Chapter - 2

LEADERSHIP THEORIES
&
STYLES
 2.1 Leadership Styles
Leadership style is the manner and approach of providing
direction, motivating people and achieving objectives.
They are behavioral models used by leaders when working
with others.
More specifically, dimensions of leadership style depict the
way in which a leader :
(a) attempts to influence the behavior of subordinates
(Goal Attainment Function);
(b) makes decisions regarding the direction of the group
(Adaptation Function); and
(c) his or her balance between the goal attainment
function and the maintenance function of the group.

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"What leadership style work best for me and my organization?"
There are many leadership styles from which to choose
Different styles were needed for different situations and each
leader needed to know when to exhibit a particular approach .
Leadership strategies define every leader's personal leadership
style.
May adopt some of these in achieving the organization's goals
and objectives.
Kurt Lewin (1939), has identified three important leadership
styles:
a) Autocratic/ Authoritarian
b) Democratic /participate
c) Laissez-faire /free rein/Delegative

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 Autocratic Leadership Styles
The classical approach
He tells them what they should do, where, when and how.
Manager retains as much power and decision making
authority as possible.
Does not consult staff, nor allowed to give any input
Staff expected to obey orders without receiving any
explanations
Structured set of rewards and punishments
The autocratic leader thinks that his followers are incapable
of making decisions. "I" approach.
More closely aligned with Theory X.
Depends on one way communication downward only.
Caused worst level of discontent and can lead to revolution.

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 Not All Bad!
Sometimes the most effective style to use
When:
New, untrained staff do not know which tasks to
perform or which procedures to follow
Effective supervision provided only through detailed
orders and instructions
Staff do not respond to any other leadership style
High-volume production needs
Limited time in which to make a decision
A managers power challenged by staff
Work needs to be coordinated with another department
or organization
During crisis
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 Should not be Used
When:
Staff become tense, fearful, or resentful
Staff expect their opinions heard
Staff did not depend on their manager to make all their
decisions
Low staff morale, high turnover and absenteeism and
work stoppage

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 Democratic Leadership Styles
Also known as participative style
Encourages staff to be a part of the decision making
Keeps staff informed about everything that affects their work
and shares decision making and problem solving
responsibilities
The final decision will be made based on the consensus of all.
If any subordinate does anything that is opposed to the
interests of the group, the other members of the group take
the initiative to correct him.
Democratic leadership is based on the assumption that the
followers are all capable. "We" approach
The leaders are a coach who has the final say, but gathers
information from staff before making a decision

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 Contd
Produce high quality and high quantity work for long periods of
time.
Staff like the trust they receive and respond with cooperation,
team spirit, and high morale.
The democratic leader:
o Develops plans to help staff evaluate their own
performance
o Allows staff to establish goals
o Encourages staff to grow on the job and be promoted
o Recognizes and encourages achievement
Not always Appropriate:
Most successful when used with highly skilled or
experienced staff or when implementing operational
changes or resolving individual or group problems.
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 Most Effective
When:
Wants to keep staff informed about matters that affect
them.
Wants staff to share in decision-making and problem-
solving duties.
Wants to provide opportunities for staff to develop a
high sense of personal growth and job satisfaction.
A large or complex problem that requires lots of input
to solve
Changes must be made or problems solved that affect
staff
Want to encourage team building and participation

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 Should not be Used
When:
Not enough time to get everyones input
Easier and more cost-effective for the manager to
make the decision
Cant afford mistakes
Manager feels threatened by this type of leadership
Staff safety is a critical concern
If subordinates are less efficient and prefer to work
as per the leaders directions

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 Contd

The ear of the leader must ring

with the voices of the people.

