LECTURE 5 & 6 (Educational

Administration)
THEORIES OF LEADERSHIP
Introduction
In lecture 4 we considered theories of motivation. In this lecture
we shall discuss theories of leadership. Leadership is an
interesting but complex endeavor as there are many variables
surrounding it. It is also broad as many theories have been
proposed in an attempt to understand this phenomenon. This
lesson discusses only some of the aspects and theories associated
with leadership, as it is impossible to study all the theories that
have been proposed by various writers in this module.
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5.2 Expected Learning Outcomes (ELOs)
By the end of the lesson, the learner shall be able to;
ELO1: Define the term leadership.
ELO2:Identify various types of leadership
ELO3: Examine the various types of authority and power.
ELO4: Discuss various approaches of leadership.
ELO5: Analyse the various leadership styles (namely; autocratic/authoritarian,
democratic/participative and Leissez feire leadership styles.)
ELO6: Analyse the strengths/advantages and weakness/disadvantages of
using the autocratic, democratic and leissez feire styles of leadership.
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5.3. Definition of leadership
• There are various definitions of the term leadership proposed by
numerous writers of educational and general administration. Hoy
&Miskel (1983, 270-271); Hoy and Miskel (2008: 418-419 have stated
some of these definitions as follows.
• To lead is to engage in an act that initiates a structure-in-interaction
as part of the process of solving a mutual problem—John K. Hemphill.
• Leadership is power based predominantly on personal characteristics
usually normative in nature-Amital Sizioni.
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• The leader is the individual in the group given the task of directing and
coordinating relevant group activities—Tied F. Fiedler.
• Leadership is a particular type of power relationship characterized by a
group member`s perception that another group member has the right to
prescribe behavior patterns for the former regarding his activity as a group
member—Kenneth F. Janda
• The essence of organizational leadership is the influential increment over
the routine directives of the organization-Daniel Katz and Robert L. Khan
• Leadership is the initiation of new structure or procedure for accomplishing
an organization`s goals and objectives or for changing an organization`s
goals and objectives-James Lpman
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• Leadership is the process of influencing the activities of an
organized group toward goal setting and goal achievement-
Rach M. Stogdil.
• Leadership takes place in groups of two or more people and
most frequently involve influencing group member behavior
as it relates to the pursuit of group goals-Robert J. House and
Mary L.baetz.
• Leadership is the process of social influence in which one
person is able to enlist the aid and support of others in the
accomplishment of a common task (Hoy and Miskel, 2019);
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• Leadership is assisting followers to accomplish the goals that we have
identified as important to help the children in our school achieve
success as learners (Daresh, 2006:29);
• Leadership can be defined as the will to control events, the
understanding to chart a course, and the power to get a job done,
cooperatively using the skills and abilities of other people (Krause,
2003;30);
• Leadership is an activity or set of activities, observable to others, that
occurs in a group, organization, or institution and which involves a
leader and followers who willingly subscribe to common purposes and
work together to achieve them (Cunningham and Cordeiro, 2003, 137).
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Note
• Study all the definitions of leadership stated above as well as others proposed
by other writers in other books and references and isolate all the attributes
and variables that you think are important in conceptualizing the meaning of
leadership. Then state your own definition of leadership and show why your
definition is preferable to any other two definitions stated above.
• It is notable from all the various definitions stated above that there are many
variables and dimensions to be considered in any attempt to conceptualize the
meaning of the term leadership. However, we can simply define leadership as:
• “The ability to persuade others or the art or process of influencing people in a
group towards the realization of organizational goals”
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Components of leadership
• Three major components of leadership have been identified
by Knezevich (1975) and Katz and Khan in Hoy and Miskel
(1987). Knezevich (1975:81), for instance notes that
leadership is;
• (1) An attribute of personality (symbolic leadership); (2) a
status, title, or position recognized in a formal organizational
chart (formal leadership); and (3) a function or role
performed in an organized group (functional leadership).
