Trait Theories of Leadership
We define leadership as the ability to influence a group toward the achievement of a vision or set of goals. Surely you’ve noticed, though, that not all leaders are managers, nor are all managers leaders. Nonsanctioned leadership—the ability to influence that arises outside the formal structure of the organization—is sometimes more important than formal influence. What makes a person a leader? Since strong leaders have been described by their traits throughout history, leadership research has sought to identify the personality, social, physical, or intellectual attributes that differentiate leaders from nonleaders. As we will see in the chapter, there are a number of different approaches toward analyzing leadership. Keep in mind that none of the concepts is mutually exclusive—in fact, research is not clear yet about which variables in combination yield the best leadership. But we’re getting there.
To begin, the trait theories of leadership focus on personal qualities, including personality traits like those in the Big Five (see Chapter 5), and characteristics that predict two distinct outcomes: leadership emergence and leadership effectiveness. Based on the latest research literature, we offer two conclusions about personality traits and leadership: one, traits can predict leadership; and two, traits do a better job in predicting the emergence of leaders and the appearance of leadership than in distinguishing between effective and ineffective leaders.1 The fact that an individual exhibits the right traits and others consider that person a leader does not necessarily mean he or she will be effective, successful at getting the group to achieve its goals. That said, there are some strong links between traits and leadership we should consider.
Personality Traits and Leadership
What constitutes a great leader? In general, individuals who like being around people and who are able to assert themselves (extraverted), disciplined and able to keep commitments they make (conscientious), and creative and flexible (open) have an apparent advantage when it comes to leadership. Let’s break that down a bit.
Big Five Traits
In examining personality traits, researchers have consistently found extraversion to be the most predictive trait of effective leadership.2 However, extraversion sometimes relates more to the way leaders emerge than to their effectiveness. Sociable and dominant people are more likely to assert themselves in group situations, which can help extraverts be identified as leaders, but effective leaders are not domineering. One study found leaders who scored very high in assertiveness, a facet of extraversion, were less effective than those who were moderately high.3 So although extraversion can predict effective leadership, the relationship may be due to unique facets of the trait.
Unlike agreeableness and emotional stability, which do not seem to predict leadership, conscientiousness and openness to experience may predict leadership, especially leader effectiveness. For example, one study indicated that top management teams that were high in conscientiousness positively influenced organizational performance through their leadership.4 Conscientiousness and extraversion are positively related to leaders’ self-efficacy (see Chapter 7),5 and since people are more likely to follow someone who is confident he or she is going in the right direction, these leaders tend to emerge.
Dark-Side Traits
What about the Dark-Side personality traits of machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy (see Chapter 5)? Research indicates they’re not all bad for leadership. A study in Europe and the United States found that normative (mid-range) scores on the Dark-Side personality traits were optimal, and low (and high) scores were associated with ineffective leadership. Furthermore, the study suggested that high emotional stability may actually accentuate ineffective behaviors.6 However, higher scores on Dark-Side traits and emotional stability can contribute to leadership emergence. Thankfully, both this study and other international research indicate that building self-awareness and self-regulation skills may be helpful for leaders to control the effects of their Dark-Side traits.7
Emotional Intelligence (EI) and Leadership
Another trait that may indicate effective leadership is emotional intelligence (EI). As discussed in Chapter 4, a core component of EI is empathy. Empathetic leaders can sense others’ needs, listen to what followers say (and don’t say), and read the reactions of others. A leader who effectively displays and manages emotions will find it easier to influence the feelings of followers by expressing genuine sympathy and enthusiasm for good performance, and by showing irritation when employees fail to perform.8 The link between EI and leadership effectiveness may be worth investigating in greater detail.9 Research has also demonstrated that people high in EI are more likely to emerge as leaders, even after taking cognitive ability and personality into account.10