality of an individual, which is often inherited. Defining leadership as a trait means that each individual brings to the table certain qualities that influence the way he or she leads. Some leaders are confident, some are decisive, and still others are outgoing and sociable. Saying that leadership is a trait places a great deal of emphasis on the leader and on the leader’s special gifts. It follows the often-expressed belief “leaders are born, not made.” Some argue that focusing on traits makes leadership an elitist enterprise because it implies that only a few people with special talents will lead. Although there may be some truth to this argument, it can also be argued that all of us are born with a wide array of unique traits and that many of these traits can have a positive impact on our leadership. It also may be possible to modify or change some traits. Through the years, researchers have identified a multitude of traits that are associated with leadership. In Chapter 2 we will discuss some key leadership traits, and in Chapter 3 we will explain how strength-based leadership is a variation of trait leadership. Although there are many important leadership traits, what is most important for leaders is having the required traits that a particular situation demands. For example, a chaotic emergency room at a hospital requires a leader who is insightful and decisive and can bring calm to the situation. Conversely, a high school classroom in which students are bored demands a teacher who is inspiring and creative. Effective leadership results when the leader engages the right traits in the right place at the right time. 28 “Leadership Is an Ability” In addition to being thought of as a trait, leadership is conceptualized as an ability. A person who has leadership ability is able to be a leader—that is, has the capacity to lead. While the term ability frequently refers to a natural capacity, ability can be acquired. For example, some people are naturally good at public speaking, while others rehearse to become comfortable speaking in public. Similarly, some people have the natural physical ability to excel in a sport, while others develop their athletic capacity through exercise and practice. In leadership, some people have the natural ability to lead, while others develop their leadership abilities through hard work and practice. Box 1.1 The Evolution of Leadership Leadership has long intrigued humankind and has been the topic of extensive literature for centuries. The earliest writings include philosophies of leadership such as Machiavelli’s The Prince (1531/2005) and biographies of great leaders. With the development of the social sciences during the 20th century, inquiry into leadership became prolific. Studies on leadership have emerged from every discipline “that has had some interest in the subject of leadership: anthropology, business administration, educational administration, history, military science, nursing administration, organizational behavior, philosophy, political science, public administration, psychology, sociology, and theology” (Rost, 1991, p. 45). As a result, there are many different leadership approaches and theories. While the words are often used interchangeably, approaches and theories are different conceptually. An approach is a general way of thinking about a phenomenon, not necessarily based on empirical research. A theory usually includes a set of hypotheses, principles, or laws that explain a given phenomenon. Theories are more refined and can provide a predictive framework in analyzing the phenomenon. For example, the spiritual leadership approach is a conceptualization of leadership that does not yet have a body of empirical research to validate it, while contingency leadership theory has a refined set of propositions based on the results of multiple research studies. Not unlike fashion, approaches to leadership have evolved, changed focus and direction, and built upon one another during the past century. To understand this evolution, a brief historical view can be helpful: 29 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.) 30 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. 31 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. 32 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. 33 “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. 34 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 35 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. 36 “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 fundraising 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. 37