Woodrow Wilson
(1913 to 1921)

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 Laissez-faire Leadership Styles
Known as the hands-off style
Also known as a free rein leader- a laissez faire gives full
freedom to his followers to act.
The manager provides little or no direction and gives staff as
much freedom as possible
All authority or power given to the staff and they determine
goals, make decisions, and resolve problems on their own
He neither influences the subordinates decisions nor does he
interfere in the process of decision-making. "They" approach
Leader trusts very talented staff to do their work, freely
delegates tasks.
Key leadership task is to find the right talent in whom this
level of trust can be given.

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 Most Effective
When:
Staffs are highly skilled, experienced, and educated
Staff have pride in their work and the drive to do it
successfully on their own
Outside experts, such as staff specialists or
consultants used
Staffs are trustworthy
When staffs have and know how to use the tools and
techniques needed for their tasks.
Where there is no requirement for a central
coordination.

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 Should not be Used
When:
Staff feel insecure at the unavailability of a manager
The manager cannot provide regular feedback to staff on
how well they are doing
Managers unable to thank staff for their good work
The manager doesnt understand his or her
responsibilities and hoping the staff cover for him or her
Staff not highly motivated or talented, then organization
suffers from lack of direction or guidance with
implementation.

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 Varying Leadership Style
Three factors that influence which leadership style to use:
The managers personal background: What personality,
knowledge, values, ethics, and experiences does the
manager have. What does he or she think will work?
Staff being supervised: Staff individuals with different
personalities and backgrounds; The leadership style
used will vary depending upon the individual staff and
what he or she will respond best to.
The organization: The traditions, values, philosophy,
and concerns of the organization influence how a
manager acts.

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 2.2 Leadership Theories
1. Trait Theory
Leadership trait theories attempt to explain distinctive
characteristics accounting for leadership effectiveness.
Assumptions
People are born with inherited traits.
Some traits are particularly suited to leadership.
People who make good leaders have the right (or
sufficient) combination of traits.
leader traits - characteristics that might be used to
differentiate leaders from non-leaders.
might be used as a basis for selecting the right people to
assume formal leadership positions.
- proved to be impossible to identify a set of traits that would always
differentiate leaders from non-leaders.

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 Stogdill(1974) identified the following
traits & skills as critical to leaders
Traits Skills
Adaptable to situations Clever (intelligent)
Alert to social environment Conceptually skilled
Ambitious and Creative
achievement-orientated Diplomatic and tactful
Assertive Fluent in speaking
Cooperative Knowledgeable about
Decisive group task
Dependable & Dominant Organized
Energetic (administrative ability)
Persistent Persuasive
Self-confident Socially skilled
Tolerant of stress

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 Contd
Contd
Criticisms
Studies failed to find a consistent set of traits distinguishing
leaders from non-leaders.
Many questioned whether natural leaders exist. Neglects
importance of training.
Primary problem with these theories is they ignore
situational factors.
Stogdill (1948) noted that leadership situations vary
significantly and place different demands on leaders.
Demise of trait-based theory coincided with the rise of
behavioralism that swept the social sciences in the 1950s.

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 Contd
2. Behavioral Theories
In the continuing quest to find the one best leadership
style in all situations, researchers attempted to identify
the differences in the behavior of effective leaders versus
ineffective leaders.
Assumptions
Leaders can be made, rather than are born.
Successful leadership is based in definable, learnable
behavior.
Description
They look at what leaders actually do; not what they are.
Eventually focused on the relationship between leaders
and followers.

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 Contd
Developed in response to the dissatisfaction with trait theories
and the growth of the human relations and behavioral
movements.
- Researchers wondered if there was something unique
about what effective leaders did/ the way leaders behave.
- If behavioral determinants are critical, then we can train
individuals to be leaders.
Difference between trait and behavioral theories lies in their
underlying assumptions
- If trait theories are valid, leaders are born
- If their specific behaviors that identify leaders, then we
can teach leadership.

