University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Leadership: A Case Study, Phenomenology, and Social Cognitive Correlates

Husband, Robert Lee

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Description

Title
Leadership: A Case Study, Phenomenology, and Social Cognitive Correlates
Author(s)
Husband, Robert Lee
Issue Date
1982
Department of Study
Speech Communication
Discipline
Speech Communication
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Speech Communication
Language
eng
Abstract
  • This research reports a primarily descriptive study of leadership behavior as it is enacted in an organizational setting. The main purpose was to develop a grounded typology of leadership styles using triangulated methodology. Further, the conception leaders maintain about their leadership roles and the impact such conceptions have upon actual leader behavior was investigated. A final issue examined was the relationship between individuals' social cognitive development and their leadership behavior.
  • Four major styles of leader behavior were identified: the positional leader, the political leader, the administrative leader, and the relational leader. Leaders were distinguished in their behavior by a preference for task oriented versus person oriented behaviors, the use of direct control versus extended participation, and power versus influence as a source of authority. The most salient characteristic of leaders' behavior found to be related to leadership effectiveness was behavioral flexibility.
  • How leaders defined the leadership situation and the values they identified as undergirding leadership were discovered to be directly related to the behavior they exhibit as leaders. Moreover, individuals who evidenced disparity between their leadership phenomenology and their behavior were found to be perceived as less effective leaders.
  • The final significant finding in this study was that leaders who demonstrated more complex social cognitive development were found to be more flexible in their behavior, more interpersonally sensitive in their communication, and consistently doing more of what it takes to get the job done. Overall, the cognitively complex or differentiating leader was perceived to function more flexibly and thereby more effectively within the organization.
Graduation Semester
1982
Type of Resource
text
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http://hdl.handle.net/2142/77261

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