Contingency & Situational Leadership

• News

• Term paper

• Theories

• Path-Goal

• Multiple Linkage Model

• Leader-Member Exchange (LMX) & Vertical Dyad Linkage (VDL)

• Team Task

Question: what is the relationship between leaders & followers & how

does that affect response?

Term Paper Format

[Cover Page]

Title

Your Name

Course # & title

Instructor

Date

How you can be reached:

Phone

Fax

E-mail

Title

The purpose of this paper is to…. Overview what you will do.

Introduction of theory: major components, assumptions, why selected

Application of theory to case:

• Briefly describe the case

• Explain the situation in terms of the theory

• Use the theory to recommend intervention

Evaluate the theory

References

BE SURE to check writing suggestions on the website!!!

Path-Goal Theory of Robert House & Martin Evans

• Key question: How to choose the best path to reach the goal (based on expectancy theory of motivation)

• Follower characteristics: locus of control & self efficacy

• Environmental characteristics: situational demands such as task structure, level of authority, & work group

• Vary leadership style depending on contingencies

• Ensure subordinate goals are consistent with organizational goals

• Enhance work satisfaction & productivity

How would you create a model out of these building blocks?

Path-Goal Theory

• In the early 1970’s House & Evans proposed path-goal theory

• Specifies what a leader should do to achieve high productivity & satisfaction

• This is done by clarifying the path to the work/performance goal

• The leadership style should consider needs of the worker and task demands, and match efforts accordingly

• It identifies four worker needs and corresponding leader styles

Sample Locus of Control Scale Items

Outcomes are influences by luck, fate, chance, or powerful others

Outcomes are influenced by oneself, motivation, skill and effort

Subordinate Self-Perception factors in Path-Goal

Subordinate Self-Efficacy & Path-Goal

Staples, D. S., Hulland, J. S., & Higgins, C. A. (1998). A Self-Efficacy Theory Explanation for the Management of Remote Workers in Virtual Organizations. Journal of Computer Mediated Communication, 3(4), http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol3/issue4/staples.html

Study showing variance accounted for (R2) by self-efficacy in remote workers in virtual organizations

You prefer what you are…

Performance influence tactics

• Recognize & activate needs over which leader has influence

• Increase personal and team payoffs for high performance

• Coach and direct to make paths to rewards easier

• Help clarify his expectations lead to performance & performance leads to rewards (Vroom’s expectancy theory)

• Remove and reduce barriers to performance and goals

• Make opportunities for personal satisfaction contingent on performance

• Avoid micro-managing that may induce regression in worker maturity (Argyris)

• Clarify desirability of goals, provide structure, and make rewards contingent on performance to enhance productivity & satisfaction.

Multiple-Linkage Model (Yukl, 1994)

• Recognizes complexity in formal organizations

• Incorporates other theories

• Leaders have short (tactical) and long term (strategic) impact

• Short term relies on skillful correction of deficiencies of intervening variables in the work unit

• Long term relies on leader changing situational variables to be more favorable (e.g., strategic planning, policy formation, program development, organizational change, political activity, etc. )

Short-term

Long-term

Extent to which these are appropriately used will reflect the leader’s success

Vertical Dyad Linkage (VDL) / Leader-Member Relations (LMX)

• Think of a work/team situation in which there have been an “in-group (close to the boss) and “out-group” (well established but just not given those special tasks)

• How what influenced the formation of those two groups?

• What did the boss expect of each group? How did s/he treat them differently?

• What were advantages and disadvantages of being in each group?

• How did the groups perceive each other?

• How could it be made to work more effectively?

Vertical-Dyad Linkage Model (Dansereau, Cashman, & Graen, 1973)

• Leaders behave differently toward employees depending on whether they are in-group or out-group;

• Focus is on the dyadic relationship, not the individual; leadership varies from dyad to dyad

• Each dyad is seen as a social exchange unit in which the leader exchanges privilege for performance

• Negotiating latitude: as relationship evolves, the leader enables the role incumbent to further define his/her own role

• Leaders with low POWn give more negotiating latitude to subordinates with low POWn than to those with high POWn

Phase 1: Role-taking as leaders and members come to understand how the other views and desires respect.

Phase 2: Role-making is the trust that develops in order for leaders and members to further extend the relationship and influence over each other's attitudes and behaviors

Phase 3: Role-routinization of the social exchange pattern becomes routine 

• performance

Team Discussion

• Each team will select a theory & use it to discuss a case

• Consider how well the theory accounts for the case, lends itself to explanation and intervention

• Evaluate the theory

• Report to the class