Leaders and the role of personal traits

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Leaders and the role of personal traits
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Historical Perspective

• The great man theory

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19th and early 20th century perspective

• Leadership characteristics were inherited by men
• Leaders were born, not made
• By the early 20th century these theories went out
  of fashion.
• In a mechanistic organization, the individual is
  of little consequence.

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Trait theories

• Asserted that leaders characteristics are
  different than non leaders.
• Some traits i.e. height, weight, physique and sex
  are dependant on heredity
• Others, i.e. industry knowledge, depend on
  experience and learning

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Trait theory was challenged in the mid 20th
century on the basis that there are no traits
universally associated with effective leadership
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Modified Trait Theory

• Trait theories in altered form
• Certain core traits that significantly contribute
  to the process of leadership
• Traits alone dont make effective leadership
• Precondition for leadership-action is necessary.

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Modified Trait Theory

• Leaders possess a set of charac-teristics that
  equip them to be leaders.
• Leadership traits matter (Kirkpatrick and Locke)
• What are these characteristics?
• How do they relate to leadership?

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What are these characteristics?
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Different researchers organize characteristics in
different ways

• Characteristics divided into three categories
  (Dubrin)
• Personality
• Motives
• Cognitive factors

• Six traits on which leaders differ include
• Drive
• Desire to lead
• Honesty
• Self confidence
• Cognitive ability
• Knowledge of the business (Kirkpatrick and Locke)

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General Personality Traits

• Self Confidence
• Trustworthiness
• Extroversion
• Assertiveness
• Emotional Stability

• Enthusiasm
• Sense of humor
• Warmth
• High tolerance for frustration

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Task oriented personality traits

• Passion for the work
• Flexibility
• Internal locus of control
• Courage
• Emotional intelligence

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Task oriented personality traits
(contd)-emotional intelligence

• A group of characteristics or behaviors
• Ability to perceive and access emotions
• Ability to effectively join emotions and
  reasoning
• Use emotions and moods to facilitiate reasoning
• Reason intelligently about emotions

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Four interrelated aspects of EI

• Appraisal and expression of emotions
• Understand and express emotions appropriately
  facilitates communications which helps achieve
  group goals
• Using emotions in functional ways to make
  decisions and solve problems
• Good Mood optimism in the group perception
  that good things will happen

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Four interrelated aspects of EI

• Knowledge about emotions
• Cognitive understanding what causes emotions
• Understanding the consequences of emotions
• Knowing how emtions change over time

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Four interrelated aspects of EI

• Management of your emotions and moods
• Be aware
• Know how to read emotions
• Management of others emotions and moods
• Excite and enthuse
• Make cautious and wary

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Leadership Characteristics - Motives

• The motives and needs of leaders are different
  than non leaders.
• Power
• Need to control resources and influence people
  and gain status
• Personalized power motive-self serving
  (psychologically and practically)
• Socialized power motive-a tool to achieve
  orgaizational goals and vision.
• Drive and achievement
• Strong work ethic
• Dignity of work
• The work and its goals are a worthwhile activity
• Tenacity-never, never, never quit.

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Leadership Characteristics-Cognitive Factors

• Factors involved in knowing, e.g. awareness,
  perception, reasoning and judgment.
• Knowledge of the business or task -being a leader
  because you know what you are doing.
• Creativity-seeing common activities and results
  in uncommon ways
• Insight-intuition and common sense
• Ability to conceptualize - to think
  systematically and in wholes.

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Modified Trait Theory

• We have said
• Leaders possess a set of charac-teristics that
  equip them to be leaders.
• We have identified these characteristics.
• But how do they relate to leadership?

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Stogdill

• Leadership is a set of relationships associated
  with the attainment of group goals.
• A person who has characteristics that allow him
  or her to provide certain benefits to the group
  that allow the group to achieve its goal will
  emerge as a leader when the activities are
  effectively presented.

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Leadership as part of the group process

• An activity that helps a group get work done.
• Evolutionary and interactive

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Implications

• All groups dont need all characteristics
• Need must fit with the situation and the
  followers
• The concept provides a clue to why people are
  successful leaders sometimes and not others

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Self Assessment Exercises

• Positive and Negative Affect
• Measures your moods and how they relate to your
  leadership in groups.
• Leadership Motivation
• How motivated are you to be a leader
• Emotional Intelligence
• Assertiveness-pg 32
• Internal Locus of Control pg 41