Communication

UNIT 6 LEADERSHIP*
Structure
6.0 Introduction
6.1 Objectives
6.2 Concept of Leader and Leadership
6.2.1 Concept and Relevance of Leaders

6.2.2 Concept and Relevance of Leadership

6.3 Theories of Leadership

6.3.1 Behavioral Theories of Leadership

6.3.2 Contingency/Situational Theories of Leadership

6.3.3 Transactional Theory of Leadership

6.3.4 Transformational Theory of Leadership

6.4 Challenges to Leadership

6.5 Indian Perspective on Leadership
6.6 Let Us Sum Up
6.7 Unit End Questions
6.8 Glossary
6.9 Answers to Self-Assessment Questions
6.10 Suggested Readings and References

6.0 INTRODUCTION
The present unit discusses the concept of leader and leadership skills in context
of organizational environment. The unit will further discuss the different
leadership styles based on the proposed leadership theories. It explains the
challenges that are faced by the leaders of the organization. At the end, the
Indian perspective on leadership will be explained.

6.1 OBJECTIVES
With the help of the present unit, you will be able to:
• Explain the concept and relevance of leaders;
• Elucidate the concept and relevance of leadership;
• Describe the theories of leadership;
• Discuss the challenges of leadership; and
• Enlighten the Indian perspective on leadership.

99
*
Dr Arisudan Tiwari, DIPR, New Delhi
Inerpersonal
Processes 6.2 CONCEPT OF LEADER AND LEADERSHIP
Let us first try to understand the concept and relevance of leaders in organization,
followed by the concept and relevance of leadership.

6.2.1 Concept and relevance of Leaders

Efficiency of any organization depends on how a leader utilizes the available
resources like raw materials, machines, buildings, policies, capital, etc.
Leadership skills are very important for making organizations successful. A
successful leader will always try to balance both organizational growth and
subordinate’s growth. Good guidance can help the follower to select right path
to accomplish the goal. Leaders can help to develop good values among their
subordinates which can help in their personal growth apart from organizational
progress. Following are the characteristics of successful leaders in the
organization through which they can influence others-
1) Having clear future vision
2) Communicating and expression skills
3) Good decision-making skills
4) High level of passion and dedication
5) Holding good morale and values
Leaders arise in many situations. Even informal social groups have leaders.
When groups endure and become formal, the persons are elected leaders.
Normally, the persons elected to offices are the ones who are the natural leaders
of the groups. Their views get attention from the members even without formal
election; but with elections, those natural leaders are consciously acknowledged.
When a person, either such informal leader or someone else, is appointed in a
superior capacity, the natural leadership relations change. Such change occurs
in two respects. First, when a person is appointed in superior capacity, he
gets authority from the organization. Secondly, this authority enables him to
increase or decrease the satisfaction to his subordinates. However, an appointed
(formal) leader cannot solely rely upon the use of authority for getting desired
results from his subordinates because as discussed earlier, subordinates seldom
put maximum effort under the pressure of authority. Thus, a chief executive
having more authority, but lacking leadership qualities, may be less effective
as compared to a foreman with less authority but high degree of leadership
qualities. Regardless of these differences between formal and informal leaders,
however, a leader is able to direct the actions of his followers because they
believe he can provide rewards (or prevent penalties) that satisfy their needs.
The leader affects direction of activities in the organization. Motivation is
necessary for work performance. A good leader through his leadership motivates
his employees for high performance. A good leader may create confidence in
his followers by directing them, giving them advice and getting through them
good results in the organization. This helps them in enhancing their efficiency.
Sometimes, individuals fail to recognize their qualities and capabilities to
work in the absence of good direction. Morale is expressed as attitudes of
100
employees towards organization, management and voluntary cooperation to Leadership
offer their ability to the organization. High morale leads to high productivity
and organizational stability. By providing good leadership in the organization,
employees’ morale can be raised ensuring high productivity and stability in the
organization. Thus, good leadership is essential in all aspects of managerial
functions, whether it be motivation, communication or direction.

