Predicting unit performance by assessing transformational and transactional leadership

How do leadership ratings collected from units operating under stable conditions predict subsequent performance of those units operating under high stress and uncertainty? To examine this question, the authors calculated the predictive relationships for the transformational and transactional leadership of 72 light infantry rifle platoon leaders for ratings of unit potency, cohesion, and performance for U.S. Army platoons participating in combat simulation exercises. Both transformational and transactional contingent reward leadership ratings of platoon leaders and sergeants positively predicted unit performance. The relationship of platoon leadership to performance was partially mediated through the unit's level of potency and cohesion. Implications, limitations, and future directions for leadership research are discussed.     

Attachment style and individual differences in leadership perceptions and emergence

The authors examined whether individuals' approaches to relationships, expressed in terms of attachment styles, was related to how they viewed ideal leadership and to their degree of tendency to emerge as team leaders. Specifically, the authors hypothesized that attachment styles, or cognitive representations of orientation to others, would explain individual differences in leadership perceptions and emergence. Participants were 127 American students in college teams. The authors found that securely attached individuals (n = 81) perceived themselves as more effective team members than did insecurely attached individuals (n = 46) and that fellow team members saw securely attached team members as emerging team leaders significantly more often than they did insecurely attached team members.     

Transformational leadership and team performance in sports teams: A conditional indirect model

This study tests how transformational leadership fosters team performance through team cohesion and how that relationship is moderated by previous team performance and leadership consensus. We computed a moderated-mediation model based on a sample of 690 professional players in 59 top professional teams in interactive team sports leagues (basketball, handball, roller hockey, and indoor football/soccer) in Spain. Our findings suggest that transformational leadership indirectly influences objective team performance through the mediation role of team cohesion and that this indirect effect is more prominent when the level of previous performance is higher. We also found that the indirect effect of transformational leadership on team performance via cohesion is stronger in teams with higher consensus regarding their coaches' leadership. Overall, our results demonstrate the importance of integrating dispersion and contextual variables into research models, in particular, previous performance and leadership consensus.     

Athlete leadership dispersion and satisfaction in interactive sport teams

ObjectiveAthlete leadership on sport teams can be represented by an individual occupying a formal or informal leadership role within a team who influences a group of team members to achieve a common goal [Loughead, Hardy, & Eys, (2006). The nature of athlete leadership. Journal of Sport Behavior, 29, 142–158]. Previous research has suggested that individuals involved in sport view the presence of athlete leaders as a crucial component to the effective functioning of the team [Glenn & Horn, (1993) Psychological and personal predictors of leadership behavior in female soccer athletes. Journal Applied of Sport psychology, 5, 17–34]. The purpose of the present study was to examine, at both the beginning and end of a competitive season, the relationship between individual perceptions of athlete leader dispersion across three types of leadership functions (i.e., task, social, external) and satisfaction.MethodParticipants included 218 intercollegiate athletes from a variety of interactive team sports. At the beginning and end of their competitive seasons, athletes indicated who the task, social, and external leaders were on their respective teams and responded to four dimensions of the Athlete Satisfaction Questionnaire [Riemer & Chelladurai, (1998) Development of the Athlete Satisfaction Questionnaire (ASQ). Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 20, 127–156].ResultsThose who perceived all three leadership functions to be represented to the same degree (i.e., higher number of leaders for all three functions, an average number of leaders for all three functions, or a lower number of leaders for all three functions) were more satisfied with their team's performance and degree to which the team was integrated than those individuals who perceived an imbalance in the number of athletes engaging in those functions.ConclusionThe relative number of leaders within sport groups is related to individual perceptions of satisfaction.     

自恋型领导对团队创造力形成过程的多视角研究

领导自恋是组织中的普遍现象, 自恋型领导是否能有效地整合团队知识形成创新是管理者不可回避的问题。在回顾已有研究基础上, 采用聚合观、过程观和社会网络三种视角, 全面地厘清自恋型领导对团队创造力的影响。其中, 聚合观强调个体创造力对形成团队创造力的重要作用, 过程观强调团队成员之间的交互作用在团队创造力形成过程中不可或缺, 而社会网络视角注重团队成员的相对位置和内外关系。三种视角相互补充, 明确了自恋型领导和团队创造力之间关系的内在机制以及边界条件。研究结论将为存在自恋型领导的团队干预策略提供参考, 有助于为管理者提高自恋型领导对团队作用的有效性提供借鉴。     

Reciprocal Longitudinal Relations Between Leader and Follower Effectiveness

This study examined the longitudinal reciprocal effects between leader effectiveness and follower effectiveness (leaders lower in the hierarchy and groups of soldiers). The effectiveness of 60 groups of soldiers and their commanders up to platoon level was measured at 3 points in time. The results show that platoon commanders have an effect on the performance of their groups but not on the groups' cohesion or attitudes. In turn, commander effectiveness is influenced by the attitudes of the groups of soldiers and of the deputy group commanders. The results suggest that groups perform better when they are more open to leadership.     