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 Contd
Ohio State Studies - identified two dimensions of leadership
initiating structure - extent to which a leader was likely
to define and structure her/his role and the roles of
group members to seek goal attainment.
consideration - extent to which a leader had job
relationships characterized by mutual trust and respect
for group members ideas and feelings.
Findings - high-high leaders achieved high group task
performance and satisfaction
However, high-high was not always effective.
High in initiating structure tended to have greater
rates of grievances, absenteeism, turnover, and
lower levels of job satisfaction.

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University of Michigan Studies - identified two dimensions of
leadership
employee oriented - emphasized interpersonal
relationships
accepts individual differences among subordinates
associated with high group productivity
production oriented - emphasized the technical or task
aspects of the job
concerned with accomplishing the groups tasks
associated with low group productivity and low job
satisfaction.
Researchers favored the leaders who were employee-
oriented in their behavior because they were associated with
higher group productivity and higher job satisfaction.
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 Exercise
Identify each of these five behaviors by its leadership style.
Write the appropriate letter before each item.
A. Job-centered B. Employee-centered
1. The manager is influencing the follower to do the job the way
the leader wants it done.
2. The manager just calculated the monthly sales report and is
sending it to all the sales representatives so they know if
they met their quota.
3. The leader is saying a warm, friendly good morning to
followers as they arrive at work.
4. The manager is in his or her office developing plans for the
department.
5. The leader is seeking ideas from followers on a decision he or
she has to make.

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Blake and Moutons Managerial Grid (Leadership Styles)
- Two-dimensional view of leadership style based on concerns
for people vs. concerns for production (task) leads to five
different styles.
Leaders may be concerned
for their people and they
must also have some
concern for the work to
be done.
The question is, how much
attention do they pay to
one or the other?

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Style 1, 1 Impoverished or default leadership (low, low):
Exertion of minimum effort to get required work done.
The leader does the minimum required to remain
employed in the position.
Style 9, 9 eye to eye or team leadership (high, high): Work
is accomplished by committed people and a common stake in
organizational purpose leads to trust and respect.
This leader strives for maximum performance and
employee satisfaction.
Style 9, 1 task or authority compliance leaders (high task,
low people): efficiency in operations such that human
elements interfere to a minimum degree.
The leader focuses on getting the job done while people
are treated like machines.

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Style 1, 9 good neighbor or country club leader (high
people, low task): thoughtful attention to the needs of people
for satisfying relationships.
The leader strives to maintain a friendly atmosphere
without regard for production.
Style 5, 5 middle of the road (Med, Med): adequate
organizational performance is possible through balancing the
necessity for getting work out with maintaining satisfactory
morale.
Concluded that managers should use (9,9) style
the team leadership style is generally the most
appropriate for use in all situations.

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 Contd
Theory argues that Situation 9, 9 is always preferable,
which is why other names are derogatory.
It is now recognized that the grid implies a bias
towards a team style of leadership
There has been little success in identifying consistent
relationships between patterns of leadership behavior
and group performance
Missing is consideration of the situational factors that
influence success or failure.

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 Exercise
Identify the five statements by their leaders style. Write the
appropriate letter before each item.
A. 1,1 (impoverished) C. 9,1 (authority compliance)
B. 9,9 (team) D. 1,9 (country club)
E. 5,5 (middle of the road)

1. The group has very high morale; members enjoy their work.
Productivity in the department is one of the lowest in the
company. The manager is one of the best liked in the company.
2. The group has adequate morale; the employees are satisfied
with their manager. They have an average productivity level
compared to the other departments in the company.

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 Exercise
3. The group has one of the lowest levels of morale in the
company; most employees do not like the manager. It is one
of the top performers compared to other departments.
4. The group is one of the lowest producers in the company;
employees dont seem to care about doing a good job. It has
a low level of morale, because the employees generally
dont like the manager.
5. The group is one of the top performers; the manager
challenges employees to continue to meet and exceed goals.
Employees have high morale because they like the manager.

