Leadership styles of university managers toward job satisfaction, work commitment and behavioral outcome

LEADERSHIP STYLES OF UNIVERSITY MANAGERS TOWARD JOB SATISFACTION, WORK COMMITMENT AND BEHAVIORAL OUTCOME ___________________________ A DISSERTATION Presented to the Faculty of the Grad

LEADERSHIP STYLES OF UNIVERSITY MANAGERS TOWARD

JOB SATISFACTION, WORK COMMITMENT

AND BEHAVIORAL OUTCOME

_

A DISSERTATION Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School Southern Luzon State University, Lucban, Quezon, Philippines

in Collaboration with Thai Nguyen University, Socialist Republic of Vietnam

By

PHI DINH KHUONG (NADAL)

October 2014

CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY

This is to certify that the research work / dissertation entitled LEADERSHIP STYLES OF UNIVERSITY MANAGERS TOWARD JOB SATISFACTION, WORK COMMITMENT AND BEHAVIORAL OUTCOME, orally defended/ presented under the Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Management Program jointly offered by Southern Luzon State University of the Republic of the Philippines and Thai Nguyen University

of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, embodies the result of original and scholarly work carried out by the undersigned

This dissertation does not contain words or ideas taken from published sources or written works by other persons which have been accepted as basis for the award of any degree from other higher education institutions, except where proper referencing and acknowledgement were made

PHÍ ĐÌNH KHƯƠNG

Researcher Date Orally Defended: June, 27,2014

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The researcher wishes to express his heartfelt appreciation and gratitude to:

Dr Cecilia N Gascon, President of the Southern Luzon State

University, Republic of the Philippines for permission of training for Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Management in International Training Center, Thai Nguyen University;

Dr Dang Kim Vui, President of Thai Nguyen University for allowing

him to enrol for Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Management in International Training Center, Thai Nguyen University;

Dr Bella R Muello, his research adviser, who from the very

preparation of the study had always been there to give valuable suggestions and ideas for the completion of this study;

Dr Apolonia A Espinosa, for sharing her statistical skills in

evaluating this study and for her suggestions;

Dr Tran Thanh Van, head of postgraduate, Thai Nguyen University and Dr Nguyen The Hung, director of International Training Center for their

kind support throughout the course of this study;

Leaders of Universities and Colleges in Thai Nguyen for providing

respondents and for their untiring support to pursue this study;

Dr Cecilia N Gascon, Dr Walberto A Macaraan, Dr Teresita V

de la Cruz, Dr Apolonia A Espinosa and Dr Leonisa O Bernardo,

members of the panel, for their precious suggestions and supports for the completion of this study;

ITC staff, for providing the necessary research materials;

His beloved mother and wife for the encouragement, help and moral

support as his sources of strength and inspiration;

The teacher – respondents of the study, for their active involvement

and cooperation; and

To all who have contributed to make this study a success

Phi Dinh Khuong

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PAGE

TITLE PAGE ……… i

APPROVAL SHEET ……… ii

CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY ……… iii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ……… iv

DEDICATION ……… vi

TABLE OF CONTENTS ……… vii

LIST OF TABLES ……… ix

LIST OF FIGURES ……… x

LIST OF APPENDICES ……… xi

ABSTRACT ……… xii

Population and Sampling

LIST OF TABLES

1 Frequency, Percentage and Distribution of the

2 Weighted Mean Distribution on Ethical Leadership among

3 Weighted Mean Distribution on Charismatic Leadership

among the Ten Colleges in TNU……… 53

4 Weighted Mean Distribution on Transformational

Leadership among the Ten Colleges in TNU ……… 56

5 Weighted Mean Distribution on Transactional Leadership

among the Ten Colleges in TNU ……… 59

6 Mean and Rank Distribution on the Different Leadership

10 Correlation Between the Dominant Leadership Style with

Job Satisfaction, Commitment to Work and Behavioral

LIST OF FIGURES

1 Dominant Leadership Style Toward Job Satisfaction, Work

Commitment and Behavioral Outcomes of the Respondents 43

2 Location of Respondent Colleges in TNU, Thai Nguyen City,

LIST OF APPENDICES

C Frequency Distribution on Charismatic Leadership …… 83

D Frequency Distribution on Ethical Leadership ……… 88

E Frequency Distribution on Transformational Leadership 93

F Frequency Distribution on Transactional Leadership …… 98

G Frequency Distribution on Job Satisfaction ……… 103

H Frequency Distribution on Commitment to Work ………… 107

I Frequency Distribution on Behavioral Outcomes ……… 111

`

ABSTRACT

Title of Research : LEADERSHIP STYLES OF UNIVERSITY

MANAGERS TOWARD JOB SATISFACTION, WORK COMMITMENT AND BEHAVIORAL OUTCOME

Researcher : PHI DINH KHUONG (NADAL)