Doing it for the team: Soccer coaches' identity leadership predicts players' effort,turnover intentions,and performance

ObjectivesThe present research investigates how coaches' identity leadership predicts individual and team outcomes in soccer. Specifically, we tested hypotheses that coaches' identity leadership would be associated with players' perceptions of (a) higher team effort, (b) lower turnover intentions, (c) better individual performance, and (d) better team performance. In addition, we aimed to examine the relationship between coaches' identity leadership and increased team identification of players and the degree to which the associations of identity leadership with these various outcomes were mediated by players' strength of team identification.DesignWe conducted a cross-sectional study of male soccer players in Germany.MethodThe final sample consisted of 247 male soccer players nested in 24 teams that completed measures of their coaches' identity leadership, team identification, team effort, turnover intentions, and individual/team performance.ResultsAnalysis revealed a positive relationship between coaches' identity leadership and team effort, as well as individual and team performance. Moreover, coaches' identity leadership was associated with lower turnover intentions. There was also evidence that the relationships between identity leadership and the investigated outcomes were mediated by team identification.ConclusionsThese findings support claims that coaches' identity leadership is associated with better individual and team outcomes because it helps to build a sense of ‘we’ and ‘us’ in the team they lead.     

A multiplex view of leadership structure in management teams

In the hope of complementing the structural perspective in upper echelon research and advancing a fine-grained understanding of dyadic leadership influence in management teams, the current study combines two types of intrateam structures—leadership network and friendship network—to create a multidimensional conceptualization of leadership structure in management teams. Specifically, we propose that management teams with a denser singular leadership network (i.e., a network consisting of many leadership ties that are not coupled with friendship ties) should have lower management team cohesion, which subsequently renders worse business unit performance. To contrast, management teams with a denser multiplex network (i.e., a network consisting of many leadership ties that are coupled with friendship ties) should have higher management team cohesion, which subsequently renders better business unit performance. Guided by structural contingency perspective, we further propose that management team task interdependence will strengthen team cohesion's positive impact on business unit performance. To test the hypothesized model, we collected team-level social network data and multiple-wave survey data from 697 managers nested in 148 hotels (i.e., 148 management teams) owned by a large hospitality company. We also obtained objective performance data for each hotel (i.e., occupancy percentage rate and revenue per available room per day) as the criterion measure. The data supported our hypotheses. The theoretical and practical implications of our findings are discussed.     

Meeting the need or falling in line? The effect of laissez-faire formal leaders on informal leadership

We consider the utility of two contrasting theoretical perspectives in explaining how laissez-faire formal leaders and team member motivation to lead (MTL) influences informal leadership and team task performance. The first perspective, functional leadership theory, is the dominant lens used currently to understand informal leadership. However, we suggest that social learning theory offers a compelling alternative account. In a multiwave survey study of 344 members of 72 work teams, we find support for the social learning theory predictions that laissez-faire formal leaders are perceived by team members to engage in less modeling of effective leadership and as a result are negatively associated with informal leadership and team task performance. We do not find support for the functional leadership theory predictions that laissez-faire formal leaders are positively associated with team members’ informal leadership and team task performance, which would be due to an increased perceived need for leadership. The social learning effects are stronger for teams that are lower in member MTL and weaker for teams that are higher in member MTL. These results suggest social learning theory may be preferable to functional leadership theory for understanding informal leadership in teams.     

Perceived motivational climate and unit cohesion: The case of French soldiers in training

Using a correlational design, this exploratory research investigates the relationships between soldiers’ perceptions of the motivational climate created by platoon leaders and unit cohesion in a French military sample. Conducted among 257 soldiers, the findings indicate that new recruits perceive motivational climate as significantly more task- than ego-involved. Moreover, multiple regressions show that a task-involving motivational climate predicts higher measures of cohesion than does an ego-involving motivational climate. Implications for the professionalization of military forces and exercising command in training are discussed.     

