Military Psychology:
Leadership
Dr. Steven J. Kass
Military Psychology
Leadership Defined
Leadership –
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Fiedler (1967)- Directing and coordinating the work of
group members
Bennis (1959) – The process by which an agent
induces a subordinate to behave in a desired manner
Air Force – The art of influencing and directing people
to accomplish the mission
Army – The process of influencing others to
accomplish the mission by providing purpose,
direction, and motivation
Effective Military Leadership –
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Includes a degree of high flexibility, initiative, ability to
lead in complex and ambiguous circumstances and
ability deal with local populations and cultures.
Leadership Theories:
McGregor’s Theory X / Theory Y
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Theory X – Leaders assume followers have
an inherent tendency to avoid work, need to
be directed, guided, or coerced
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Danger of self-fulfilling prophecy
Theory Y – Leaders assume followers are
capable of self-direction, accept and seek
responsibility
Leadership Theories:
Trait Approach
What traits or characteristics do good leaders possess?
Bass (1990) 10 traits:
1.
Desire to achieve
2.
Desire to influence others for common good
3.
High energy level
4.
Persistence
5.
Task competence
6.
Interpersonal skills
7.
Self-confidence
8.
Willingness to act
9.
Tolerance for stress
10. Flexibility
Leadership Theories:
Trait Approach
Correlates of leadership
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Intelligence w/leader emergence (r = .50), not strongly associate
with effectiveness
Leadership effectiveness related to:
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Emotional stability, dominance, energy level (West Point)
Conformity, self-discipline (US Naval Academy)
Physical fitness, self-esteem, ability to tolerate stress (VMI)
Integrity, loyalty, commitment, energy, decisiveness, selflessness (AF)
Self-esteem, self-confidence, achievement-orientation, dependability,
sociability, tolerance for ambiguity (others)
Relationship between traits and leader emergence & effectiveness
moderated by situational factors (e.g., education, experience,
follower characteristics)
Leadership Theories:
Behavioral Approach
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Search for behaviors that differentiate effective from ineffective leaders
Personality traits are stable, but behavior can be trained
Derived from Post WWII Big 10 studies (U of Michigan, Ohio State U,
U of Illinois)
Two key dimensions
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Consideration (people orientation)
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Initiating Structure (task orientation)
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Friendly, supportive, show appreciation, caring about personal welfare of
followers
Focus on direction and control of task accomplishment
Behaviors assessed via
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Surveys
Interviews
Observations
Leadership Theories:
Behavioral Approach
Behavioral Approach Conclusions
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Behavioral descriptions of leadership may include
more than 2 or 3 dimensions
Reliance on self-report surveys not sufficient to
describe leadership behaviors
Performance relationships are strongly influenced
by follower experience and expectations, as well
as situational factors
Limited support for approach – “it depends”
Leadership Theories:
Contingency (Situational) Approach
Contingency Approach – Leaders can be trained to diagnose
situational factors and select appropriate leadership style
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Situational Factors
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Characteristics of followers – intelligence, willingness, ability
Characteristics of group – group size, cohesiveness
Characteristics of situation – task complexity, org’l culture
Characteristics of leadership position – level of authority
4 theories
1.
2.
3.
4.
Normative Decision Model
Situational Leadership Theory
Contingency Model
Path-Goal Theory
Leadership Theories:
Contingency (Situational) Approach
Normative Decision Making Model (Vroom, Yetton, Jago) –
focuses on the optimal level of participation that followers
should have in decision-making process 2 factors
1.
2.
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Importance of making quality decision
Importance of followers accepting decision
3 types of leadership behavior
1.
2.
3.
Autocratic – leader makes individual decision (little or no
group input)
Consultative – leader asks for input, then makes decision
Group – leader shares info with group, group makes decision
together
Leadership Theories:
Contingency (Situational) Approach
Normative Decision Making Model – eight questions to help
determine decision-making style
1 Quality Requirement (QR): How important is the technical quality of
the decision?
2. Commitment Requirement (CR): How important is subordinate
commitment to the decision?
3. Leader's Information (LI): Do you (the leader) have sufficient
information to make a high quality decision on your own?
4. Problem Structure (ST): Is the problem well structured (e.g., defined,
clear, organized, lend itself to solution, time limited, etc.)?
5. Commitment Probability (CP): If you were to make the decision by
yourself, is it reasonably certain that your subordinates would be
committed to the decision?
6. Goal Congruence (GC): Do subordinates share the organizational
goals to be attained in solving the problem?
7. Subordinate conflict (CO): Is conflict among subordinates over
preferred solutions likely?
8. Subordinate information (SI): Do subordinates have sufficient
information to make a high quality decision?