Degree Conferred : DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN EDUCATIONAL

MANAGEMENT Name and Address

of Institution

: Southern Luzon State University Lucban, Quezon, Philippines and Thai Nguyen University, Socialist Republic of Vietnam

Adviser : Dr Bella R Muello

Year Written : 2013 - 2014

This research determined to find out the most dominant leadership style and to correlate it with job satisfaction, work commitment and behavioral outcome It answered the following objectives: 1 Identify the different leadership styles of principals in 10 universities as to 1.1 ethical, 1.2 charismatic, 1.3 transformational and 1.4 transactional; 2 Determine the most dominant leadership style; 3 Ascertain the level of job satisfaction of the respondents; 4 Find out the degree of work commitment; 5 Find out the behavioral outcome of the subjects; and 6 Correlate the most dominant leadership styles with the three variables It used the descriptive correlation type of research where 300 respondents from Thai Nguyen University were utilized Random sampling was used The gathered data were computed using weighted mean, rank, and chi-square Based from the interpreted data the following findings were drawn: 1 The different leadership styles have the

following weighted mean 1.1 ethical – 3.15, 1.2 charismatic – 3.3, transformational – 3.29, and 1.4 transactional – 3.15; 2 Charismatic leadership style is the most dominant with an AWM of 3.30 (SA); 3 The level of job satisfaction is very satisfied with an AWM of 3.37; 4 AWM of 3.34 was obtained

on level of commitment to work (VC); 5 On behavioral outcomes, it got an AWM

of 3:30 (SA); 6 With a chi-square of 599, 504 and 205 consecutively on the three variables, it revealed that the computed value is higher than the critical value at 001 level of significance, thus the null hypothesis is rejected From the findings, the following conclusions were made: 1 the most dominant leadership style is charismatic leadership 2 The respondents are highly satisfied on the level of job satisfaction 3 The degree of work commitment is very evident 4 The respondents practice good behavior in their work 5 The correlation between charismatic leadership and the three variables are positively related

In view of the results of the study, the researcher recommends to use different samples coming from another institution to prove the reliability of the findings

Chapter I INTRODUCTION

In recent years, the leaders in Thai Nguyen University have paid considerable attention to education and university performance as key to sustainable development and stability Such recognition makes education an indispensable means for effective participation not only in the socio-economic development of the country but also in the on-going rapid globalization Throughout the years, it has been the goal of the educational system in Thai Nguyen to regard education as instrument to excellence for national development It follows therefore that the realization of the country’s educational policies and the performance of the administrators, lecturers and students at all levels of the system are intertwined

The kind of education can be reflected on the leadership style of managers It is an approach the leader uses to influence others In any organization, the leader’s behavior is partly reflected on how their constituents perform Their role and expectation can induce change in the behavior of the members

There is job satisfaction felt by the workers when their leaders provide them the needed attention and concern; good pay rewards, fair treatment and the like As defined by Smith (1992), job satisfaction is the feeling of being contented in one’s work When a job meets or exceeds an individual expectation, he often experiences positive emotion which in turn is a major

contribution to life satisfaction Eventually this job satisfaction will result to be more committed to do his work The worker brings out the best in him to achieve the goal assigned to him According to Meyer and Allens (1991) there are three components which characterize an employee’s commitment to the organization They are affective commitment which is an emotional attachment

to the organization; normative commitment which is to remain with the organization because of the feelings of obligation and continuance commitment where the employee commits to the organization because he will lose his membership to the organization, economic losses such as pension and the social cost which is the friendship ties with co-workers

Such kind of behavioral attitude of the employee to the employer, his workers and peers will make him a better person physically, mentally, socially and emotionally and all the people around him

co-As such the success of any group or organization depends on his leadership style, so if he is a strong leader and very effective in steering the organization toward the achievement of the mission, his subordinates will be satisfied, their commitment to do their job can also be ascertained on how to accomplish their duties and lastly a positive outlook in life results

Background of the Study

Thai Nguyen University (TNU) established by Decree No 31 dated on April 4th 1994 of the Government on the basis of the arrangement, reorganization of the university and vocational training under the Ministry of