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• This implies that it must be taken into account that leadership is
exercised by the people occupying formal positions as well as others
who wield a lot of influence and power, yet they do not occupy formal
leadership positions. Leadership also implies the existence of
followers for without follows, there would not be any leadership.
• Katz and Khan in Hoy and Miskel (1987: 271) on the other hand in an
attempt to describe the natre and meaning of leadership have also
identified three major components of the concept. These are namely;
(i) an attribute of an office or position; (ii) a characteristic of a person;
and (iii) a category of actual behavior.
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5.4 Types of Leadership
From the various components of leadership noted
above, three types of leadership have been
isolated by Knezevich (1975), that is
• Formal leadership
• Symbolic leadership
• Functional leadership
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5.4.1 Formal leadership
• The leader in a formal organization is the person who
occupies a formal leadership position. Knezevich (1975:83)
observes that; the individual occupying a given status in the
organization or holding a specific title of office or placed in a
certain position in the hierarchy or granted special authority
in the formal oforganization is automatically considered a
leader. This recognition may disappear when he vacates
status, title, position or office.
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• School principal, Head teachers, deputy head
teachers and head of departments in primary
and secondary schools therefore occupy formal
leadership positions.
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5.4.2. Symbolic leadership.
• Many writers (especially the early writers) have
conceived leadership as an attribute of personality.
According to Knezevich (1975:82) this view of leadership
postulates that, ‘leaders are born not made,’ that is,
some have it, some don`t. The leader stimulates and
unifies the activities of others along certain paths
because of the way he looks and his personality.
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This is charismatic approach to leadership and bears a strong
kinship to trait psychology. Knezevich further contends that the
‘romantic concept of the leader endowed with almost magical
attributes can be traced to a longing for security’. (p.82). This
has led to the leader being idealized, with almost ‘unlimited
powers’ and none of the faults and shortcomings found in
ordinary humans. He becomes the “father image” or the
“security symbol”. Hence, such a leader is seen as being
stronger, more intelligent, more cultured, more impressive
than the average person.
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5.4.3. Functional leadership
• Leadership can also be viewed in terms of the functions one
is performing or is expected to perform in the group. In other
words, the criterion for leadership is based on: what the
leader does to help the group define its goals, achieve its
objectives, or maintain its strength as a body. Unless a
person can fulfill one or more of these group functions, he is
not a functional leader no matter how charming his
personality or how impressive the title of this position.
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Functional leadership is therefore an attempt to
conceptualize leadership in terms of the functions the
leaders is performing rather than considering (i) his or
her personal attributes and characteristics or (ii) the
position one is occupying in the organization, hence,
Knezevich (1975) notes that,’ leadership(now)emerges
as a group phenomenon, a function essential in
organized groups’.
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5.5. Authority and Power
• Two distinct elements that are closely
associated with leadership are ‘authority
and power’. The section below discusses the
meaning and nature of these two concepts,
that is, ‘authority’ and ‘power’ with the aim
of making a clear distinction between them.
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5.5.1. Authority
• Authority is necessary in every organization as it ensures that tasks
are carried out and that as a result the organizational objectives are
achieved which otherwise be impossible. Authority exists when a
common set of beliefs (norms) in a school legitimizes the use of
power as “right and proper.” Weber (1947) distinguishes three types
of authority –charismatic, traditional, and legal- according to the kind
of legitimacy typically claimed by each. Other scholars and
organizational theorists have extended these basic concepts of
authority.
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Definition of authority
• Authority can be defined as;
• “the right to commit resources in particular courses of organizational
action.”
• “the probability that certain specific commands (or all commands) from
a given source will be obeyed by a given group of persons.
• “the right conferred on an individual to make decisions and ensure that
these decisions are followed”
• It is important to note that authority unlike power does not involve the
use of force.