6.2.2 Concept and Relevance of Leadership

Leadership is an important factor for making organizations successful.
Throughout the history, it has been recognized that the difference between
success and failure, whether in a war, a political movement, a business, or a
team game, can be attributed largely to leadership. Since the organization is
basically a deliberate creation of human beings for certain specified objectives,
the activities of its members need to be directed in a certain way. Any departure
from this way will lead to inefficiency in the organization.
Leadership involves the process of influencing an individual or a group
to accomplish a particular goal. The term influencing means the process of
transforming, empowering, motivating and inspiring the subordinate or
followers to accomplish goals.
“Leadership may be considered as the process (act) of influencing the activities
of an organized group in its efforts toward goal setting and goal achievement”
(Stogdill 1950).
Hence, from above can understand that leadership is a process of influencing
the behaviours of others to work willingly and enthusiastically for achieving
predetermined goals. Three important components of this definition.
An interpersonal process between one person or a group.
Can’t have leaders without followers.
Criterion for effective leadership goal achievement; however it does not
empathise the enthusiasm with which the receiver of the communication will
act.
Therefore, to have a detailed understanding of the concept of leadership this
chapter includes different types of theories developed and researches done in
various fields, challenges of leadership and Indian perspective of leadership.

6.3 THEORIES OF LEADERSHIP

Leaders across the world use different kinds of leadership styles and skills which
impacts organizational progress. Some of the early conventional and recent
contemporary theories of leadership are explained below.
• Trait Approach to Leadership
A lot of scientific research has been done to explore and understand the concept
of leadership. If we examine the past- history we can find many leaders who
have been appreciated for their effective leadership qualities such as Mahatma
Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, and Margaret Thatcher etc. The first leadership theory
101
Inerpersonal was coined in the early 20th century by Thomas Carlyle called as “Great Man
Processes Theory” which assumes leaders are born and not made. This theory is also called
a trait-based perspective of leadership, explaining that certain dispositional
characteristics of a leader(s) are differentiated from non- leaders. This theory
focuses on individual differences in personality which are considered to
determine effective leadership skills (Mann, 1959; Stogdill, 1948).
Big Five Personality Framework was developed in the early 1960’s to identify
major personality traits required to become an effective leader. For example,
leaders are meant to have highly extrovert, so that they express their thoughts
well and be assertive. Apart from these traits there are a set of skills and traits
(mentioned below) that were identified by Stogdill in 1974.

Traits Skills
• Adaptable to situations • Clever (intelligent)

• Alert to social environment • Conceptually skilled

• Ambitious and achievement- • Creative

orientated
• Diplomatic and tactful
• Cooperative
• Fluent in speaking
• Decisive
• Knowledgeable about group task
• Persistent
• Organised (administrative ability)
• Self-confident
• Persuasive - Socially skilled
• Tolerant of stress

• Willing to assume responsibility

Fig. 6.1: Set of skills and Traits (Stogdill, 1974)

Recent research on trait theory of leadership has reflected emotional intelligence

as one of the important traits which can help a leader have outstanding training,
a highly analytical mind, and a compelling vision which can enable an
empathetic leader to read the reactions of others. Even though there have been
many researches done in order to identify different traits required to possess by
an effective leader, there are no set of traits identified that are consistent over
the time. Some leaders might have possessed certain traits but the absence of
them did not necessarily mean that the person was not a leader.

6.3.1 Behavioral Theories of Leadership

The foremost study in the field of leadership was done by Kurt Lewin and his
associates in 1939. Behavioral theory assumes that leaders are not born rather
there are specific behavioral patterns of leaders that can be acquired through
learning and experience. Different studies have been done to understand
how behavioral aspects affect leadership of an individual. Some of them are
explained as follows-