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 Contd
3. Situational Leadership Theorists
Assumption
leader effectiveness depends on the situation
must isolate situational conditions or contingencies
Attempt to determine the appropriate leadership style for
various situations.
Contingency leadership theory
Leadership continuum
Path-goal theory
Normative leadership theory
Situational leadership theory
Should the leader change style or should the situation be
changed to fit the leaders style

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 Contd
Fiedler Contingency Model
Effective group performance depends upon the proper
match between the leaders style and the degree to
which the situation gives control to the leader.
Least preferred co-worker (LPC) questionnaire
determined whether individuals were primarily
interested in:
good personal relations with co-workers, and thus
relationship oriented, or
productivity, and thus task oriented.
The way in which a leader will evaluate a co-worker who
is not liked will indicate whether the leader is task- or
relationship-oriented.

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 Fiedlers Contingency Situations
(Situational Favorableness)
Situational favorableness refers to the degree to which a
situation enables the leader to exert influence over the
followers.
The more control the leader has over the followers, the more
favorable the situation is for the leader.
The three variables, in order of importance, are as follows:
Leader-member relations : most powerful determinant.
Is the relationship good (cooperative and friendly) or poor
(antagonistic and difficult)?
Do the followers trust, respect, accept, and have confidence
in the leader (good)? Is there much tension (poor)?
Leaders with good relations have more influence.
The better the relations, the more favorable the situation.

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 Contd
Task structure: Is the task structured or unstructured?
Do employees perform repetitive, routine, unambiguous,
standard tasks that are easily understood?
Leaders in a structured situation have more influence.
The more structured the jobs are, the more favorable the
situation.
Position power(strong or weak)
Degree to which leader has control over power:
hiring, firing, discipline, promotions, salary.
The leader with position power has more influence.
The more power, the more favorable the situation.
Fiedler assumed that an individuals leadership style is fixed.
Fielder argued that the leadership style was innate and that
you cannot change your style to fit changing situations.
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 results indicated that:
task-oriented leaders performed better in situations that are very
favorable to them and in situations that are very unfavorable
relationship-oriented leaders performed better in situations that are
moderately favorable
implications for improving leadership
place leaders in situations suited to their style
change the situation to fit the leader
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 Contd
Leadership Continuum Model (Tannenbaum and Schmidt)
Used to determine which of seven styles to select based
on ones use of boss-centered versus employee-
centered leadership.
Factors determining selection of style:
The managers preferred leadership style
The subordinates preference for participation
The situation: organizations size, structure,
climate, goals, technology, and higher-level
management leadership style.

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The Leadership Continuum Model

Exhibit 134

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 Contd
Path-Goal Model (Robert House)
Assumption
There is one right way of achieving a goal and that the
leader can see it and the follower cannot.
This casts the leader as the knowing person and the
follower as dependent.
Used to determine employee objectives and to clarify how to
achieve them using one of four styles.
Considers subordinate factors and environmental
factors in determining the appropriate leadership
style that promotes goal achievement through
employee performance and satisfaction.

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 Contd
Leadership styles
Directive(Autocratic): leader provides high structure.
may be used when the task is unstructured and complex
and the follower is inexperienced.
Supportive(Human relation): leader provides high
consideration.
best when the work is stressful, boring or hazardous.
Participative(Coaching): employees participate in decisions.
best when the followers are expert and their advice is
both needed and they expect to be able to give it.
Achievement oriented - sets challenging goals
leader shows faith in the capabilities of the follower to
succeed.
best when the task is complex.
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 Contd
Normative Leadership Model (Vroom and Jago)
Leader participation Model
A decision tree that enables the user to select one of the
five leadership styles appropriate for the situation.
Determination of leadership style is based on two factors:
The importance of individual versus group decisions
(input and participation).
The importance of time-driven versus development-
driven decisions (time-pressure and quality of
decision).
provides a sequential set of rules to follow in determining
the form and amount of participation in decision making.

