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Leadership is an elusive concept. Although no one best definition exists, some common characteristics, such as charisma and influence, tend to dominate most discussions on leadership qualities and traits. This article presents an overview of the findings of and pitfalls in research on leadership, in its varied and multifaceted contexts. It explores both personal and contextual attributes of leadership.
PURPOSE: This study measured the impact of participation by women academics in the Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) program as part of a robust evaluation agenda. METHOD: The design is a classic pre/post, within-group, self-report study. The survey elicits self-perception about leadership in ten constructs: knowledge of leadership, management, and organizational theory; environmental scanning; financial management; communication; networking and coalition building; conflict management; general leadership; assessment of strengths and weaknesses; acceptance of leadership demands; and career advancement sophistication. The post surveys inquire additionally about perceived program usefulness. Data were collected from 79 participants (1997-98, 1998-99, and 2000-01 classes). Response rates were nearly 100% (pre) and 69% to 76% (post). RESULTS: Statistically significant increases (p <.01) in perceived leadership capabilities were identified across all ten leadership constructs. Gains were large in knowledge of leadership and organizational theory, environmental scanning, financial management, and general leadership. Gains in career building knowledge were large to moderate. More modest were gains in communication, networking, and conflict management. There were significant correlations between each leadership construct and perceived usefulness of the program. CONCLUSIONS: Significant improvements were reported on all leadership constructs, even when participants viewed themselves as already skilled. While it cannot be concluded that participation in ELAM directly and solely caused all improvements, it seems unlikely that midcareer women faculty would improve on all ten constructs in 11 months after program completion by natural maturation alone. Future research will investigate whether the changes are due to ELAM or other factors, and assess whether participants show more rapid advancement into leadership than comparable women not participating in ELAM.
The UK National Health Service (NHS) is undergoing cataclysmic change following the election of the first Labour Government in 18 years. This is primarily embodied in the implementation of the White Paper The New NHS Modern-Dependable, which has resulted in the creation of primary care groups (PCGs) and primary care trusts (PCTs). The task facing both PCGs and PCTs is a radically new and complex one, requiring a new set of leadership skills to the traditional command and control style management. Leadership theories have evolved over the past 70 years. However, it was not until the 1980s that a major change in the paradigm of thinking around what is the nature of leadership occurred. The interaction between the leader and his/her followers is explored in what has become known as transformational leadership theories, developed by Bass and Avolio. Recent studies have, however, questioned the applicability of leadership models derived in the USA, to other cultures. This paper explores the leadership behaviours required for the management boards of PCGs and PCTs. A qualitative research method "Grounded Theory" approach was chosen for this study of leadership. The Repertory Grid technique was used to collect data. There are a number of implications arising from the findings of this study for both leadership models in general, and more specifically, for the development of leadership skills in both PCGs and PCTs.
Two studies compared leader-member exchange (LMX) theory and the social identity theory of leadership. Study 1 surveyed 439 employees of organizations in Wales, measuring work group salience, leader-member relations, and perceived leadership effectiveness. Study 2 surveyed 128 members of organizations in India, measuring identification not salience and also individualism/collectivism. Both studies provided good support for social identity predictions. Depersonalized leader-member relations were associated with greater leadership effectiveness among high-than low-salient groups (Study 1) and among high than low identifiers (Study 2). Personalized leadership effectiveness was less affected by salience (Study 1) and unaffected by identification (Study 2). Low-salience groups preferred personalized leadership more than did high-salience groups (Study 1). Low identifiers showed no preference but high identifiers preferred depersonalized leadership (Study 2). In Study 2, collectivists did not prefer depersonalized as opposed to personalized leadership, whereas individualists did, probably because collectivists focus more on the relational self.
This article examines the relationship between health managers' self-assessed empathy, their leadership behaviours as rated by their staff, and staff's personal ratings on a range of work satisfaction and related outcome measures. Empathy was conceived of as four distinct but related individual dispositions, namely empathic concern (EC), perspective taking (PT), personal distress (PD) and empathic matching (EM). Results showed three empathy scales (EC, PT and EM) were, as postulated, positively related to transformational behaviour (inspiring followers to achieve more than expected). The same three measures, also as expected, showed no relationship to transactional behaviour (motivating followers to achieve expected results) and were negatively associated with laissez-faire leadership (an absence of leadership style). Relationships between empathy scales and outcome measures were selective and moderate in size. Strongest empathy association was evident between the PT scale and most outcome measures. Conversely, the extra effort outcome appeared most sensitive to the range of empathy scales. Where significant relationships did exist between empathy and outcome, leadership behaviour was in all cases a perfect mediator. Whilst not denying the smaller dispositional effects on leadership outcomes, leadership behaviour itself, rather than individual traits such as empathy, appear to be major influencing factors in leadership effectiveness.