102
• Ohio State Studies Leadership

A study by E.A. Fleishman, E.F. Harris and H.E. Burtt in 1945 identified
two factor conceptualizations in leadership behaviors i.e., Initiating Structure
which refers to leadership qualities such as directive, task-oriented, organized
etc. whereas, consideration refers to leadership qualities such as empathetic,
understanding colleagues than focusing on only deadlines, supportive, person-
oriented leadership.
• University of Michigan Studies
Research by Rensis Likert and his associates in 1946 also identified two factor
components related to leadership behavior and organization behavior. The first
one is an Employee-oriented leader who is concerned about their employees
and accepts individual differences in the organization and the second one is a
production-oriented leader who focuses on tasks assigned to the employees,
rather than on employees.
• Managerial grid
1) Managerial grid explains how the leadership style can affect organizational
progress. The Managerial Grid (1964) developed by Robert Blake and Jane
Mouton (1964) postulated that there were five leadership types which show
whether the leaders focus on tasks or “concern for production/results,” or
the focus is on the relationship with the subordinate or “concern for people.
Following are the types of leadership styles-
2) Impoverished Management: The leader pays less attention to both outcome
and concern about the people. The apathetic nature of the leader results in
behavior that is withdrawn from subordinates and indifferent to success.
3) Country Club Management- Leaders who practice such type of leadership
have low concern for results and high concern for employees resulting in
pleasing behavior from the leader. They create very welcoming and friendly
behavior for employees.
4) Authority-Compliance Management: leaders who practice such leadership
have high concern for results and low concern for people. This creates
a strong boundary and distinction between the leader and other people
resulting in lack of compassion.
5) Middle of the Road Management: leaders practicing such style maintain
balance with both concerns for results and with the people working with
them. This type of leadership leads to greater success.
6) Team Management: Leaders practicing such leadership style place a
great on production and on people. This optimal balance of developing
human relationships and effective results attainment provides for the most
satisfying work environment.

103
Inerpersonal
Processes

Fig. 6.2: Managerial Grid

• X and Y Managers Theory

Douglas McGregor (1960) gave X and Y managers theory which explicitly
explains about characteristics of X and Y managers. McGregor believed
that management can use either of the needs to motivate his employees,
as grouped under theory X and theory Y. Theory X advanced the view
that human beings have an inherent dislike for work and can only be
made to get results at work by the application of coercive methods and
by direction. Theory X emphasizes authoritarian style of leadership where results
are the focus of leadership and it is more work-centered than people-centered.
Theory Y approach to management, on the other hand, is more people-centered where
the individual is valued and appreciated. Theory Y submits that when workers are
given the right environment, they can reach their highest potential and can be of
great value to their organizations.
McGregor (1960) postulated, that leaders who hold Theory X assumptions believe
that people are lazy, abhor responsibility and not motivated and therefore need to be
coerced before they will work and show commitment. Such leadership assumptions
lead to close supervision and control of workers and siphon the ingenuity of workers
and results in lack of motivation in workers. Leaders, who practice Theory
Y assumptions on the other hand, involve workers engage in joint-problem
solving, understand the needs of team members and integrate personal needs of
achievement with organizational objectives. Although with such an approach the
leader facilitates and initiates the control process, it is done with the involvement
of the workers in mind and can be encouraging and motivating for them.
104
Following are the characteristics of each group: Leadership

Theory X manager’s Theory Y manager’s

characteristics characteristics
• Managers practice an authoritarian • Managers practice the
style of management. participative style of
management.
• Managers give instructions
and keep a close check on each • Employees are self-directed and
employee self-controlled
• Employers are lazy and • Employees’ commitment and
disinterested in work. dedication determine their
rewards
Fig. 6.3: Characteristics of Managers in X and Y Manager’s Theory
(Douglas McGregor, 1960)

Self Assessment Questions (SAQ I)

Fill in the following blanks:
1) Recent research on trait theory of leadership has reflected ..............................
as one of the important traits which can help a leader have outstanding
training, a highly analytical mind, and a compelling vision.
2) Efficiency of any organization depends on how a ........................................
utilizes the available resources.
3) The first leadership theory was coined in the early 20th century by Thomas
Carlyle called as .................................................................. .
4) According to the theory ‘....................................’, the managers practice an
authoritarian style of management.

