While literature on educational leadership styles and related leadership theories has been contested by scholars in works such as spillane, et al. Great man theories, trait theories and environmental theories. Trait theory of leadership organization and administration. The concept was first introduced by eden and leviatan 1975. First a look at different theories examining the context of today new and emergent ideas on leadership which arent at the theory stage.
Rational choice theory, cognitive theories, information processing theories, social. The evolutionary tree of leader ship theory figure 1 is useful to visualize the historical development of leadership thought. A short history of leadership theories leaders quest. Complexity leadership is a joint, resultant product of the following three types of leadership. Trait leadership leadership is a function of biology leadership is a function of biology youre youre. The field of leadership is now such a vast one that its full scope and history cannot possibly be addressed in this research. Foundations of leadership summary chart of leadership perspectives theories models v. A short history of leadership theories by gene early our world is changing and so is our understanding of leadership. Leadership traits leadership traits refer to personal qualities that define effective leaders. Foundations of leadership summary chart of leadership perspectivestheoriesmodels v. In reality as well as in practice, many have tried to define what detaches authentic leaders from the mass. An overview and history of leadership and leadership. A study of implicit leadership theories among business.
Describe the history of leadership as a topic inside organizational behavior. There were many shortfalls with the trait leadership theory. Already in 1990, bass 1990a found a proliferation of leadership books over 3, 300. History, theories, and case studies includes only the preface andor introduction. Leadership theories are schools of thought brought forward to explain how and why certain individuals become leaders. Trait theory of leadership is often tied to the great man theory of leadership, which was first proposed by thomas carlyle. Early leadership theories considered on the behaviors and features of successful leaders.
Harwood page 6 situational theory in which situation is the leader effective. General overview of educational leadership styles and related theories. Great man theory trait theory group theory situational theory behavior theory contingency theory excellence theory a few leadership definitions not inclusive. Examining the historical development of leadership theories provides some. Learning to be a leader has never been more popular. The earliest theories of leadership were the great man theories, which emerged in the late 1800s. Introduction the term leadership is a relatively recent addition to the english language. Michigan leadership studies is a behavioral leadership theory that indicates the institute for social research at the university of michigan conducted empirical studies to identify styles of leader behavior that results in higher performance and satisfaction of a group. Dominating the literature are two conceptual models.
Leadership theories learn about key leadership theories. Although the practice of leadership has changed considerably over time, the need for leaders and leadership has not bass, 1990a. The theory originated with burns 1978, was expanded by bass 1985, and has been further refined by bass and avolio 1994. You must use your judgment to decide the best course of action and the leadership style needed for each situation.
We can all recognize a good leader when we see one, but defining what qualities and practices a good leader has can be difficult. In fact, the one thing that researchers seem to agree on regarding. The most influential of these general theories of leadership are introduced briefly in table 1. Paul hersey in the late 1960s, situational leadership is frequently referred to as organized common sense. The evolution of leadership theory although the practice of leadership has changed considerably over time, the need for leaders and leadership has not bass, 1990a. In the field of leadership studies, transformational leadership has been the theory of choice for the past several decades patterson, 2003. This was the first major crisis reorientation of leadership research, and it took almost 30 years for this line of research to reemerge.
Rational choice theory, cognitive theories, information. For decades leadership theories have been the source of numerous studies. The origins and evolution of leadership sciencedirect. Theories of educational leadership education oxford. Social scientists argued that history was more than the result of intervention of great men as carlyle suggested. Charismatic leadership motivates, persuades and inspires change in a company. Fiedlers contingency theory of leadership with examples. If the behaviors are coercive, the relationship becomes one of authority or power, or one. From time to time it is worthwhile to look at the historical evolution of theories.
The history of leadership theories organizational behavior. The contingency model is reproduced in every organizational and industrial psychology textbook, but has made very little impact on the leadership training of business organizations. You must use your judgment to decide the best course of action and the leadership style needed for. The great man theory was a predecessor of the early trait theory stage of leadership research. Transformational leadership 1 transformational leadership transformational leadership is defined as a leadership approach that causes change in individuals and social systems.
In the united states, we were well into the experience of our industrial revolution, and it was clear that leaders werent just heroes and rulers. Herbert spencer 1884 said that the times produce the person and not the other way around. By gene early our world is changing and so is our understanding of leadership. History of contingency theories the contingency theory of leadership was developed by fred fiedler in 1958 during his research of leader effectiveness in group situations fiedlers, n. Starting from the early leadership theories of trait and behavior, to the later ones of transformational and distributed leadership concepts, almost every aspect has been touched upon in management literature.
What you do in one situation will not always work in another. Leadership, and the study of it, has roots in the beginning of civilization. The creative and directive force of morale munson, 1921 leadership is a process of mutual stimulation which, by the successful interplay. In species where individuals are better off acting and moving together predominantly as a consequence of social and ecological pressures 7, 8 leaderfollower patterns are likely to emerge 1, 9, 10. The women and leadership theory think tank report 2015. Leadership refers to the ability of an individual or an organization to guide individuals, teams. The event, named the women and leadership theory think tank hereafter think tank, was a part of a. In the 1970s, robert greenleaf created this term to describe leaders who influence and motivate others by building relationships and developing. General theories of leadership theory school description references great man or.
For the first time, it was recognized that leadership was not found in any of the pure, unidimensional forms discussed previously, but rather contained elements of them all. There are many identified styles of leadership, and servant leadership is one that has grown in popularity in the last few years. Hence, there as many theories on leadership as there are philosophers, researchers and professors that have studied and ultimately publish their leadership theory. Contributions on educational leadership styles provide reference points from which to begin a. System theory, institutional theory, discourse analysis, social identity theory, etc.