Education and Training in Thai Nguyen Currently TNU consists of seven universities, one college and two faculties, a defense education center, a learning resource center, publisher, hospital and high university for practicing, the functional and scientific units for training and research

The establishment of TNU is implementing the guiding ideology of the party expressed through resolutions of the eighth National Party Congress, which is to build training centers for research education and high-quality technology transferring in the region For over 10 years, the consistent policy

of the Party and the State is to build and develop TNU and in fact, TNU has demonstrated the role, his position in the Vietnamese higher education system, particularly with the midlands and mountainous areas of northern Vietnam

Currently, at TNU there are 2587 teaching staff, including 230 doctors, 2 professors, 65 associate professors, over 780 masters and 200 PhD students, percentage of lecturers on the payroll process postgraduate degree from universities accounted for 66% Facilities, equipment and service of scientific and technological research of TNU are now considered fairly uniform and modern with 03 research institutes, 01 research centers and transferring technology, 07 key laboratories equipped with fairly uniform and modern In addition, there are Learning Resource Center, Publisher, Hospital Center for practicing and 05 centers, 01 Co., Ltd belongs to the members

TNU not only contributes positively to the training of highly qualified human resources for the country, but also has an important role in scientific research, technology transferring for training and socio-economic development

of the country At TNU, the teaching staff commonly shares, teaches at the university the teaching unit according to the needs

Despite this truth, records have shown that students’ performance in Thai Nguyen among other students in other regions, for example, Ha Noi, Ho Chi Minh City is quite below average (www.moet.gov.vn, http://home.vef.gov).Hence, principals and teachers of the university as a whole are held accountable for such malady The government’s inability to effectively sponsor education and motivate teachers to enhance their productivity is another factor viewed Additionally, principals’ leadership style might tremendously influence how scholastic performance progresses Manner and approach of providing values, vision, voice and virtue define what ethical leadership is With varying extent from authoritarian, participative to delegative (Lewin, 2000), one is not said to be effective over the others Nevertheless, it depends upon what is more acceptable and workable in the university system

Likewise, leadership, being a factor to the upliftment of university performance, has been at the care of much research and controversy for so many years

Taking leadership and all the variables as a whole, the university performance can be best viewed in a clearer and more thorough perspective

In effect, monitoring of the university’s performance in the locality makes this research even more imperative

Objectives of Study

The main purpose of this was to find out the dominant leadership style of the principals which influence the level of job satisfaction, commitment and behavioral outcomes of the respondents at Thai Nguyen University year 2012 –

2013

Specifically, it was conducted to:

1 Identify the different leadership styles of principals in 10 colleges of TNU as to:

3 Find out the level of job satisfaction of the respondents

4 Ascertain the commitment to work of the respondents

5 Find out the behavioral outcomes of the respondents

6 Correlate the dominant leadership style with these three mentioned variables

Null Hypothesis

None of the above mentioned variables is significantly correlated to the most dominant leadership style of school manager

Significance of the Study

This study attempts to know the influence of the dominant leadership style toward the level of job satisfaction, work commitment and behavioral

outcome With this is mind, this study will be beneficial to the following:

Leaders It is hoped that the study may contribute in giving a new

dimension in the administration and supervision of Thai Nguyen University The study would provide leaders with a clear idea on how effective and successful the principals are in the work as university administrators In the same manner, their leadership could give a fresh perspective in terms of its influence to the overall university standing in the academic aspect

Teachers The outcome of the study is of great help to teachers because

they will be made aware of the different leadership styles that would affect changes and improvements of the university The researcher may contribute to

a new avenue in his search for better ways to improve oneself and his work environment In this way, it would ultimately lead to a better quality performance

in the teaching force

Students They will be benefited by this study since they are the main

concerns of educators and any wholesome environment and relationship could create positive effect on the teaching and learning process The researcher hopes that the results and findings of the study will bring understanding and harmonious relationship among members of Thai Nguyen University

Future Researchers This study could provide references for future

proponents who wish to venture a study similar to the nature of this ongoing

research Thus, basic tenets on leadership and its variables could serve as resources for other studies

Scope and Limitation of the Study

This study was concerned on the dominant leadership style of university managers towards job satisfaction, work commitment and behavioral outcomes

of the respondents of Thai Nguyen University

There were 255 teachers used as respondents with questionnaire and interview as the main instruments in gathering the data The time frame of the study was from May 2013 to December 2013