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Types of authority
• Having defined authority, we now need to establish the various types
of authority that have been identified by various authors. These are:
• Formal authority
• Charismatic authority
• Traditional authority
• Legal authority
• Functional authority
• Acceptance theory of authority
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a) Formal authority
• Formal authority emanates from one’s legal position in the
organization. The person in this formal leadership position has
authority to issue commands and directives to other employees in
accordance to the rules and regulations. It is also expected that when
one joins an organization, he or she is expected to obey his superior
within certain acceptable limits (see Hoy and Miskel, 2008). Formal
authority usually flows from those in leadership positions to those in
lower positions.
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• The head teacher or principal of a school has for instance,
formal authority by virtue of occupying the position of a
head teacher or principal. Other teachers, support staff and
pupils are expected to obey his or her directives under
certain acceptable limits. It is, however important to note
that teachers, support staff and pupils are not expected to
agree to head teachers or principals demands if these
demands are unacceptable e.g. having sexual relations or
cleaning the head teachers or principals’ home or compound
during night hours.
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b) Charismatic authority
This type of authority emanates from the leader’s personal qualities and
characteristics e.g. physical attributes such as strength or beauty, knowledge,
ability, skill, status and age, among others.
Hoy and Miskel (2008:220) note that;
Charismatic authority tends to be non-rational, affective, or emotional and
rests heavily on the leader’s personal qualities and characteristics. The
authority of the charismatic leader results primarily from the leader’s
overwhelming personal appeal, and typically a common value orientation
emerges within the group to produce an intense normative commitment to
and identification with the person.
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One of the teachers in the school may be able to
wield a lot of power over the other teachers or
the students due to being extremely
knowledgeable on any subject, intelligent and
eloquent. Others may simply agree and want to
be identified with him because they perceive him
as having ‘a mystique’ or ‘a magical aura ‘that
they themselves do not possess.
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c) Traditional authority
• The traditional sanctioned position of authority is obeyed and the
person currently occupying the position inherits the authority. Hence
this authority emanates from traditions, beliefs, culture. As Hoy and
Miskel (2008:220) observes: traditional authority is anchored in an
established belief in the sanctity of the status of those exercising
authority in the past. Obedience is owed to the traditionally
sanctioned position of authority, and the person who occupies the
position inherits the authority established by custom.
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In traditional African societies, medicine men,
those performing circumcision rites and midwives
were, for instance, obeyed without any
questioning. In a school, for example, students
may accept the authority of the position and obey
the teacher because their parents and
grandparents did so before them.
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d) Legal authority (laws status, decrees, constitutions
and court decisions)
It is based on enacted laws that can be changed by
formally correct procedures. Therefore, the source of
this authority is the law and can only be changed by
formally correct procedures. Obedience is to the law
that specify to whom and to the extent of compliance
(Hoy and Miskel, 2008: 221).
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In a school situation, there are laws that dictates
how the school should function e.g. in the
absence of the head teacher or principal, the
deputy head teacher or principal assumes the
role of the head teacher or principal and is
answerable to higher educational authorities for
events occurring during the absence of head
teacher or principal.
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e) Functional authority
The sources of this authority include authority of competence and
authority of the person. Therefore, functional authority is one which is
limited to the function one is playing at a given time or situation. This
authority emanates from one’s competence or technical skills. During
an emergency, such as when a road accident occurs, any doctor in the
crowd will have authority over others due to his experience on medical
matters. The teacher who takes pupils or students for a school tour has
the overall authority during the trip.
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He or she can make all decisions such as involving the police in case of
an emergency (e.g. if a pupil or student goes missing) yet in normal
school time, he has no authority to call or involve the police. Instead,
the head teacher or principal (or the deputy head teacher during the
head’s absence) is the only one who has such authority. A technician
also has authority over others due to his or her technical knowledge
and skills. Others follow his or her directives as he or she has more
knowledge and competence than they have e.g. he is the only one who
can repair faulty school machines such as, computers, farm machineries
and televisions, among others, and make them work again.