Fiedler believed that ones effectiveness to lead depended on their control of the situation and the style of leadership fiedlers, n. The first part will deal with the history of leadership, leadership theory, and also the history of leadership development. If one uses greenleafs definition, then servant leadership can be seen as falling somewhere. This study presents the history of dominant leadership theories and research, beginning with the great man. Most of these and other definitions explicitly or implicitly reflect the ideas of an underlying theory or school of leadership.
In the second part, im going to present a contemporary view of the situation concerning leadership. Yet, a need has been identified for more integrative theories of leadership, because many of the existing psychological models of leadership focus only on a subset of leadership phe. Groups, coalitions, leaders roles and positions theories. Evolutionary origins of leadership and followership. Carlyle believed that history is shaped by extraordinary leaders, and that the ability to lead was something you inherited at birth and not something that could be developed k. It has been in use only for about two hundred years, although the term leader, from which it was derived, appeared as early as a. The focus here is on leader as hero, as described by thomas carlyle in.
Leadership is a function of biology leadership is a function of biology youre youre born with it. The nature of leadership has also changed significantly over time. Key to the emergence of leadership and followership is the need to coordinate. History of management theory organizational behavior. Historical study of leadership theories historical study. Through this tour of history, the theories surrounding leaders and leadership have evolved and changed with each era. And here im going to use the crossing point of mary parkerfollett in her law of the situation. Actors which also determine leadership behavior focus. Historical study of leadership theories 51 relationships that can make up the overall relationship that is leadership p.
Since the publication of burnss 1978 seminal work on transforming. It has been accepted for inclusion in bookshelf by an authorized. Great man theories to the environmental leadership. Short history of leadership theories great man theory. History of the transactional leadership theory max weber, a 20thcentury german sociologist, made an extensive study of leadership styles and divided them into three categories. Building on the body of work that has been done to understand leadership, the current paper explores the various theories of leadership and how these theories have changed over time. The impetus for the reemergence of leadership trait theory came from a reanalysis of manns data using a relatively new and innovative analytic procedure at the time. Fiedler, chemers, and others have attempted to apply the theory through their leader match training programs, but these have not been very popular. One major contributor to this era of management and leadership theory was max weber, a german sociologist who observed the parallels between the. On july 2628, 2015, at george washington university, 25 senior scholars from multiple disciplines gathered to attend a pathbreaking event on women and leadership theory. The situational leadership ii or slii model was developed by kenneth blanchard and builds on blanchard and herseys original theory. Since the beginning of civilization, people have sought answers to the questions of who becomes a leader and why.
Management studies and leadership studies are connected in our history. Leadership is one of the most complex and multifaceted. As a defined leadership theory, transformational leadership has been a relatively recent entrant into the realm of management thought. Aug 15, 2017 before we begin, we need to put leadership theory and practice in the context of history, to understand how the field of study has evolved. Fiedlers contingency theory of leadership states that your effectiveness as a leader is determined by how well your leadership style matches the situation. Historical study of leadership theories historical study of. Chapter 4 leadership theories and models leader, from which. The industrial revolution is at the center of management theory. A brief history of leadership theory first a look at different theories examining the context of today new and emergent ideas on leadership which arent at the theory stage. A serious and intelligent effort can be made, however, to place servant leadership somewhere within its large domain.
The theory is based on the premise that each of us has one and only one leadership style which can be scored on the least preferred coworker lpc scale. Philosophers, political scientists, and psychologists have. This book is brought to you for free and open access by ur scholarship repository. Martin luther king, abraham lincoln reflection in popular culture. In fact, most literature has been published in the past 15 years, though it can be argued transformational leaders have existed across broad human history, as evidence in my earlier examples.
Summary chart of leadership perspectivestheoriesmodels. Evolution of leadership theories i abstract evolution of leadership theories is a comprehensive study of leadership trends over the years, and in various contexts and theoretical foundations. According to the revised version of the theory, effective leaders must base their behavior on the developmental level of group members for specific tasks. While the next section will get into the nittygritty behind the history of different types of management theory, it is important to have a basic understanding as to why management theory was such an important and groundbreaking idea. Leadership theories and attempting to explain and define leadership concepts have abounded.
One of the most intriguing expressions of human behavior is the leaderfollower phenomenon. Egyptian rulers, greek heroes, and biblical patriarchs all have one thing in commonleadership. Situational theory also appeared as a reaction to the trait theory of leadership. Studies of leadership have produced theories involving traits, situational interaction, function, behavior, power, vision and values, charisma, and intelligence, among others. Main theories that emerged during 20th century include. If we look back in time, we can see leadership as a concept and as a set of qualities has changed almost beyond. The trait theory of leadership focused on analyzing mental, physical and social characteristic in order to gain more understanding of what is the characteristic or the combination of characteristics that are common among leaders. From the great man theory of the 19th century, to new research on genetic factors underpinning leadership behaviours, theres a wealth of data to examine.
Situational leadership relevant then, relevant now. In essence, effective leadership was contingent or dependent on one or more of the factors of behaviour, personality, influence, and situation. Second, leadership is an influence relationship means that the behavior used to persuade other people must be noncoercive. Research into followercentric aspects of leadership includes an area known as implicit leadership theory ilt, which focuses on the social context of leadership and specifically on the traits and behaviours that people expect of leaders.