Definition of Terms

For a better understanding of this study, the following terms are defined conceptually and operationally:

Behavioral outcomes refer to the attitudinal manifestation of the respondents

on any decision or activation of their leaders

Commitment to works refers to the dedication of the respondents to fulfill

his/her duties

Charismatic leadership refers to the exceptional sanctity, heroism or

exemplary character of an individual person

Ethical leadership refers to the proactive efforts to influence followers’ ethical

and unethical behavior

Job satisfaction refers to the feeling of fulfillment in the workplace such as

security, good working condition and relationship of the leader to his constituents

Leadership style focuses on identifying personality traits associated with

effective leadership and understanding the impact of situational factors

on the leadership process (Chemers & Ayman, 1993) In this study, it refers to ethical, charismatic, transformational and transactional leadership style

Transformational style encourages subordinates to put in extra effort to go

beyond what his subordinates expected from him (Burne, 1978)

Transactional style focuses mainly on the physical and the security needs of

his subordinates The relation that evolves between the leaders and the follower is based on bargaining exchange or reward system (Bass, 1985; Bass & Avolio, 1993)

Chapter II REVIEW OF LITERATURE

This chapter presents the relevant readings and related literature which bear significance and similarities in this study This also includes the discussion

of variables, theoretical framework, research paradigm that could help the readers to fully understand the context of this study

Leadership Styles

Leadership styles- are approaches a managers use to influence others These elements of a manager’s leadership style are composed of three parts: how they choose to motivate, their decision making styles and their areas of emphasis (orientation) in the work environment

1 Positive or Negative Motivation

Leaders influence others toward goal achievement through their approach to motivation Positive leadership style deals in praise and recognition, monetary rewards, increase of security and the addition of responsibility Negative leadership emphasizes penalties; loss of the job, suspension and public reprimands

Positive leadership styles encourage development of workers through the creation of higher job satisfaction while negative leadership styles are based on threats and the ability to withhold items of value from employees Autocratic leadership style- the main consideration of this type of leadership style is a strong emphasis on the task (production) and little concern

for people Decision-making is solely made by the manager and announces it

to the work group

Participative leadership- a leadership style where there is a large amount

of concern for both production and people This style is characterized by the manager’s involving the subordinates in the decision The involvement in decision making is a matter of degree and can range from the first to the last four levels of participation that follow:

1 The manager presents a tentative solution subject to change based

4 The manager and the employees jointly make the decision

The free-rein style of leadership or laizzes faire is a leadership style in which the leader shares power with subordinates by basically permitting them

to establish their own goals and to be responsible for their own performance It can work with some professionals, but it is too unstructured in most situations This style is characterized by the leaders’ encouraging the individual or group

to function independently In this style, the leaders’ role is to serve as a logistics specialist or representative of the group outside groups

2 Task Orientation and Employee Orientation

The final element of leadership is the manager’s perspective on the most

effective way of getting work done There are two key areas of orientation: task

and employee orientation

A manager who favors a task orientation places emphasis on getting the

job done through better methods or equipment, control of the work environment,

assigning and organizing work, one-person decision making and monitoring

through evaluation of performance If this is the sole emphasis of a manager, it

could lead to turnover, absenteeism, and decreased job satisfaction Different Approaches of Management

1 Contingency theories of Leadership by Fred Fiedler- which emphasizes

that no one style of leadership is completely effective for all situations A

oriented leadership is completely effective for all situations A

task-oriented leader, for example, performs most effectively in situations that are

very favorable for the leader, whereas relation-oriented leaders perform

most effectively on situations that are moderately favorable to the leader

He holds that the most appropriate style of leadership depends on the

situation in which a manager works; Situational favorableness was

described by Fiedler in terms of three empirically derived dimensions:

1 The leader-member relationship, which refers to the degree to which

the leaders is or feels accepted by the group

2 The degree of task structure concerns the nature of the subordinate’s

job or task It reflects the degree of structure in the job: a structured

job would have complexity and variety and room for creativity

3 The leader position power describes the organizational power based from which the individual manager operates To what degree can the leader punish or reward within the organization? The power can range from strong (vice president of marketing) to weak (second staff assistant)

A close examination of Fiedler’s model will show us that task-oriented leaders perform best with either low or high concentrations of power and influence Employee-oriented leaders perform best with moderate power, control and influence over a situation