Leadership Theories:
Contingency (Situational) Approach
Situational Leadership Theory (Hersey & Blanchard) – The
appropriate leadership behavior is contingent on diagnosis of
maturity level or readiness of followers
High
1.
Directing /
Telling
2. Selling /
Coaching
Follower Readiness
1. Unable & Insecure/Unwilling
2. Unable & Confident/Willing
3. Able & Insecure/Unwilling
4. Able & Confident/Willing
Task
Oriented
4. Delegating
3. Supporting /
Participating
Low
Low
Relationship Oriented
High
Leadership Theories:
Contingency (Situational) Approach
Contingency Model (Fiedler) – Leader’s style is fixed, so must
select right leader for job based on situation favorability
– Leadership style (relationship-oriented vs. task-oriented)
based on Least Preferred Coworker Scale
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Low LPC – motivated by task completion
High LPC – motivated by maintaining group relationships
Situation favorability determined by:
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Leader-Member Relations
Task Structure
Position Power
Leadership Theories:
Contingency (Situational) Approach
Pleasant:
Least Preferred Coworker Scale
Friendly:
Rejecting:
Tense:
Distant:
Supportive:
Cold:
Boring:
Quarrelsome:
Gloomy:
Open:
Backbiting:
Untrustworthy:
Considerate:
Nasty:
Agreeable:
Insincere:
Kind:
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Unpleasant
Unfriendly
Accepting
Relaxed
Close
Hostile
Warm
Interesting
Harmonious
Cheerful
Guarded
Loyal
Trustworthy
Inconsiderate
Nice
Disagreeable
Sincere
Unkind
Leadership Theories:
Contingency (Situational) Approach
Contingency Model
If situation is:
■ Very favorable (good leader–member relations, structured task, strong
position power)
■ Very unfavorable (poor leader–member relations, unstructured task, weak
position power)
Then:
The best leader is task-oriented (low LPC score) with a directive, controlling
style
If situation is:
■ Moderately favorable (mixed variables)
Then:
The best leader is relationship-oriented (high LPC score) with a participative
approach
Leadership Theories:
Contingency (Situational) Approach
Path-Goal Theory (House) – Behavior of leader impacts follower
satisfaction and motivation
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Style of leadership depends
Task characteristics (complexity)
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Follower characteristics (ability, personality)
Four styles of leadership
1.
Supportive - Leader shows concern for the followers’ psychological wellbeing
 Appropriate when the followers lack confidence
2.
Directive - Leader lets followers know what is expected of them and tells
them how to perform their tasks.
 Appropriate when the follower has an ambiguous job.
3.
Participative - Leader consults with followers and asks for their
suggestions
 Appropriate when the follower is using improper procedures
4.
Achievement-oriented - Leader sets challenging goals and expects
followers to meet them
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Appropriate when the follower lacks challenging work
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Leadership Theories:
Transformational Leadership Theory
Transformational Leadership Theory – Leader raises followers
to higher levels of morality, motivation, and performance above
that from simply having power of authority
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Transformational Leader:
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Creates and articulates vision
Builds trust by exhibiting self-confidence, personal example
Creates emotional involvement with followers
Raise level of awareness in followers about importance of outcome
Get followers to transcend own self interests
Transactional Leader:
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Simply exchanges rewards for performance
Leadership Theories:
Transformational Leadership Theory
Transformational Leaders lead through:
- Charisma
- Individualized Consideration
- Intellectual Stimulation
- Inspirational Motivation
Leadership
Developing Leadership Skills
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Management Success Traits (Yukl) – 6
traits that can be learned through training
1.
2.
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4.
5.
6.
Energy level
Organizing and planning skills
Interpersonal skills
Cognitive skills
Work-related motivation
Personal control of feelings & resistance to
stress
Leadership
Developing Leadership Skills
Behavioral skills that cut across situations
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Ability to communicate
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Pay attention to HR management skills
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Socialization process, training, fair appraisals, coaching
Motivate followers
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2-way comms, active listening, non-verbal cues
Constructive feedback
“Manage by walking around”
Positive rewards, goal setting, empowerment
Networking & Political skills
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Know the right people/how to get things done
Leadership
Developing Leadership Skills
Military Training Programs
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Focus on contingency leadership principles
“Followership” that precedes leadership activities
Leadership experiences combined with feedback
Formal classroom training designed to provide the
theoretical training for leadership experiences
Leadership
Developing Leadership Skills
Total Quality Management/Leadership (Deming) – Management
through
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Empowerment
Info sharing
Participative decision making
Continuous commitment to quality/process improvement
Continuous commitment to customer service
Focus on teamwork/communication
Greatest Military Leaders
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List of top military leaders