Group Leaders as Gatekeepers: Testing Safety Climate Variations across Levels of Analysis

This paper tests the moderating effect of transformational supervisory leadership on the relationship between organisational and group climates, using safety climate in risky operations as an exemplar. Results indicated that under low or poor organisational climate, indicative of limited organisational commitment to employee safety, transformational leaders promoted a higher group climate as compared to the organisational climate. Similarly, under a weak organisational climate, indicative of limited consensus among company employees regarding the priority of safety, transformational leaders promoted a stronger group climate, reflecting greater consensus among group members. This pattern suggests that supervisory leaders can act as gatekeepers, with transformational leaders offering better protection against potentially harmful organisation‐level priorities. Furthermore, transformational supervisors better informed their members of the organisational priorities as they perceived them, resulting in a stronger relationship between individual supervisors' perceptions and members' organisational climate perceptions. Implications for climate and leadership research are discussed. On s'intéresse dans cet article à l'impact régulateur du leadership hiérarchique de transformation sur la relation entre les climats organisationnels et de groupe en utilisant comme exemple la sécurité dans les opérations à risque. Les résultats montrent qu'en cas de climat organisationnel médiocre signifiant une implication organisationnelle minimale à propos de la sécurité du personnel, les leaders de transformation favorisent l'émergence d'un climat de groupe plus satisfaisant que le climat organisationnel. De même, si le climat organisationnel est fragile, traduisant un accord approximatif des salariés sur la prioritéà accorder à la sécurité, les leaders de transformation sont à l'origine d'un climat de groupe renforcé, expression d'un meilleur consensus parmi les membres du groupe. Ce schéma laisse penser que les leaders hiérarchiques peuvent intervenir comme gardiens, les leaders de transformation offrant une meilleure protection contre les priorités organisationnelles potentiellement nocives. De plus, les managers de transformation informent mieux leur équipe des priorités organisationnelles telles qu'ils les perçoivent, ce qui provoque une relation plus étroite entre les perceptions personnelles du manager et celles que son groupe a du climat organisationnel. On réfléchit aux retombées de ce travail sur les recherches portant sur le climat et le leadership.     

A multilevel study of leadership, empowerment, and performance in teams

A multilevel model of leadership, empowerment, and performance was tested using a sample of 62 teams, 445 individual members, 62 team leaders, and 31 external managers from 31 stores of a Fortune 500 company. Leader-member exchange and leadership climate related differently to individual and team empowerment and interacted to influence individual empowerment. Also, several relationships were supported in more but not in less interdependent teams. Specifically, leader-member exchange related to individual performance partially through individual empowerment; leadership climate related to team performance partially through team empowerment; team empowerment moderated the relationship between individual empowerment and performance; and individual performance was positively related to team performance. Contributions to team leadership theory, research, and practices are discussed.     

Transformational and transactional leaderships,empowerment climate,and innovation performance: A multilevel analysis in the Chinese context

Innovation through creativity is an important factor in the success and competitive advantage of organizations. Theory and research suggest that both leadership and organizational climate have important consequences for individual creativity. However, researchers have rarely considered the interactive effects of leadership and organizational climate. This study taking a “Substitute for Leadership” perspective, develops and tests the idea that empowerment climate affect the relationship between leadership and followers' creative performance. Data were collected from 93 teams, including 465 team members and 93 team supervisors, in a large multinational company based in China. Hierarchical linear modelling was used to examine the hypothesized cross-level model. As expected, transformational leadership and team empowerment climate were positively related to subordinates' creative performance and transactional leadership was negatively related to subordinates' creative performance. In addition, the relationship between leadership and subordinates' creative performance was moderated by team empowerment climate. The study resulted in the implication of several major variables for explaining individual creativity in the Chinese context.     

Transformational leadership and task cohesion in sport: The mediating role of intrateam communication

ObjectivesLittle is known about the mechanisms that might mediate the relationship between transformational leadership behaviors and follower outcomes in the sporting domain. The purpose of this study was to examine whether intrateam communication mediated the effects of transformational leadership behaviors on task cohesion.Design/MethodsA cross-sectional study of university level ultimate frisbee players (N = 199). Participants completed a measure assessing their perceptions of their captain's transformational leadership behaviors. Post-competition, participants completed measures assessing perceptions of intrateam communication and task cohesion within their own team.ResultsMultilevel analyses revealed intrateam communication to partially mediate the relationships between two of the transformational leadership behaviors and task cohesion.ConclusionsIntrateam communication is seen to be a mechanism that explains the relationship between transformational leadership and task cohesion. Overall, the results support and add to the range of positive effects associated with transformational leadership in sport, and are suggestive of interventions that may raise levels of team cohesion.     

Taking the reins: the effects of new leader status and leadership style on team performance

New leaders face a challenging task when they take charge of their teams. They have to determine how best to guide the work process, and they must understand how their behaviors will affect the members of their team. This research examines how a newly assigned team leader's status moderates subordinates' reactions to different leadership styles to affect assessments of the leader's self-confidence and effectiveness, and how this impacts team performance. Across 2 experimental studies, results demonstrate that low-status leaders are rated as more effective when they use a directive style, whereas high-status leaders are viewed as more effective when they use a participative style, and this relationship is mediated by perceptions of self-confidence. In addition, teams whose leaders are viewed more favorably perform better on a complex group task. These findings imply that low-status individuals are able to enhance their level of personal power by drawing on whatever positional power they hold, whereas high-status individuals are better off relying solely on their personal power to influence others. This research also provides a clear demonstration that assessments of new leaders' behaviors are subject to an appraisal that is clouded by observers' status perceptions and attributions.     