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f) Acceptance theory of authority
Authority emanates from the subordinate that is if they
accept the authority then it exists but if they do not
accept it then the superior has no authority.
Subordinates will accept order or decision if it is within
their zones of acceptance but will reject order or decision
if it is not within ‘zones of acceptance’. The challenge to
the leader or administrator is to gain the acceptance of
his/her subordinates.
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5.5.2. Power
Power is closely related to authority. Without power there is no
organization and no order.
Mostly, power is used when authority has been abused.
Power can also be said to be the ability to employ sanctions or force or
to give rewards in an effort to have something or make others do
something.
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The five types of power discussed here below, can be grouped
into two broad categories-organisational and personal.
Reward, coercive and legitimate powers are bound to the
organizational position (Hoy and Miskel, 2008). The higher the
position, the greater the potential for power. In contrast,
referent and expert power depend much more on the
personal attributes of the administrator, such as personality,
leadership style, knowledge and interpersonal skill. In brief,
some sources of power are more amenable to organizational
control, whereas others are more dependent on personal
characteristics.
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i) Legitimate power
• Legitimate power is the administrator’s ability to influence the
behaviour of subordinates simply because of formal position (Hoy and
Miskel, 2008). . Subordinates acknowledge that the administrator has
a right to issue directives and they have an obligation to comply. The
power which one possess by virtue of holding a given position in the
organization means that he has the legitimate right to expect
obedience from those under his authority.
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Hence, such a person has legal power that emanates from his
or her leadership position in the organization. The leader has
legitimate right to ask others to perform certain duties or
activities e.g. a head teacher or principal has the right and
power to ask a teacher to teach another class other than
his/her usual one. He or she can ask for an explanation from a
teacher or a pupil who has been absenting himself from
school. This power therefore depends on one’s official position
not relationship with subordinates.
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Every administrator is empowered by the organisation to make
decisions within a specific area of responsibility. This area of
responsibility defines the activities over which the administrator has
legitimate power. The further removed a directive is from the
administrator’s area of responsibility the weaker his or her legitimate
power. When directives from an administrator are accepted without
question, they fall within the subordinate’s “zone of indifference.” (Hoy
and Miskel, 2008: 226). Such as order lies within an area that was
anticipated at the time the employee contracted with the organisation
and is seen by the employee as a legitimate obligation.
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For example, teachers expect to compute and turn in
grades on time for each marking period. Outside the
zone, however, legitimate power fades quickly. It is one
thing for the principal or head teacher to insist that
grades be promptly computed and turned in to the
office; it is another to order teachers to change a grade.
The legitimacy of the first request is clear, but not so for
the second; hence, compliance with the second request
is questionable.
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ii) Expert power
Expert power is the administrator’s ability to influence
subordinates’ behvaiour of the basis of specialized knowledge
and skill. The knowledge, skills, expertise, that a person
possess gives him ‘expert power’ over others who require it or
want to benefit from it e.g. a school secretary may have
‘expert power’ over her boss if the boss does not have
computer knowledge and skills and has to relay on her to
retrieve information for him from the computer.
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A head teacher or principal may therefore have
legitimate power over his subordinates but due to
lack of knowledge and expertise he may become
powerless to act in certain circumstances. A
leader should therefore have both legitimate and
expert power to be able to influence his
subordinates toward the achievement of the
organizational goals.
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Subordinates are influenced because they believe the
information and expertise the administrator holds to be
relevant, helpful, and things they themselves do not
have. Like referent power, expert power is a personal
characteristic and does not depend on occupying a
formal position of power. Expert power is, however,
much narrower in scope than referent power. The
useful knowledge defines the limits of expert power.
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New administrators are likely to have a time lag in
the acquisition of expert power because it takes
time for expertise to become known and
accepted by subordinates. New principals must
demonstrate that they know how to perform
their administrative functions with skill before
subordinates accept their attempts to implement
new practices and procedures.
