Two to Tango? Implications of Alignment and Misalignment in Leader and Follower Perceptions of LMX

Purpose A critical assumption of the organizational leadership literature is that leaders want to engage in effective leadership behaviors (Gilbert and Kelloway, 2014). However, leaders may vary in their motivation to be effective in a leadership role, leading to different levels of performance. Drawing on self-determination theory, the authors address the question of what motivates leaders to engage in transformational leadership behaviors (Gilbert et al., 2016). The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach The current study examined the effects of self-determined leader motivation for transformational leadership on aggregated follower leadership ratings using a sample of 37 leaders matched with 179 followers in two organizations. Findings Results show how leaders’ own motivation relates to followers’ perceptions of leader behavior, and specifically that, across contexts, some autonomous levels of leader motivation are positively related to follower perceptions of leaders’ active-constructive leadership and negatively related to follower perceptions of passive avoidant leadership. Research limitations/implications The research is limited by a small level-two sample size and cross-sectional design. The results suggest that some forms of leader motivation relate to follower ratings of leadership behavior. Originality/value This study is the first to examine how self-determined motivation for transformational leadership predicts follower perceptions of leadership behavior using a multilevel design.

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Leader-Follower Extraversion Congruence and Follower Perceptions of Transformational Leadership: A Test Using Response Surface Modeling

SSRN Electronic Journal ◽

10.2139/ssrn.1294008 ◽

2008 ◽

Author(s):

George A. Hrivnak ◽

Tjai M. Nielsen

Keyword(s):

Transformational Leadership ◽

Response Surface ◽

Surface Modeling ◽

Response Surface Modeling ◽

Follower Perceptions

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An investigation of destructive leadership in a Division I intercollegiate athletic department: Follower perceptions and reactions

International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching ◽

10.1177/1747954116643636 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 11 (3) ◽

pp. 297-311 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Shannon Powers ◽

Lawrence W Judge ◽

Carole Makela

Keyword(s):

Division I ◽

Destructive Leadership ◽

Athletic Department ◽

Intercollegiate Athletic ◽

Follower Perceptions

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Effect of Self-monitoring and National Culture on Follower Perceptions of Personal Charisma and Charismatic Message

Australian Journal of Psychology ◽

10.1080/00049539708259860 ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 49 (2) ◽

pp. 101-105 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Stuart J.M. Weierter ◽

Neal M. Ashkanasy ◽

Victor J. Callan

Keyword(s):

National Culture ◽

Self Monitoring ◽

Follower Perceptions

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Follower perceptions of the emotional intelligence of change leaders: A qualitative study

Leadership ◽

10.1177/1742715011416890 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 7 (4) ◽

pp. 435-462 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

Roy Smollan ◽

Ken Parry

Keyword(s):

Emotional Intelligence ◽

Organizational Change ◽

Qualitative Study ◽

Qualitative Data ◽

Change Leadership ◽

Qualitative Investigation ◽

Change Leaders ◽

Follower Perceptions ◽

The Impact

We present and explore a follower-centric model of how employees perceive the emotional intelligence (EI) of change leaders. Qualitative investigations of EI are rare and have not explored the field of organizational change leadership. Accordingly, we analyse qualitative data from a series of interviews set within the context of organizational change. We examine follower attributions about the abilities of their leaders to manage and express their own emotions and to respond appropriately to the followers’ emotions. The findings reveal that the ways in which leaders deal with emotion might be the key to followers sharing their own emotions with them. The impact of perceived leader EI on follower responses to change is also discussed. The complexity and ambivalence of our participants’ perceptions of the EI of their change leaders highlight the utility of a qualitative investigation.

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Gender differences in leader and follower perceptions of social support in Antarctica

Acta Astronautica ◽

10.1016/j.actaastro.2005.01.019 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 56 (9-12) ◽

pp. 923-931 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Lacey L. Schmidt ◽

JoAnna Wood ◽

Desmond J. Lugg

Keyword(s):

Social Support ◽

Gender Differences ◽

Follower Perceptions

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Getting Old at the Top: The Role of Agentic and Communal Orientations in the Relationship Between Age and Follower Perceptions of Leadership Behaviors and Outcomes

Work Aging and Retirement ◽

10.1093/workar/waz012 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

pp. 46-58 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Gregory R Thrasher ◽

Benjamin Biermeier-Hanson ◽

Marcus W Dickson

Keyword(s):

Leadership Behaviors ◽

Empirical Support ◽

Mediating Effect ◽

Socioemotional Selectivity ◽

Age Related ◽

Follower Perceptions ◽

Perceptions Of Leadership ◽

The Relationship ◽

Development Perspective

Abstract Leadership behaviors and the outcomes they foster have historically been central issues to organizational researchers and practitioners alike. Despite the continuing rise in the average age of the workforce, empirical research on leadership from a lifespan development perspective remains surprisingly rare. The current study applies socioemotional selectivity theory (SST) to address this gap in the literature in several ways. We test a holistic socioemotional model of age and leadership that examines dominance and amicability as agentic and communal mediators in the relationship between age and follower ratings of leadership behaviors and effectiveness. To accomplish this goal, we apply multisource data from a sample of 422 leaders with 2,016 follower ratings. We offer empirical support for a socioemotional model of age and leadership that highlights the role of communal shifts in the relationship between age and follower perceptions of leadership behaviors. Specifically, we find a positive mediating effect of amicability in the relationship between age and follower-rated relational-oriented leadership behaviors. Age also displayed a sequential mediating effect on effectiveness through amicability and relational-oriented leadership behaviors. Our results highlight the unique role that age-related changes in social orientations play in the perceptions of leadership behaviors and outcomes across the lifespan. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

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