Behavioral Perspectives on Leadership

We have previously been introduced to leadership styles and leadership behaviors. This section will explore both topics in more depth. Again, each of these concepts is just a construct for studying leadership. The more leadership is studied, the more researchers recognize that no single viewpoint captures all the facets of leadership. Each is just a framework that provides a particular way to view leadership. Consider how many of these styles and behaviors you have observed in leaders. Then think of the leaders you know that may exhibit more than one style or behavior. Trait theory has focused on the traits of the leader. However, the interaction with others begins to show whether a leader is effective or not. This text examines leadership in terms of what leaders do. Be sure to carefully examine the leadership grid, which classifies leaders' behaviors using a grid based on case studies.

Behavioral Approaches to Leadership

  • What are the behavioral perspectives on leadership?

The nearly four decades of research that focused on identifying the personal traits associated with the emergence of leaders and leader effectiveness resulted in two observations. First, leader traits are important – people who are endowed with the "right stuff" (drive, self-confidence, honesty, and integrity) are more likely to emerge as leaders and to be effective leaders than individuals who do not possess these characteristics. Second, traits are only a part of the story. Traits only account for part of why someone becomes a leader and why they are (or are not) effective leaders.

Still under the influence of the great man theory of leadership, researchers continued to focus on the leader in an effort to understand leadership – who emerges and what constitutes effective leadership. Researchers then began to reason that maybe the rest of the story could be understood by looking at what it is that leaders do. Thus, we now turn our attention to leader behaviors and the behavioral approaches to leadership.

It is now common to think of effective leadership in terms of what leaders do. CEOs and management consultants agree that effective leaders display trust in their employees, develop a vision, keep their cool, encourage risk, bring expertise into the work setting, invite dissent, and focus everyone's attention on that which is important. William Arruda, in a  Fortune article, noted that "organizations with strong coaching cultures report their revenue to be above average, compared to their peer group". Sixty-five percent of employees "from strong coaching cultures rated themselves as highly engaged," compared to 13 percent of employees worldwide". Jonathan Anthony calls himself an intrapreneur and corporate disorganizer, because same-old, same-old comms practices are dying in front of our eyes. Apple founder Steve Jobs believed that the best leaders are coaches and team cheerleaders. Similar views have been frequently echoed by management consultant Tom Peters.

During the late 1940s, two major research programs – The Ohio State University and the University of Michigan leadership studies – were launched to explore leadership from a behavioral perspective.

Source: OpenStax, https://openstax.org/books/organizational-behavior/pages/12-5-behavioral-approaches-to-leadership
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