2 Path Goal Theory of leadership is a situational theory that recognizes that employees are motivated to the extent that the leader helps them to attain their goal It is concerned with the ways in which a leader can influence a subordinate’s motivation, goals and attempts at achievement It suggests that a leadership style is effective or ineffective on the basis of how the leader influences the perceptions of:

1 work goals or reward of subordinates

2 paths (behaviors) that lead to successful goal accomplishment According to Robert House and Terrence Mithchell, subordinates are motivated by a leader’s behavior This behavior influences both goal attractiveness and the paths available to reach the goals Their theory contains two propositions concerning leader behavior:

1 Leader behavior is acceptable and satisfying to subordinates to the extent that they view such behavior as either an immediate source of satisfaction or an instrument to future satisfaction

2 Leader behavior will increase subordinates efforts if it links satisfaction

of their needs to effective performance, and is supportive of their efforts

to achieve goal performance

Briefly, the House version of the theory incorporates four major types or styles of leadership They are as follows:

1 Directive or instrumental leadership - subordinates know exactly what is expected of them and the leader gives specific directions There is no participation by subordinates

2 Supportive leadership - the leader is friendly and approachable and shows a genuine concern for subordinates It is concerned for the welfare and needs of subordinates

3 Participative leadership - it involves using subordinates ideas in decision making

4 Achievement-oriented leadership - involves both developing a highly challenging climate for an employee and demanding good performance The leader sets challenging goals for subordinates and shows confidence that they will attain these goals and perform well

3 Transformational Leadership Theory by Burns and Bass refers to a leader who is able to touch the needs and values of his/her followers in a way that

raises the motivational levels of all concerned and often turns them in a new direction

Ethical Leadership

Leadership has deep roots in virtue, and leaders are key organizational members who have extensive influence and power (Barling et al., 2010) Leaders have the “potential…to exert moral authority that contributes…to the flourishing of organizational members,” and they “can be purveyors of virtue or vice” (Neubert et al., 2009, p 157) Bass and Steidlmeier (1999) asserted that leadership is a “moral compass” (p 193) and that a leader’s moral character, ethical values, choices, and actions are the “pillars” of leadership (p 181) They assert that character strengths provide a comprehensive framework, systematic approach, and a common language (Park & Peterson, 2008) to further assess this potential The research uses this scaffolding to test character strengths’ semantic and practical contributions to our existing nomological network regarding leadership.Through their focus on the virtuous, moral, ethical, and relational aspects of leadership, three well - studied models of leadership theory share the greatest conceptual similarities with our proposed construct of leader character: transformational leadership (Bass, 1985), ethical leadership (Brown,Trevino, & Harrison, 2005), and leader - member exchange (Graen & Uhl - Bien, 1995) Ethical leadership is defined by social learning theory and represents “the demonstration of normatively appropriate conduct

through personal actions and interpersonal relationships, and the promotion of such conduct”(Brown et al., 2005, p 120) As such, ethical leaders exert a positive, “virtuous influence” on followers through role modeling and relationship - building (Neubert et al., 2009, p 165) and contribute to a “win - win” environment for both businesses and employees (Ruiz - Palomino, Ruiz - Amaya, & Knörr, 2011)

Ethical Leader Behavior

In the last few years, ethics and integrity have received a growing amount of attention in the leadership field Both transformational and authentic leadership have been described as containing an ethical component Related

to this, Craig and Gustafson developed a leader integrity measure that focused more on the negative rather than the positive side of integrity Integrity shows some conceptual overlap with ethical leadership, yet is only one element of ethical behavior (e.g., Palanski & Yammarino, 2007) Pseudo-transformational leaders have motives or intentions that are not legitimate and aim for undesirable goals Authenticity, on the other hand, functions as a moral compass that emphasizes serving the organization (Bass & Steidlmeier, 1999) Distinguishing between authentic and pseudo transformational leadership is complicated for followers according to Dasborough and Ashkansy (2002) as the behaviors shown by these two types of transformational leaders are the same, only their intentions vary Price (2003) points out that egoism or personalized motives may not form the only reason why leaders behave

unethically Leaders may, for instance, also behave unethically because (altruistic) values or actions based on (altruistic) values can be inconsistent