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 Contd
Leader Participation Model-5 Leadership Styles
Decide - leader makes decision alone, either announcing or
selling to group
Consult Individually - leader makes decision after obtaining
feedback from group members individually
Consult Group - leader makes decision after obtaining
feedback from group members in meeting
Facilitate - leader, acting as facilitator, defines problem and
boundaries for decision-making after presenting it to group
Delegate - leader permits group to make decision within
prescribed limits

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 Contd
Situational Leadership Model (Hersey and Blanchard)
appropriate leadership style is contingent on the
followers readiness.
readiness - extent to which people have the ability
and willingness to accomplish a specific task
reflects the reality that it is followers who accept or
reject the leader/follower based theory.
based on two leadership dimensions:
task behaviors
relationship behaviors
Used to select one of four leadership styles(defined by
the two dimension) that match the employees maturity
level in a given situation.

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Telling(high structure, low consideration) - leader defines
roles and tells people how to do their jobs, people are
neither competent nor confident.
Selling(high structure, high consideration) - leader is both
directive and supportive, people are unable but willing to do
necessary tasks.
Participating(high consideration, low structure)- leader and
follower make decisions ,people are able but unwilling to do
the job.
Delegating(low consideration, low structure) - leader
provides little direction or support , people are able and
willing to do the job.

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Contd

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 Contd
4. Transactional Leadership
Assumptions
People are motivated by reward and punishment.
Social systems work best with a clear chain of command.
When people have agreed to do a job, a part of the deal is
that they cede all authority to their manager.
The prime purpose of a subordinate is to do what their
manager tells them to do.
Leaders who guide or motivate their followers in the
direction of established goals by clarifying role and task
requirements.

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 Contd
Characteristics of Transactional Leaders
Contingent Reward: Contracts exchange of rewards for
effort, promises rewards for good performance, recognizes
accomplishments
Management by Exception (active): Watches and searches
for deviations from rules and standards, takes corrective
action
Management by Exception (passive): Intervenes only if
standards are not met
Laissez-Faire: Abdicates responsibilities, avoids making
decisions

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 Contd
5. Transformational Leaders
Assumptions
People will follow a person who inspires them.
A person with vision and passion can achieve great
things.
The way to get things done is by injecting enthusiasm
and energy.
Leaders who inspire followers to go beyond their own self-
interests for the good of the organization, and have a
profound and extraordinary effect on their followers.
Leaders who provide the four Is (individualized
consideration, inspirational motivation, idealized influence,
and intellectual stimulation).

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 Contd
They dont engage in simple of exchanges of benefits with
their followers. Rather they appeal to Maslows higher-order
needs like self-actualization.
Excellent leaders lead others largely by managing themselves
through such strategies as:
Attention through vision: Effectively create a vision which
focuses their attention and that of their followers.
Meaning through communication: Effectively transmit their
vision to others
Trust through positioning: Show particular skill in choosing
the best course and knowing what is right and necessary.
Positive self regard: Have a high regard for their own skills
and use them effectively .

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 Contd
Characteristics of Transformational Leaders
Idealized Influence: Provides vision and sense of mission,
instills pride, gains respect and trust
Inspiration: Communicates high expectations, uses
symbols to focus efforts, expresses important purposes in
simple ways
Intellectual Stimulation: Promotes intelligence, rationality,
and careful problem solving
Individualized Consideration: Gives personal attention,
treats each employee individually, coaches, advises.

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 Contd
6. Servant Leaders
A practical philosophy focusing on people who choose to
serve first and then lead as a way of expanding service.
The servant-leader is servant first.
It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to
serve first.
Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead. That
person is sharply different from one who is leader first.
Leaders put the needs of their followers first; these leaders
rare in business.

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 Ten Servant Characteristics
Listening
Empathy
Healing
Awareness
Persuasion
Conceptualization
Foresight
Stewardship
Commitment to the Growth of People
Building Community

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Geda J. (MBA)
Department of Management
Wollega
University

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