AIM: The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between leadership behaviour, team dynamics and task performance. METHODS: This was as an observational study, using video recordings of 20 resuscitation attempts. The Leadership Behaviour Description Questionnaire (LBDQ) was used to measure the level of structure built within the team. Interpersonal behaviour and the tasks of resuscitation were measured with a team dynamics and a task performance scale. The degree to which the leader actively participated, 'hands on', with the tasks of resuscitation, and their previous training in advanced life support (ALS), and experience of resuscitation attempts, were evaluated against the leadership rating. RESULTS: The degree to which the leader built a structure within the team was found to correlate significantly with the team dynamics (P = 0.000) and the task performance (P = 0.013). Where the leaders participated 'hands on' they were less likely to build a structured team (P = 0.005), the team were less dynamic (P = 0.028) and the tasks of resuscitation were performed less effectively (P = 0.099). Experience gained over a 1-year period did not enhance leadership performance, but leaders who had up to 3 years experience were more likely to be effective in this role (P = 0.072). Interestingly, ALS training did not enhance leadership performance per se. However those leaders who had had recent ALS training were more likely not to participate 'hands on' (P = 0.035). There were some notable shortcomings in the performance of the task and some interesting correlations relating to duration of resuscitation, survival rate estimations, the leaders' attitudes and the teams' level of experience. CONCLUSION: Leaders must build a structure within a resuscitation team in order for them to perform effectively. An emergency leadership training programme is essential to enhance the performance of leaders and their teams.
BACKGROUND: Originally developed for educational use, the Leadership Practice Inventory (LPI) is used to measure leadership practices in nursing research. There is limited reporting of LPI psychometric properties when used to measure leadership practices of nurses. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate psychometric properties of the LPI when used to measure the leadership practices of nurses. METHOD: Data from 67 LPI-self and 347 LPI-observer respondents were used to establish LPI psychometric properties. Dimensionality of the LPI was investigated using exploratory principal components analysis, and LPI construct validity was established by exploring correlations with theoretically related concepts and a known-groups approach. The predictive validity of the LPI was investigated using regression analysis to determine whether observer-reported leadership practices of established and aspiring nurse leaders predict observer ratings of the effectiveness of the organization environment. Reliabilities of the new factor solution were explored. RESULTS: Factor analysis found that the identified three-factor solution has psychometric properties at least as strong as those found with the original five-factor LPI solution. DISCUSSION: The three-factor solution is advocated for use in nursing research because of the strong psychometric properties, lighter respondent burden, and decrease in research costs, as compared with the traditional five-factor solution. When used as an educational tool, the five-factor LPI may be preferred because it may be more useful for examining a greater number of leadership behaviors.
In this article, the authors discuss their research on similarities and differences between professionals and nonprofessionals in their responses to managerial leadership behaviors and substitutes for leadership. Their study sample comprised workers at many organizational levels in several hospital and contract research organizations in the Southwest, and they used a multidimensional measure of professionalism to create subsamples of professionals and nonprofessionals. The authors used questionnaire data to test hypotheses regarding instrumental and supportive leadership behaviors and their substitutes. They found that role clarification and support from leaders were important predictors of worker's job satisfaction and organizational commitment for both subsamples, and that formal rules and procedures were an important supplement for instrumental leadership behaviors. Professionals differed from nonprofessionals in that intrinsically satisfying work tasks and importance place on organizational rewards were strong substitutes for leaders' support. The authors conclude that worker professionalism is an important moderator variable for research on leadership and substitutes for leadership.
This paper describes the Public Health Leadership Institute (PHLI), a program designed to expand and enhance the leadership skills of senior public health officials. The background of PHLI is discussed, and organizations responsible for its organization, governance and funding are revealed. Methods of selecting a cohort of scholars to participate each year, along with the characteristics of scholars selected, are briefly outlined. A calendar of events and description of PHLI curriculum is included. Specific features of the PHLI program, including peer-learning through electronic conferencing, the one-week learning retreat, and the required action-learning projects are described. Also included are results from an evaluation by 99 participants from the first two years of PHLI's existence. The evaluation is based on a survey of the participants' satisfaction with the program and its personal and institutional effects. The Public Health Leadership Institute provides a model of leadership development for senior public health agency officials. The program has been popular with participants, and the vast majority report improved leadership skills. The personal and organizational effects of PHLI address the deficits in leadership identified in the Institute of Medicine's report, The Future of Public Health.