To sum up, transformational leadership can be unethical if the motivation is selfish (Bass, 1998), or if values do not guide behaviors sufficiently (Price, 2003).27 Chapter 2 Authentic leadership is another form of leadership, which some argue has an ethi-cal element (e.g., Avolio, &Gardner, 2005; May, Chan, Hodges, & Avolio, 2003) However, others do not see morality as a necessary component of authentic leadership (e.g., Shamir, & Eilam, 2005; Sparrowe, 2005) Authentic leadership is described as behaving in line with the true self and to know oneself (e.g., Gardner, Avolio, Luthans, May, & Walumbwa, 2005; May, et al., 2003; Sparrowe, 2005) Walumbwa et al (2008) empirically showed that Brown et al.’s measure of ethical leadership is related, but well distinguishable from authentic leadership One distinction is that ethical leaders also use transactional forms of leadership and authentic leaders don’t In other words, ethical leaders discipline and reward (un)ethical behaviors, which is less in line with authentic leadership (Brown et al., 2005; Walumbwa

et al., 2008).Researchers have also started to consider ethical leadership as a set of behaviors or a separate leadership style in itself rather than focusing only

on the ethical components of other leadership styles (Brown et al., 2005; De Hoogh & Den Hartog, 2008; 2009a; Kanungo, 2001) The fundamentals of ethics according to the Webster dictionary are dealing with what is good and bad, moral duty and moral obligation This relates closely to how Kanungo (2001) conceptualizes ethical leadership He takes an altruism approach and

addresses ethical leadership as a tension between altruistic and egoistic motives (e.g., Kanungo, 2001; Turner, Barling, Epitropaki, Butcher, & Milner, 2002) This approach suggests that an ethical leader is driven by a system of accepted beliefs and appropriate judgments rather than self-interest, which is beneficial for followers, organizations and society This way, Kanungo (2001) and Aronson (2001) emphasize the effect of leader’s actions on others as a major concern in ethical leadership Brown and colleagues (2005) take ethical leadership as a separate style a step further and define ethical leadership as: “the demonstration of normatively appropriate conduct through personal actions and interpersonal relationships and the promotion of such conduct to followers through two-way communication, reinforcement and decision-making” (p 120) Ethical leaders act as role models of appropriate behavior and use reward and punishment to stimulate ethical conduct (Brown

et al., 2005; Treviño et al., 2003) Brown et al (2005) address ethical leadership from a social learning perspective and suggest that followers will come to behave similar to their leader through imitation and observational learning (cf., Bandura, 1986) In addition to this social learning approach, others view ethical leadership from a social exchange approach (e.g., Mayer, Kuenzi, Greenbaum, Bardes, & Salvador, 2009; Turner et al., 2002) Researchers using a social exchange approach focus more on the norm for reciprocity (Cropanzano & Mitchell, 2005) and hold that followers are willing to reciprocate when treated fairly and with concern by their leaders (e.g., Mayer

et al., 2009) Both views help understand individuals´ reactions to ethical leader

behavior Other perspectives on ethical leadership are also found For example, Dickson, Smith, Grojean and Ehrhart (2001) focus on the role leaders have in creating an ethical climate and Resick and colleagues (2006) focus on how leaders use their power in decisions and actions Similarly,

De Hoogh and Den Hartog (2009a) emphasize ethical leaders’ socially responsible use of power and see ethical leadership as the process of influencing in a social responsible way others’ activities toward goal achievement Although Brown and colleagues (2005) suggest a uni-dimensional measure of ethical leader behavior, both Resick et al (2006) and

De Hoogh and Den Hartog (2008) have started to investigate ethical leadership

as a multi-dimensional construct Different leader behaviors have been suggested to be part of ethical leadership, including acting fairly, demonstrating consistency and integrity, promoting ethical conduct, being concerned for people, allowing followers’ voice, and sharing power (Brown et al., 2005; De Hoogh & Den Hartog, 2008; 2009a; Den Hartog & De Hoogh, 2009) De Hoogh and Den Hartog (2009a) argue that ethical leader behavior is multidimensional, and as different ethical leader behaviors are theoretically rather different, they may have different antecedents and consequences They suggest measuring such dimensions separately is important Thus, ethical leader behavior may be regarded as an overarching construct composed

of multiple distinct, yet related leader behaviors However, previous research has not developed or validated a measure that differentiates between such behaviors As with other leadership styles (e.g., transactional, transformational,

servant), the identification and empirical support for multiple dimensions increases our comprehension of both the leadership style itself and the relationships such a style has with employee attitudes and conducts