6.3.2 Contingency/Situational Theories of Leadership

Contingency or situational theories explain that no one leadership style is
best for managers in the organization. Every situation is different from one
another and hence the leadership style will depend upon the people, the task, the
organisation, and other environmental variables. According to the contingency
theories of leadership, successful leaders must be able to identify clues in an
environment and adapt their leader behavior to meet the needs of their followers
and of the particular situation. Even with good diagnostic skills, leaders may
not be effective unless they can adapt their leadership style to meet the demands
of their environment. These theories emerged as a result of the criticism of
the trait and behavioral approaches to leadership, which do not recognize the
determining role of situations or contexts in leadership.
• Fiedler’s contingency theory
The Contingency Theory of leadership was developed by Fred Fiedler in 1958
during his research of leader effectiveness in group situations. Fiedler believed
that one’s effectiveness to lead depended on one’s control of the situation and
the style of leadership. Unlike the Situational Theory of leadership, leader
effectiveness is contingent on the leader’s style matching the situation, not 105
Inerpersonal adapting to it. This theory assumes that styles are fixed, and that they cannot be
Processes adapted or modified. A leader is most effective when his or her attributes and
style of leadership is matched with the situation and environment around them
(Gupta, 2009).
The Contingency theory is not concerned with having the leader adapt to a
situation, rather the goal is to match the leader’s style with a compatible
situation. To make best use of this theory, it is important to find what style a
leader has. This is done through the Least Preferred Coworker Scale (LPC).
The LPC is a list of questions designed to find out what kind of employee
a leader would most like to work with, and in turn shows the leader’s style.
Fiedler’s Contingency Model attempts to match the leader’s style using LPC to
the situation in which they would thrive.
• High LPC Score– leader with good personal skills and relies on relationships
with others to accomplish tasks (people-oriented leadership style).
• Low LPC Score– leader that accomplishes goals through focus on the task
and positional power (task-oriented leadership style).
It has been observed that, several situational factors influence the effectiveness
of the leadership styles. Fiedler identified three contingency dimensions that
define the key situational factors:
a) Leader member relations: It refers to personal relationship between
subordinate and their leader. Leader-member relations refer to degree of
trust, respect and confidence that exists between the leader and the worker.
The quality of leader member relations is the most important influence on
managers’ power and effectiveness. If the manager gets along well with
rest of the group, if the group members respect the manager for reasons
of personality, character or ability, then the manager might have to rely
on formal authority. On the other hand, if the manager who is disliked
may be less able to lead informally and could have to rely on directives to
accomplish task.
b) Task structure: Task structure is the second most important
situational variable in the leadership situation. It indicates situational
favorableness indicating the degree to which job assignment are well
structured. A structured task is simple, routine, easily understood and
unambiguous. Group members therefore have a very clear idea about what
they are expected to do. Task structure refers to the degree to which tasks
are clearly explained to the workers. Such tasks are presumed to be more
favorable. When the tasks are unstructured, group members’ roles are
ambiguous.
c) Leader’s position-power: It refers to power inherent in leadership role.
Degree of influence leader has over the subordinates. Leader’s position
power is the final situational variable identified by Fiedler. Some positions
like president of the company carry a great deal of power and authority.
The chairperson of the company, on the other hand, has less power and
authority over workers. Thus, high position-power simplifies the leaders’
task of influencing others while low position power makes leader’s task
106 more difficult.
If first dimension (Leader-member relations) is high leaders are accepted by Leadership
the followers and situation is favorable. If second dimension (Task structure) is
high, task is very structured and everything is spelled out properly; so situation
is favorable. If third dimension (Leader’s position- power) is high situation
is favorable for a leader. Thus, situations are favorable to the leader if all the
three dimensions are high. If all the three dimensions are low, situation will be
unfavorable. According to Fiedler, a leadership is said to have more control
and favorable for organizational situations when the leader-member relations
are good, task assignments are highly structured along with a stronger power
position. Similarly, the situations in an organization would be unfavorable
when the respect that members have for leaders is poor, with unstructured task
assignments and weak position power.
After knowing leadership style and the defining the situation one needs to
choose the leader who fits the situation. There are two ways to improve effective
leadership:
(1) By changing the leader to fit the situation; or
(2) By changing the situation to fit the leader.

