Leadership theories can be categorized into trait, behavioral, contingency and situational approaches. Trait theories examine personal characteristics that differentiate leaders, while behavioral theories focus on specific leader actions. Contingency theories emphasize that leadership effectiveness depends on matching leadership style to situational factors. Situational leadership theories propose that the most effective style depends on follower readiness and ability levels.

1. Leadership

2. Leadership
The ability to influence a group toward the
achievement of a vision or set of goals.

3. Trait Theories
Theories that consider personal qualities and
characteristics that differentiate leaders from non
leaders.
Organizing traits around big five personality
framework.
 Extraversion (ambition and energy traits, leader
emergence, moderate assertiveness)
 Conscientiousness (disciplined and committed)

4.  openness to experience (creative and flexible)
 Agreeableness
 Emotional stability
Emotional intelligence
Empathy (sense others’ needs, listens and read
reactions of others).

5.  Conclusion
 Traits can predict leadership
 Traits can not distinguish effective and ineffective leadership

6. Behavioral theories
 Theories proposing that specific behaviors
differentiate leaders from non leaders.
 Trait Approach (selecting the right leader)
 Behavioral approach (training the right person)

7. Ohio state studies
 Researcher at Ohio state sought to identify
independent dimensions of leader behavior.
 Found 1000 dimensions
 Narrowed the dimension in to two categories.
 Initiating structure: Define and structure his or
her roles and those of subordinates for goal
attainment
 Consideration: Job relationship characterized by
mutual trust, respect for ideas and feelings).

8.  Criticism
 Little knowledge about effective leaders
 Review of 160 studies found that both Initiating structure
and Consideration were associated with effective
leaders.
 Consideration is related to employee.

9. Michigan studies
 Two dimensions of leadership
 Employee oriented and production oriented
 Employee oriented: Emphasizes interpersonal
relations, personal interest in the needs of employees
and accept individual differences among members.
 Production oriented leader: A leader who
emphasizes technical or task aspects of jobs.

10.  Conclusion
 Researchers arrived at strongly favored the leaders
who were employee oriented in their behavior.
 Managerial Grid

11. Contingency Theories
 Focus in on situational conditions.

12. Fiedler Model
 Fiedler contingency model
 The theory that effective groups depend on a proper
match between a leader’s style of interacting with
subordinates and the degree to which the situations
gives control and influence to the leader.
 Least preferred coworker questionnaire
 It measures whether a person is tasks oriented or relationship
oriented.
 16 contrasting adjectives (such as pleasant-unpleasant).

13.  Ask respondent to describe his coworkers as Least enjoyed,
Relationship oriented, Task oriented.
 1 to 8 scale rating
 Determine the leadership style
 High score and low score indicates that the respondent is Least
enjoyed, Relationship oriented, Task oriented.

14. Defining the situation: Three contingency dimensions that
determine leadership effectiveness
 Leadership-member relations is the degree of
confidence, trust and respect members.
 Task structure is the degree to which the job assignments
are procedurized.
 Position power is the degree of influence a leader has over
variables such as hiring, firing, discipline, promotion and
salary increase.
Evaluate the situations in terms of these three contingency
variables. Leader member relations are either good or bad.

15.  Better the leader member relations, the more highly structured
the job, the ,ore control the leader has.
 Matching leaders and situations
 LPC scores and an assessment of three contingency
dimensions help to achieve maximum leadership effectiveness.
 Figure

16.  Evaluation.
 Researches Support
 problems with LPC questionnaire
 Contingency variables are complex and difficult to assess.
 Cognitive resource theory
 Stress unfavorably affects a situations and
intelligence and experience can reduce the influence
of stress on the leader.

17. Hersey and Blanchard’s Situational theory
 Situational leadership theory
 Focuses on followers’ readiness.
 Two main points
 Followers: Who reject and accept leader.
 Readiness: the extent to which people have ability
and willingness to accomplish
 Four specific leaders’ behavior …. From highly
directive to highly laissez-faire.

18.  SLT says that if
 followers are unable and unwilling to do a tasks, leader
needs to give specific direction.
 Followers…unable and willing…leader needs to display
high task orientation to compensate for the followers lack of
ability and high relationship orientation.
 Followers….able and unwilling… leaders use supportive and
participative style.

19.  Follower able and willing leader does not need to do much.
 Evaluation
 Importance of followers
 Leaders can compensate for imitations in their followers
 Problems with research methodology.

20. Path Goal theory
 The theory
 A theory that states that is the leader’s job to assist followers in
attaining their goals and to provide the necessary direction to
ensure that their goals are compatible with the overall
objectives of the group and organization.
 Leaders behaviors
 Directive leader
 Supportive leader
 Participative leader
 Achievement oriented leader

21.  Path goal variables
 Environmental and personal characteristics moderate the
relationship between leader’s behavior and followers
outcomes.
 Predictions based on path goal theory
 Evaluation
 Mixed support

22. Leader member exchange theory
 A theory that supports leader’s creation of in-group
and out-group; subordinates with in-group status
will have higher performance ratings, lees turn over
and greater job satisfaction.
 In-group follower: Trusted, gain leader’s
attention, receive privileges
 Out-group follower: Formal authority interaction,
get fewer rewards, and fewer time

23.  Leaders induce LXM by rewarding those employees
with whom they want a closer linkage and punishing
those with whom they do not.
 Leaders tend to choose in-group members because
they have attitude, demographic and personality
characteristics that are similar to the leaders.
 Followers’ characteristics are driving the leader’s
categorization decision.

24.  Evaluation
 Research support theory
 Leader’s expectation for the employee to perform best also
play an important role for incorporating that employee as in-
group member.

25. Decision theory
 Vroom and Yetton’s
 Leader Participation Model
 Provides a set of rules to determine the form and amount of
participative decision making in different situations.
 Leader behavior must adjust to reflect the task structure.

26.  Model is normative i.e. Provides a set of rules to determine the
form and amount of participative decision making in different
situations.
 Seven contingencies (yes or No choices)
 Five alternative leadership styles

27.  Revised Model
 Five alternative leadership styles
 Adds a set of problem
 12 contingency variables

28.  Criticism
 Stress, intelligence and experience are important.
 Complicated to use on a regular basis
 Not so realistic.