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iii) Reward or remunerative power
Reward power is the administrator’s ability to influence
subordinates by rewarding their desired behaviour. This is the
type of power that results on one because one can issue
rewards, materials, resources, salaries and fridge benefits,
among others. One is therefore able to induce others to
comply with what he or she wants. The strength of this kind of
power depends on the attractiveness of the reward and the
extent of certainty that a person can control the rewards.
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For example the head teacher or principal who controls
the allocation of teaching assignments or
developmental grants for teaching innovations, or who
can release teachers from routine housekeeping duties,
has reward power over teachers in that school.
Teachers may comply with the principal’s requests
because they expect to be rewarded for compliance. It
is important, however, that the rewards be linked to
compliance and that the influence attempts to use are
proper and ethical.
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Philip Cusick (1981) as cited in Hoy and Miskel
(2008: 225) describes one principal’s attempt to
use reward power by administering the schedule,
additional assignments, and unallocated
resources. The principal could award a
department chairperson with a free period, a
favourite class, a double lunch period, honours
section, or support of a new activity.
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iv) Referent power
Referent power is administrator’s ability to influence behaviour based
on subordinates’ liking and identification with the administrator. This
power is possessed by the person having personal qualities and
reputation which others want to identify with e.g. physical attraction,
eloquence, powerful position in organization and intelligence, among
others, those attracted to such person with charismatic personality
also have a desire to become more like him or her. The person or
individual with referent power is admired and respected, and serves
as a model to be emulated.
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The source of referent power rests with the
extraordinary personality and skilled interpersonal
relations of the individual. For example, young teachers
may identify with the principal and seek to imitate the
personal demeanor and perhaps the leadership style of
the more experienced and well-liked principal. Not only
individuals but also groups can have referent power.
Members of a positive reference group can also provide
a source of referent power.
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Referent power does not rest simply with
official power holder of organisation.
Teachers as well as principals can have
referent power; in fact, any highly attractive
individual who develop respect, trust and
loyalty among colleagues is likely to develop
such power.
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v) Coercive power
This power is primarily based on the use of forceful
means to make others obey. It is the administrator’s
ability to influence subordinates by punishing them for
undesirable behaviour. The holder of this power has
ability to inflict punishment or negative consequences
to another person. He may do so through physical
means e.g. corporal punishment.
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The strength of coercive power depends on the
severity of the punishment and on the likelihood
that the punishment cannot be avoided.
Punishment can take many forms- official
reprimands, undesirable work assignments, closer
supervision, and stricter enforcement of the rules
and regulations, denial salary increments, or
termination.
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Other examples of coercive powers include
physical strength, verbal facility or ability to grant
or withhold emotional supports. In a school
situation, detentions, suspensions, expulsions and
corporal punishment are some of the methods
that can make students comply with orders, rules,
directives and policies, among others.
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On the other hand, threats of being demoted,
transferred, being sacked are some of the forceful
means that can be used on staffs to make them comply
with the head teachers, principals or board of
management demands, e.g. agreeing to teach on
Saturdays or during holidays. Withholding, controlling of
material resources e.g. vehicles, residing in an
institutional house and using school computers, among
others are also forms of coercive power.
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Punishment is not without its negative effects. An official
reprimand to a teacher for consistently leaving school early
may result in frequent absenteeism, refusal to provide extra
help to students unless specified in the contract, and a general
tendency to avoid all but the essential aspects of the job.
Interestingly, the same relationship can be viewed as one of
reward power in one situation but as coercive power in
another. For example, if a teacher obeys a principal through
fear of punishment, it is coercive power, but if another teacher
obeys in anticipation of a future reward, it is reward power.
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Note
One is therefore said to have power over others when he or she
has the capacity to reward or withhold resources,
compensation, promotion, etc. from others. Head teacher and
other who hold leadership positions should therefore ensure
that they have both legitimate as well as expert and referent
power so that they can have a greater influence over their
subordinates. They should therefore keep abreast of new
knowledge and developments in the field of education. They
should be willing to learn.