Ethical Leader Behavior Dimensions

A review of the ethical leadership literature suggests several behavioral dimensions of ethical leadership in organizations We build on work

by Brown and Treviño as well as several others in the field as theoretical bases for distinguishing these behaviors De Hoogh and Den Hartog (2008) distinguished three dimensions of ethical leadership (i.e., fairness, power sharing, and role clarification) and related the content of these dimensions to Brown et al (2005) In addition to fairness, power sharing and role clarification, we also include people oriented behavior, integrity, ethical guidance, and concern for sustainability in our measure as these are behaviors found in the ethical leader behavior literature (see below) Based on

De Hoogh and Den Hartog (2008), the first three dimensions we included were fairness, power sharing and role clarification These behaviors are also reflected in the work by Brown et al (2005) First, fairness is seen as an important form of ethical leader behavior Ethical leaders act with integrity and treat others fairly They make principled and fair choices, are trustworthy and honest, do not practice favoritism, and take responsibility for their own actions (Brown et al., 2005; De Hoogh & Den Hartog, 2008; Treviño et al., 2003) Second, power sharing is also seen as an ethical leader behavior De Hoogh

and Den Hartog (2009a) argue that ethical leaders allow subordinates a say in decision making and listen to their ideas and concerns and Resick et al (2006) argue for an empowering aspect of ethical leadership Similarly, Brown et al (2005) suggest ethical leaders provide followers with voice Sharing power allows subordinates more control and makes them less dependent on their leaders (Yukl, 2006) Third, ethical leaders are transparent and engage in open communication (Brown et al., 2005) In line with this, De Hoogh and Den Hartog (2008) point to the importance of transparency in clarifying performance goals and expectations and distinguish role clarification as a component of ethical leadership Ethical leaders clarify responsibilities, expectations, and performance goals, so that subordinates’ know what is expected from them and understand when their performance is up to par Subordinates do not worry unnecessarily about unclear expectations and know how they can meaningfully contribute to meeting the unit’s or organization’s goals Theoretical work also suggests additional ethical leader behaviors An important one is people orientation or having a true concern for people This was one of the most frequently mentioned parts of ethical leadership in Treviño et al.’s (2003) qualitative study Resick et al (2006) also describe ethical leaders as people-oriented The people orientation component

in ethical leadership reflects genuinely caring about, respecting, and supporting subordinates and where possible ensuring their needs are met (Kanungo & Conger, 1993; Treviño et al., 2003) Next, Treviño et al (2003) argue that ethical leaders clearly convey standards regarding ethical conduct

Organizations and top management set rules, standards and codes of conduct, which provide guidelines for ethical behavior (Beu & Buckley, 2001) and leaders can raise subordinates’ awareness of such guidelines Ethical leaders also use rewards and punishments to hold subordinates responsible for their actions (Treviño et al., 2003) According to Brown and colleagues (2005), ethical leaders guide followers in setting priorities and in ethical dilemmas they experience We label this ethical guidance, which implies communication about ethics, explanation of ethical rules, and promotion and reward of ethical conduct among subordinates.Treviño et al.’s (2003) qualitative study also suggests that ethical leaders are characterized by a broad ethical awareness Ethical awareness implies such leaders are concerned about (the impact on) stakeholders and society A stakeholder perspective suggests ethical leaders have a responsibility to protect and promote the interests of their stakeholders (Donaldson & Preston, 1995) In line with this, Kanungo and Mendonca (1996) argue that ethical leaders take the effects of their behavior on the surroundings into account, including the society and environment The importance of a broader view on others in the firm and society as well as on the natural environment is also found in the corporate social responsibility literature (e.g., Waldman et al., 2006) A somewhat related research field on sustainable leadership is emerging For example, Hargeaves and Fink (2004) developed a theoretical view on sustainable leadership for the educational sector They suggest sustainability entails focusing on the development of others in the environment, distribution of responsibilities, and endurance over time

(Hargeaves & Fink, 2004; 2006) Ferdig (2007) takes a responsibility point

of view and argues that sustainable leaders act beyond their self-interests However, so far research on ethical leader behavior within firms has not incorporated the potential importance of environmental or society responsibility Here, we include environment orientation as an ethical leader behavior This encompasses leaders’ paying attention to sustainability issues, considering the impact of their actions beyond the scope of their own workgroup, and demonstrating care about the welfare of the society