Fig. 6.4: Fiedler’s Contingency Theory

Given that personality or style of the leader (task orientation and relationship
orientation) is reasonably stable, the Fiedler’s contingency model suggests
that the situation should be adapted to such an extent that it suits the leader.
Fiedler suggested that when the situation is highly favorable (good leader-
member relationship, high task-structure and strong position-power) or highly
unfavorable (poor leader-member relationship, low task-structure and weak
position-power); task-oriented leadership style is more effective. On the other
hand, oriented leadership style is more effective when the situation is moderately
favorable.
107
Inerpersonal • Path-goal theory of leadership
Processes
House (1971) developed the motivation-rich path–goal theory which assumes
that leaders will choose and change the path of attaining their goal based on the
motivational level of their subordinates. Four types of leadership behavior were
identified namely-
1. Directive Leader: leader tries to give direction and guidance required for
attainting organization goals.
2. Supportive Leader: leader focuses on interpersonal relationships with
followers rather than accomplishing organizational goals.
3. Participative Leader: Leader tries to consult his subordinates to understand
their viewpoint before making any decisions.
4. Achievement-Oriented Leader: Leader expects his followers to perform at
their highest level by overcoming any type of challenges.
• Leader-Participation Model
Victor Vroom and Phillip Yetton in 1973 develop this model which assumes
that there are set of rules that needs to be followed before making any kinds of
decision making. This model is also called as Decision-Participation Model and
Normative Model. Three set of qualities in the leader determines the capacity of
the decision maker which are-
i) Quality of the decision
ii) Degree of acceptance of the decision by subordinates and
iii) Time required in making the decision.
Vroom and Yetton defined 5 different kinds of decision- making procedures
mentioned below:

Autocratic (A) Consultative (C) Collaborative (G)

A1- Leaders make C1- Leaders try to ask G2- Leaders work as
decisions based on the opinions individually a facilitator to reach a
information available by not bringing up the final consensus among
without consulting the whole team together team members. Here
team members. and finally take the the decision depends
final decision by upon the Conesus of the
themselves. group member and not
the leader themselves.
A2- Leaders ask for C2- Leaders try to
specific information interact with the whole
to make their final team to understand
decision. their opinion but finally
take the decision by
themselves.
Fig. 6.5 Decision-making procedures (Vroom and Yetton, 1973)
108
In general, a consultative or collaborative style is most appropriate when: Leadership

• You need information from others to solve a problem.

• The problem can’t be easily defined.
• Team members’ buy-in to the decision is important.
• You have enough time available to manage a group decision.
Whereas, an autocratic style is most appropriate when:
• You have greater expertise on the subject than others.
• You are confident about acting alone.
• The team will accept your decision.
• There is little time available.

6.3.3 Transactional Theory of Leadership

Max Weber in 1947 discovered transactional theory initially and later was
developed by Bernard M Bass in 1981. There were various assumptions made
by the theorist which are as follows-
1) People who are clear about their goals perform better when given clear
command by the leader.
2) Rewards and punishment motivate workers to work more efficiently.
3) Workers consider their primary goal to follow the commands of their
leader.
4) Leader has to monitor the subordinate while they are doing their assigned
work.
Some of the characteristics of a transactional leader are:
1) Contingent Reward: the leader focuses on organizational goals and sets
SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely) goals for
the subordinates;
2) Management by Exception (Active): The leader focuses on monitoring
performance, take corrective actions to prevent mistakes;
3) Management by Exception (Passive): The practicing passive management
style of leadership intervenes only if standards are not met and even use
punishments for poor performances; and
4) Laissez-Faire: Sometimes leaders give freedom to the subordinates to take
decisions and from responsibilities and avoid making decisions, due to
which the followers lack direction.
This kind of leadership is not applicable and feasible in various situations
because gender plays a very important role in determining the outcome of such
leadership behaviours.
109
Inerpersonal 6.3.4 Transformational Theory of Leadership
Processes
Transformational leadership is also called a charismatic leadership style where
the leader inspires her/his followers to transcend their own self-interests for the
betterment of the organization. The leader tries to motivate the subordinate or
follower to view the existing problem from different viewpoints and encourage
them to be creative to come up with new ideas and thoughts for the development
of organization and self. There are four dimensions of transformational theory
of leadership given by Bass and Riggio (2005), viz. Idealized Influence (II),
Inspirational Motivation (IM), Intellectual Stimulation (IS) and Individualized
Consideration (IC), which are as follows:
1) Idealized Influence (II): leader acts as a role model by exhibiting high
morals and ethical standards. They help followers to have a clear mission
and future vision about the organization’s progress;
2) Inspirational Motivation (IM): Leaders show and give high enthusiasm to
deal with different types of challenges to their subordinates/followers.
3) Intellectual Stimulation (IS): leader tries to enhance creativity of the
subordinates and encourage them to develop new ideas, thoughts, problem
solving skills etc.
4) Individualized Consideration (IC): Leaders try to understand and fulfill
subordinates’ needs to achieve success.
Apart from above mentioned theories there are many new concepts evolving
in the field of leadership. The organizational structures characterized by
more fluid, temporal arrangements, rapidly changing technologies, increased
globalization and changing workplace demography can affect the staples of
leadership. Thus, it is important to incorporate these ideas to make a solid base
for leadership construct for its better understanding.