Relation between social cohesion and team performance in soccer teams

Investigations of the influence on team performance of team composition, in terms of task-related attributes, e.g., personality traits, cognitive abilities, often assumes this relation to be mediated by the strength (intensity) of the interpersonal relations (social cohesion) among team members. However, there has been little empirical examination of how much social cohesion actually affects team outcomes. This preliminary study sought to examine this issue using soccer teams, which have been held to resemble workplace teams. Perceptions of team cohesion were collected from 198 Israeli soccer players (comprising 36 national league teams) during the week preceding their weekly games. A significant correlation was found between the perceptions of social cohesion and the results of the soccer matches, indicating a link between team social cohesion and team performance. Implications of the results, as well as the study's limitations, are discussed, and avenues for research are suggested.     

The impact of identity leadership on team functioning and well-being in team sport: Is psychological safety the missing link?

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of psychological safety in explaining the impact of identity leadership on team performance and athlete well-being. Adopting a cross-sectional survey design, 289 handball players rated the identity leadership skills of their coach, their captain, and the informal leaders in the team, as well as various performance- and well-being-related measures. Structural equation modelling (controlling for the nested structure of our data) revealed that by demonstrating identity leadership, coaches, captains, and in particular informal athlete leaders, all had a unique contribution in strengthening their team members’ identification with their team. By this shared sense of ‘us’, athletes felt psychologically safe in their team to speak up, provide input, and take risks. In line with our hypotheses, this sense of psychological safety acted as a mediator between identity leadership and two subsequent pathways: (1) a team-oriented pathway in which psychological safety inspired good teamwork, which fostered team resilience and, in turn, enhanced athletes’ satisfaction with their team’s performance; and (2) an individual-oriented pathway wherein psychological safety buffered against athletes’ burnout, thereby enhancing their health. In addition to these pathways mediated by psychological safety, the informal leaders directly influenced the performance pathway (with total effect sizes being 10 times larger than those of coaches and team captains), whereas coaches had a direct influence on the health pathway (with total effect sizes being three times larger than those of informal leaders and captains). Given the often-underestimated importance of the informal leaders, sport teams can be recommended to adopt a structure of shared leadership in which team members are encouraged to engage in identity leadership. In conclusion, we found that by nurturing a shared sense of ‘we’ and ‘us’ within the team, leaders are able to foster a psychologically safe environment, which in turn paves the way for an optimal team functioning and a healthier team.     

The shared leadership process in decision-making teams

The present study examined the process of shared leadership in 45 ad hoc decision-making teams. Each team member's leadership behavior (n = 180) was assessed by behaviorally coding videotapes of the teams' discussions. The within-team patterns of leadership behavior were examined using cluster analysis. Results indicated that the likelihood of a team experiencing a full range of leadership behavior increased to the extent that multiple team members shared leadership, and that teams with shared leadership experienced less conflict, greater consensus, and higher intragroup trust and cohesion than teams without shared leadership. This study supports previous findings that shared leadership contributes to overall team functioning, and begins to delineate the extent to which team members may naturally share leadership.     

Small Unit Leader Perceptions of Managing Soldier Behavioral Health and Associated Factors

This investigation explored squad leaders’ perceptions of their roles managing subordinate soldiers’ behavioral health (BH) needs. The data were obtained through an anonymous survey of 458 squad leaders (i.e., small unit leaders who oversee 4–10 soldiers). More than 80% of squad leaders perceived management of soldier BH needs before, during, and after treatment as their responsibility, and felt comfortable and capable of executing these roles. Latent class analysis was used to determine groups of “most active,” “moderately active,” and “least active” leaders. Multinomial logistic regression was used to compare the least and most active classes. The most active leaders were more likely to report high BH knowledge, dedication to a common purpose, and low levels of “associative” stigma. These results should inform leader management of soldier BH. Future research should examine active leader characteristics and whether evidence-based training can increase support for preventing and managing BH issues.     

Testing relations between group cohesion and satisfaction in project teams: A cross-level and cross-lagged approach

Based on a two-dimensional perspective of group cohesion, this study examines the emergence of task cohesion and interpersonal cohesion in project teams and their roles in changes in members’ individual satisfaction with the team. Specifically, we tested a direct-effect and mediation model of the cross-level relationship between team task and interpersonal cohesion and individual satisfaction with the team over time. With a sample of 74 newly created project teams, the hypotheses were tested using a two-wave panel design. Results indicate that task cohesion emerges more strongly than interpersonal cohesion during the first stages of work in project teams. Moreover, the cross-lagged relationship between team interpersonal cohesion and individual satisfaction with the team was mediated by team task cohesion.