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5.6 Approaches /Theories of Leadership
This section below discusses three approaches of
leadership, that is, the trait approach theory,
situational theory and contingency theory that
have been proposed by various writers in an
attempt to identify the determinants or variables
that influences successful leaders.
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5.6.1 Trait approach theory
• Some of definitions of leadership have tended to stress the
personal characteristics or traits of the leader while others
stress the situation and still others concentrate on the
leader’s behavior.
• The trait approach theory, for instance, attempts to identify
any distinctive physical or psychological characteristics of the
individual that relate or explain the behavior of leaders.
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Great man theory
• The great man theory posits that some people are born to be leaders.
This in essence, means that, if certain inborn traits were identified in
leaders, then we would believe as Aristole did that “ from the hour of
birth, some are marked out for subjection, others for rule”. This
theory therefore implies that some were born to be leaders and
others were born to be followers. Several traits have been proposed
by writers as being identifiable in leaders and not non-leaders.
Robbins(2003), for instance, quotes Kirk Patrick and Locke(1991) as
having identified six traits.
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These are:
• Ambition and energy
• The desire to lead
• Honesty and integrity
• Self-confidence
• Intelligence
• Job-relevant knowledge
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Stogdill in Hoy and Miskel also summarizes some of the
personal factors (noted by various writers) associated with the
trait approach of leadership. These are:
i) Capacity(intelligence, alertness, verbal facility, originality, judgment)
ii) Achievements(scholarship, knowledge, athletic(sic)
accomplishment)
iii) Responsibility( dependability, initiative, persistence,
aggressiveness, self-confidence, desire to excel)
iv) Participation(activity, sociability, co-operation, adaptability, humor)
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v) Status(socio-economic position, popularity) (p. 272)
It is important to note that the earlier trait studies were
trying to isolate unique traits that could differentiate
leaders from non-leaders. The earlier studies
discouraged many for lack of 73 successful researchers.
never the less, the studies have continued as industrial
psychologists were still interested in improving the
selection of managers.
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However, the emphasis now was a search for the traits
on that leader effectiveness rather than focusing or
comparing the trait of leaders and non leaders(Yuki in
Hoy and Miskel 1987:272). Hence the trait studies now
tend to focus on ‘the relationship between traits and
leadership effectiveness of administrators.
• (Hoy and Miskel 1987:273). The traits that were
identified by these later studies were more consistent.
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Stogdill isolated more traits in the second type of studies that
direct on traits leading to leader effectiveness and he
concluded that these were:
• A strong drive for responsibility and task completion
• Vigor and persistence in pursuit of goals
• Venture soreness and originality
• Drive to exercise initiative in social situations
• Self-confidence and sense of personal identify
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• Willingness to accept consequences of decision and
action
• Readiness to tolerate frustration and delay
• Ability to influence other person’s behavior
• Capacity to structure interaction system to the purpose
at hand.
(Stogdil in Hoy and Miskel 1987:272)
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Limitations of trait theory
Robbins (2003) identifies four limitations of traits approach theory namely:
• There are no universal traits that predict about leadership in all situations.
• The predicted traits are in ‘weak’ situations i.e. in strong situations leaders have little
opportunity to express/display interest dispositional tendencies.
• The course and effect are not separated by evidence provided e.g. ‘does self-
confidence create leadership, or does success as leader build self- confidence? P.315)
• Traits tend to predict the appearance of leadership rather than ’distinguish between
effective and ineffective leaders i.e. an individual may exhibit traits associated with
leadership by other but yet he may be unsuccessful as leader e.g. fail to achieve set
goals.
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5.6.2 Situational approach
• The intense debate and questionable finding of the trait
approach made research to focus on analyzing situational
variables as at times findings went contrary and inconsistent
for many of the trait tentatively isolated as crucial in one
study were found to be unimportant in others . Thus in some
groups, effective leaders were assertive and aggressive, in
others, mild mannered and restrained: in some quick and
decisive, in others, reflective and diplomatic.