Finally, we distinguish integrity based on the behavioral integrity literature Integrity behaviors are described as word-deed alignment or the extent to which what one says is in line with what one does (e.g., Dineen, Lewicki, & Tomlinson, 2006; Palanski & Yammarino, 2007, 2009) Leaders who keep promises and behave consistently can be trusted or believed because they work or behave as expected (Simons, 2002) Similarly, Yukl (2006) describes leaders as being ethical when they keep promises and behave consistently Thus, ethical leaders keep their promises and act consistently, in

a predictable way, which we label integrity To summarize, we distinguish seven ethical leader behaviors: fairness, people orientation, role clarification, ethical guidance, environment orientation, power sharing and integrity

Charismatic Leadership

Charismatic Leadership is a leadership style that is recognizable but may

be perceived with less tangibility than other leadership styles This reality is

likely due to the difficulty associated with directly defining charisma in an individual when only examining the individual Max Weber’s work in defining charisma led to his categorizing charisma as an untraditional form of influence where the leader possesses exceptional qualities as perceived by his or her followers (Yukl, 2010) Charisma is often a trait that one perceives in another, but is difficult in describing that perception without directly referring to particular behaviors, traits, or individual characteristics Yukl (2010) notes, “Follower attribution of charismatic qualities to a leader is jointly determined by the leader’s behavior, expertise, and aspects of the situation” Exceptional behaviors and expertise aside, contextual factors such as a crisis play a significant role in the attribution of charisma (Conger & Kanungo) Therefore, the basic premise of this study is that followers will attribute charisma to a leader when that leader possesses exceptional behavior and expertise and when the situational context is conducive Ronald Reagan is used as an exemplar of charismatic leadership Reagan’s communication skills, visionary attributes, integrity, humor, expertise, and the situational context of his presidency willbe examined, pertaining to how followers attributed charisma to him Effective communication is an essential quality in any leadership style In that regard, charismatic leadership is no different, but charismatic leaders act differently than non-charismatic leaders (Fiol, 1999) For the charismatic leader, effective communication requires more than merely the dissemination of information To be effective, charismatics often include emotional appeals within their rhetoric (Yukl, 2010) This includes the use

of dramatic, symbolic, and metaphoric language that lends credibility to the communication (Conger & Kanungo) Ideas, thoughts, and concepts must be articulated in an inspirational and motivating manner (Conger, Kanungo, & Menon, 2000) When charismatics communicate with passion, emotion, inspiration, and motivation, followers are likely to attribute charisma Additionally, charismatics must appear confident and communicate that self-confidence in their rhetorical efforts This is especially true for distant charismatic leaders who only communicate with followers through media such as television, radio, or Internet (Yukl, 2010) Therefore, it is expected that a charismatic leader would be recognized for exciting and passionate public oratory The methods of this communication are integral to the attribution of charisma The message is obviously important, but the importance of the delivery of the message supersedes that of the message itself Charismatic leaders may be best known and/or remembered for rousing public speeches where the crowd became frenzied with excitement Charismatic leaders must also bridge the distance gap and effectively communicate through a variety of media in order to be considered charismatic

by larger groups of people

A widely accepted framework is that of Conger and Kanungo (1998), who explain that charismatic leadership is typified by four key characteristics: possessing and articulating a vision, willing to take risks to achieve the vision, exhibiting sensitivity to follower needs, and demonstrating novel behavior

Three interesting conceptual issues are worthy of discussion here First, much of the work on charismatic leadership has eschewed the Weberian perspective that charismatic leaders are rare or extraordinary Conger (1989,

p 161), for example, opined that charisma ªis not some magical ability limited

to a handful.º Charismatic leadership has been tamed in that it is assumed that charisma is a property possessed by all individuals, to a greater or lesser degree On the one hand, if we are to empirically study charismatic leadership,

we cannot do so based on the assumption that it is a quality held by a handful

of individuals (there are not enough such leaders to study) On the other hand,

if charisma is seen as relatively prosaic, have we damaged the concept? Clearly, the charismatic qualities of political leaders from Lincoln to Hitler, religious leaders from Martin Luther to Pope John Paul II, and business leaders from Estle Lauder to Jack Welch, do not seem to be a general commodity

Finally, though Conger has often described the dark side of charismatic leadership, judging from the research literature, he seems like a lone voice As the afore mentioned examples of charismatic leaders suggest, however, charismatic leadership seemingly can be used for either good or bad ends, depending on one’s perspective and the hindsight of history It seems obvious that charismatic leadership is neither inherently good nor evil, but the implicit assumption in the literature has been that it is a positive force in organizations

Transformational style