Transformational leadership, initiating structure, and selected substitutes for leadership were studied as longitudinal predictors of performance in 118 research and development (R&D) project teams from 5 firms. As hypothesized, transformational leadership predicted 1-year-later technical quality, schedule performance, and cost performance and 5-year-later profitability and speed to market. Initiating structure predicted all the performance measures. The substitutes of subordinate ability and an intrinsically satisfying task each predicted technical quality and profitability, and ability predicted speed to market. Moderator effects for type of R&D work were hypothesized and found whereby transformational leadership was a stronger predictor of technical quality in research projects, whereas initiating structure was a stronger predictor of technical quality in development projects. Implications for leadership theory and research are discussed.
Health disparities can be especially dramatic for American Indians because of a variety of powerful forces that include poverty, isolation, low educational achievement, and a unique political relationship that dictates the design of special healthcare delivery mechanisms. The challenge facing nursing leaders in these setting is addressed with consideration to culture, an examination of why leadership is needed to change the forces that lead to health disparities, the role of leadership in reducing ethnic disparities in health outcomes, as well as an examination of the most productive ways to mobilize nurses and nursing leadership to address the problems. A model for nursing leadership in Native American communities is proposed and a case study that illustrates how culturally diverse leadership in a public health setting can maximize results is presented.
Public health leadership development programs have proliferated since the release of the Institute of Medicine's call for strengthened public health leadership. Little has been documented, however, about the impact of these programs. This article presents results of an eight-year retrospective evaluation of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/University of California Public Health Leadership Institute, the nation's first year-long leadership development program serving senior public health leaders. Results show that this program has had a positive impact on participants' leadership effectiveness at the personal, organizational, and community levels as well as on the field of public health.
A descriptive study investigating the effect of situational and constraint variables on leadership style is reported. A sample of 35 administrators of college (diploma) nursing programmes and 106 of their senior faculty participated in the study. The Leadership Style Analysis Instrument was used to determine the administrators' leadership styles, as perceived by the administrators themselves and by their senior faculty. Demographic characteristics of the administrators and constraint variables were examined by chi-square analysis (0.05) regarding their relationship to leadership styles. It was found that despite variations in administrator characteristics and extent of constraints, the perceived leadership style was consistently relationship-oriented. The results have implications for educators and administrators in nursing.
Fourteen Brazilian nurses singled out for their leadership skills were asked about their view on leadership issues and about their perceptions of the relationship between nursing and leadership. The analysis of the data provided by the professionals showed that the interviewed leaders had a clear-cut view of these issues and of their important role in the nursing profession. They understood leadership as a group process through which people or behaviors are influenced. Such a process is carried out aiming to reach a goal. They also realized a close relationship between leadership and nursing.
In a mailed survey, chief nurse officers (N = 92) described their leadership motivation and leadership effectiveness. Leadership motivation scores depicted high needs for affiliation and moderate needs for power. Leadership effectiveness scores reported by chief nurse officer and chief executive officer (n = 59 pairs) were correlated positively. Significant predictors of leadership effectiveness were job satisfaction, education, professional recognition, and experience, respectively. Those motivated by socialized power needs were in the most complex hospitals, whereas those motivated by affiliation were in the least complex settings. Identification of the motivational needs of successful leaders and aspiring leaders is advocated to provide valid and reliable measures for use in assessment centers and to inform curricula.
The last decade has seen the development of a number of interagency systems for children with serious emotional disturbances and their families. Many public sector agencies, however, continue to have inadequate or fragmented services. It is believed that effective systems of care for children and families will not be adequate until more parents and community residents are involved in all phases of systems development. Consequently, the need for the development of leadership models that enhance the involvement of grassroots community leaders is crucial. This article summarizes a research team's preliminary experience in developing an "action leadership" model that empowers grassroots community leaders toward action. The team discovered that leadership enhancement and development of grassroots community leaders is not a static skill attribute of an individual but rather is acquired through a dynamic process in which both the facilitator of a community leadership initiative and its natural leaders are active participants in a shared learning and change experience.
The present study was oriented to the leadership theme focussing nurses inside surgical ward unities. As a theoretical reference, the authors used the Situational Leadership Model proposed by Hersey and Blanchard. This study aimed at analysing the correspondence between the opinions of nurses and auxiliary personnel about the leadership style exerted by nurses in the surgical ward unit regarding the six categories of the assistance activity that were studied. Authors noticed that nurses, from the two studied hospitals, adopted the directive leadership styles (E2/selling or E1/telling) with the auxiliary personnel.
After province X's Minister of Health announced that health administration would be regionalized, administrators from two hospitals, a health unit and a nursing home planned a health network. In planning the network, the participants looked beyond their own facilities as being separately governed and separately funded organizations. This study investigates the exercise of shared leadership in order to increase the understanding of the nature of leadership and the meanings attributed to leadership activity by the various participants.