Roseanne J. Foti

A pattern approach to the study of leader emergence

Abstract Past research on the emergence of leaders in groups has typically examined relationships between individual trait variables and emergence. The current study extends work of the past by developing a multi-variable pattern approach, along with the traditional examination of individual trait measures, in the domain of emergent leadership. The personality pattern examined in this study uses the variables dominance, intelligence and general self-efficacy. All three trait variables were significantly positively associated with leader emergence. Individuals high in all three traits (HHH) emerged significantly more frequently than all other individuals while those low in all three traits (LLL) emerged significantly less frequently than all other individuals. This study demonstrates that the pattern approach is useful in the study of emergent leadership. Implications for the future research in emergent leadership are discussed.

Pattern and Variable Approaches in Leadership Emergence and Effectiveness.

This study examined variable and pattern approaches to studying the influence of individual differences on both leadership emergence and leader effectiveness. Emergent leaders were identified and then followed for 9 months of effectiveness data gathering. Bivariate correlation and regression analyses were complemented by person-based analyses. Results showed that the same pattern of individual differences (high intelligence, high dominance, high general self-efficacy, and high self-monitoring) was associated with both leadership emergence and leader effectiveness. Persons scoring high on the set of individual difference variables emerged as leaders, were promoted to leadership positions, and were rated by their superiors as effective leaders.

Evaluating the Interaction Between Self-Leadership and Work Structure in Predicting Job Satisfaction

Recent research in organizational psychology has recognized the value of exploring the person-situation interactional perspective as a determinant of work outcomes. The present field study investigated the interaction between self-leadership and work structure (supervisory structure and job autonomy) and their relation to job satisfaction. Seventy-six employees provided measures of self-leadership, employment characteristics, and job satisfaction. Performance data for participants was also collected from the organization. Satisfaction was higher for employees with high (low) self-leadership who worked in low (high) structure environments. These results suggest that affective response to the job may be influenced by specific combinations of person and situation variables. Implications of the current results with regard to person-environment fit are discussed.

Are the Best Leaders Both Transformational and Transactional? A Pattern-oriented Analysis

Research exploring transformational and transactional leader behaviors has focused largely on bivarite relations among these behaviors and relevant criteria. This has limited the extent to which Basss (1985) argument that optimally effective leaders engage in both types of behavior can be directly assessed. Pattern-oriented analyses were used here to discern which behavioral pattern was associated with the highest levels of subordinate satisfaction and commitment. In general, optimally effective leaders used a combination of transformational and contingent reward (e.g. exchange-based transactional leadership) behaviors, coupled with a low level of passive management-by-exception behavior (e.g. remaining uninvolved until problems emerge).

The influence of individual differences on the perception and categorization of leaders

This paper focuses on two observer individual differences which impact leadership perceptions: expertise and familiarity with the target person. The literature is reviewed and implication for leader-follower interactions are discussed.

The impact of shared leadership on teamwork mental models and performance in self-directed teams:

The purpose of this study was to clarify the role of shared leadership in self-directed teams by testing its relationship with teamwork mental models and team performance. Data from 40 intact, naturally occurring teams involved in highly interdependent tasks demonstrated that the distribution of informal leadership and whether or not perceptions of leadership were reciprocated among leaders were related to the degree of similarity and accuracy of team mental models as well as subsequent team performance. Specifically, teams with a coordinated type of shared-leadership perception demonstrated significantly higher levels of team mental model similarity, team mental model accuracy, and team performance than teams with a distribution of leaders that failed to recognize each other as leaders as well as teams with no leaders. However, teams with distributed-coordinated leadership were significantly different than teams with centralized leadership only with respect to team mental model accuracy scores. Finally, this study builds on prior research by demonstrating that the team mental model accuracy contributes more to team performance than team mental model similarity.

Leader Emergence And Gender Roles in All-Female Groups: A Contextual Examination

Research suggests that gender role, rather than sex, is associated with the perception of individuals as leaders. This study tests the effect of gender role and intelligence on leadership emergence by using a pattern approach and manipulating task type. Two hundred female undergraduate participants, categorized by their pattern of masculinity, femininity, and intelligence, were placed in groups of 4 members. Groups were randomly assigned to an initiating-structure or consensus-building task condition. In the initiating-structure task condition, both masculine-intelligent and androgynous-intelligent individuals emerged more than feminine-intelligent or mixed-pattern individuals. In the consensus-building task condition, feminine-intelligent individuals did not emerge as leaders more than masculine-intelligent or mixed-pattern individuals. However, partial support was found for the emergence of androgynous-intelligent individuals.

Reactions to Appraisal Discrepancies: Performance Ratings and Attributions

The traditional top-down approach to performance appraisal has been criticized as not keeping pace with the move toward more participative organizations of the last decade. This has led many organizations to adopt newer performance appraisal systems that use multiple feedback sources (e.g., 360-degree feedback systems). However, research indicates that multiple feedback sources often disagree on performance ratings and attributions. The current paper reports the results of one laboratory and one field study that show the importance of performance and attributional rating discrepancies on the appraisal process.

Individual differences and organizational forms in the leadership process

Abstract In this series of letters, Jack Miner and Roseanne Foti exchange their views on the role of individual differences and organizational forms in the leadership process. Foti takes a position more oriented toward individual differences; Miner is more oriented toward organizational form. This exchange leads to a call for more research emphasizing the diversity of organization forms and a person focus to incorporate both the complexity of the situation as well as the complexity of the leader.

If You’re Not With Me You’re . . . ? Examining Prototypes and Cooperation in Leader–Follower Relationships

This study investigated how congruence between dyadic partners’ leader and follower prototypes affects leader–member exchange (LMX) quality. Specifically, we examined cooperation as a process variable in the dyadic relationship. Participants in a laboratory setting completed a group task followed by dyadic task in the context of a leader–follower relationship. Observed cooperation mediated the relationship between congruence on leader prototypes and leader assessed LMX quality, and the relationship between congruence on leader prototypes and LMX agreement. As congruence on leader prototypes decreased, leaders were less likely to be cooperative in an exchange relationship. As congruence on follower prototypes decreased, there was a greater chance leaders would cooperate but followers would defect.