6.4 CHALLENGES TO LEADERSHIP

Due to changing nature of workforce and organizations in today’s scenario
leaders around the world are facing many issues and challenges some of these
are mentioned below:
1) To build trust with the subordinates/followers— Development of trust is
a very slow process but is necessary while working with a person or a
team. Leaders have to create secure environment for their followers so that
they feel comfortable sharing their viewpoint with the team. If the trust is
not developed with the followers/subordinates then it would become very
difficult to get work done from them as they might feel de motivated or
disinterested.
2) Conflicts among team members— People working in teams generally go
through many conflicting situations before accomplishing their final goal. A
successful leader should try to avoid personal bias at the time of conflicting
situation so that equality is maintained among all the team members. Leader
should try to focus on possible solutions to resolve the conflict and maintain
healthy discussions among the team members.
110
3) Lack of cohesiveness— Sometimes when a team is formed newly, different Leadership
factors affect its cohesiveness. Leaders have to deal with different ideas,
viewpoints. Thoughts about different issues. Such disparity can lead to
lack of cohesiveness among the team members and can act as a barrier in
achieving a goal.
4) Lack of common goal— While achieving a common goal it is important for
a leader to take his/her followers/subordinates along with them in the same
direction. Every individual can have different perspective about a goal and
may work accordingly but the leader has to take them along by giving them
clarification and appropriate guidance at every step.
5) Lack of transparency and respect— Rapport between the team members
and leader plays an important role in developing transparency and respect
for each other. A leader should always be transparent about rewards so that
it creates trust among the team members. Every stage of goal attainment
involves such problems which need to be handled sensitively.

6.5 INDIAN PERSPECTIVE ON LEADERSHIP

Ancient history stands as testimony that successful leaders not only lead an
organization but also inspire their subordinates/followers by providing a path
to achieve the larger goals. Hence, we can say that leadership is a continuous
journey of both self and organizational growth. The successful journey
involves an individual’s constant emotional stability, humility to work on self
-development leading to personal growth and robustness to use appropriate
leadership style according to the situation.
Leadership skills are impacted by the culture where it is being practiced. In
the Indian context, organizations prefer authoritative leaders rather than
authoritarian. The leader is considered to be strict in getting the task accomplished
by giving suitable guidance to the subordinates but at the same time focus on the
well-being of their subordinates which enhance their interpersonal relations.
According to Sinha (1980) such leaders are called “nurturant-task leaders” as
they value both organization progress and interpersonal relationships. Therefore,
human relations are always valued in India in every organization by leaders,
wherein a leader is said to have charismatic qualities when they boost the morale
of team members, take personal interest in their well-being, show empathy and
understanding, inspire and excite to do their best work and respect and invite
their opinions. When we talk about styles of leadership, Sinha (1995) identified
three characteristics of NT leadership which are mentioned below-
• Depending too much on the leader even when guidance or support is not
required.
• Following hierarchical stratified system in the organization in which the
hierarchy.
• Demonstrates a visible status consciousness where respect for, and
obedience of elders and superiors is insurmountable.
• Preference for good interpersonal relationships which includes favoritism
and nepotism. 111
Inerpersonal Power plays a very important role in Indian organization and leaders have
Processes the tendency to centralize power and obtain high status in the organization.
Subordinates on the other hand, idolize their leader by valuing and respecting
them and they work according to the guidance given by their leader. This
relationship of a leader and a follower is term as “Guru- shishya” in ancient
history as “shishya” would follow in his/her guru’s footsteps happily because
they are mindful of the following needs/aspects of their team members.
Self Assessment Questions (SAQ II)
State whether the following statements are ‘True’ or ‘False’:
1) Laissez-Faire leaders give freedom to the subordinates to take decisions
and from responsibilities. ( )
2) An individual considerate leader tries to enhance creativity of the
subordinates and encourage them to develop new ideas, thoughts, problem
solving skills etc. ( )
3) Power plays a very important role in Indian organization and leaders
have the tendency to centralize power and obtain high status in the
organization. ( )
4) Victor Vroom and Phillip Yetton in 1973 developed the Path-Goal theory
of leadership. ( )

6.6 LET US SUM UP

The present unit discussed about the concept of leader and leadership skills
in context of organizational environment. The unit also discussed about the
relevance of different leadership styles on the basis of leadership theories. With
the help of this unit, you came to know about the various challenges that are
faced by the leaders of the organization. At the end, the Indian perspective on
leadership was explained.

6.7 UNIT END QUESTIONS

1) Discuss the concept and relevance of leader and leadership.
2) Elaborate upon the behavioral and contingency theories of leadership.
3) Describe the transformational and transactional theories of leadership.
4) Explain the challenges of leadership.
5) Write a shot note on the Indian perspective towards leadership.

6.8 GLOSSARY
Leader : An individual who can influence people as
well as situations and has several followers.
S/he always try to balance both organizational
growth and subordinate’s growth.
Leadership : “Leadership may be considered as the
112 process (act) of influencing the activities of
 an organized group in its efforts toward goal Leadership
setting and goal achievement”. (Stogdill
1950).

6.9 ANSWERS TO SELF -ASSESSMENT

QUESTIONS (SAQ)
SAQ I
1 emotional intelligence
2 leader
3 Great Man Theory
4 Theory ‘X’
SAQ II
1 True
2 False
3 True
4 False

6.10 SUGGESTED READINGS AND REFERENCES

Barker, R. A. (2001). The nature of leadership. Human Relations, 54(4), 469-
494.
Bass, B. M. (1981). Stodgill’s Handbook of Leadership: A Survey of Theory &
research (revised and expanded). New York: The Free Press.
Bass, Bernard & Riggio, Ronald. (2005). Transformational leadership: Second
edition. 10.4324/9781410617095.
Blake, R. R., & Mouton, J. S. (1964). The managerial grid: The key to leadership
excellence. Houston, TX: Gulf.
Fiedler, F. E. (1958). Leader Attitudes and Group Effectiveness. University of
Illinois Press.
House, R. J. (1971). A path goal theory of leader effectiveness. Administrative
Science Quarterly, 16(3), 321–339.
Kakar, S., Kakar, S., KetsdeVries, M. F., & Vrignaud, P. (2002). Leadership in
Indian organizations from a comparative perspective. International Journal of
Cross Cultural Management, 2(2), 239-250.
Lewin, K., Lippit, R., White, R.K. (1939). Patterns of aggressive behavior in
experimentally created social climates. Journal of Social Psychology, 10, 271-
301.
Mann, R. D. (1959). A review of the relationships between personality and
performance in small groups. Psychological Bulletin, 56, 241–270.
113
Inerpersonal McGregor, D. (1960). The Human Side of Enterprise. New York: McGraw-Hill
Processes Sinha, J. B. P. (1995). The Cultural Context of Leadership and Power, New
Delhi: Sage Publications.
Ross, C.S. (2021). Organizational Behaviour Today, New York: Routledge.
Sinha, J.B.P. ( 1980). The nurturant task leader. New Delhi : Concept.
Stogdill, R. M. (1948). Personal factors associated with leadership: A survey of
the literature. Journal of Psychology, 25, 35–71.
Stogdill, R. M. (1950). Leadership, membership and organization. Psychological
bulletin, 47(1), 1-14.
Stogdill, R. M. (1974). Handbook of Leadership (1st Ed.). New York: Free
Press.
Tripathi, S., Prabhakar, G. P., & Liddle, J. (2015). Leadership insights from the
top: Exploring leadership through the narratives of CEOs in India. International
Journal of Public Leadership.
Vroom, V.H., and P.W. Yetton. (1973). Leadership and Decision Making.
Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press.

114