(Hoy and Miskel, 1987:272)
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The failure to get consistent results in studies relating to leadership led
to researchers to focus on situational variables. In other words, the
leader’s traits were therefore no longer considered to be the only
factor determining the leader that was chosen. Some of the situational
variables or determinants of leadership that have been postulated
include;
i) Structural properties of the organization (size, hierarchical structure,
formalization)
ii) Organizational climate(openness, participation, group atmosphere)
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Strengths of the situational leadership theory
 Its adaptability and relevance to the today’s dynamic working
environment;
 It allows leaders to adjust their behaviour and leadership styles
according to changing conditions and needs, which can lead to
increased success and employee engagement;
 The theory emphasizes the importance of communication skills,
empathy, decision-making ability and team management for effective
leadership;
 It is centred around the employee;
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 It celebrates diversity and individuality;
 It boosts productivity;
 It increases empathy;
 It encourages self-awareness;
 It boosts morale and creates a supportive work environment;
 It improves collaboration;
 It recognizes the need for flexibility;
 It creates a comfortable environment for workers;
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 It takes different developmental phases into account;
 It helps a team to work together;
 It increases the awareness of the leader
Limitations of situational leadership theory
 It focuses more on immediate needs than long-term needs;
 It can be infective in task oriented environment;
 It can be challenging to define maturity;
 It does not provide enough information for some leaders
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 It is based on the skill of the leader;
 It creates a corporate dependency;
 It may create confusion within the company or school;
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5.6.3 Contingency theory (House’s Path Goal Theory)
Path-Goal theory is another contingency theory (or approach to
leadership). It was developed by House and refined in the 1970’s. The
model integrates concepts of leader behavior and situational
favorableness (with a unique definition of effectiveness).
• The theory is called Path-Goal because it explains how leaders
influence their subordinates’ perception of work goals, personal goals
and paths to goal attainment. Leaders are effective when they
enhance acceptance, satisfaction and motivation levels of their
subordinates.
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 The contingency theory of leadership states that effective leadership
is contingent upon the situation at hand. Essentially it depends on
whether an individual’s leadership style befits the situation. According
to this theory, someone can be effective leader in one circumstances
and an ineffective leader in another.
 The contingency theory of leadership posits that there is no single
best leadership style and the effectiveness of a particular style is
contingent upon various situational factors. Instead of advocating for
one consistent leadership approach the theory suggests that leaders
should adopt their style based on the circumstances
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For example:
 Task structure: If a task is clear, a directive leadership
style might be more effective. Conversely, unstructured
tasks may require a more participative approach;
 Team relations: A leader with strong rapport within the
team might succeed with a more democratic style, while
distrust might necessitate a more autocratic approach.
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 Contingency theory has broadened the scope leadership
understanding from a focus on single best type of leadership (e.g. trait
approach) to emphasizing the importance of a leader’s style and the
demands of different situations;
 Contingency theory has “ predictive powers” in determining the type
of leadership that is most likely to be effective in particular contexts;
 Contingency theory suggests not to expect leaders to be equally
effective in all situations and therefore organisations should consider
leaders in optimal situations according to their leadership style
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Strengths of contingency theory of leadership
 It provides a simple way to determine when leaders’ skills are most and
least impactful;
 It encourages leaders to practice self-awareness, an essential quality for
making decisions for a team;
 It is practical and flexible, so it allows leaders to adjust their approach
based on the specific needs of the situation;
 It focuses on the context of leadership;
 It focuses on adapting leadership style to the situation
 It recognizes the need for flexibility and adaptability
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Weakness of contingency theory of leadership
 The complexity of applying the theory in practice;
 Lack of universal framework and limited empirical evidence;
 Its complexity and lack of guidelines;
 It fails to adequately explain what should be done about a leader/situation
mismatch in the workplace;
 It fails to provide clear guidelines on how to navigate complex and rapidly
changing situation;
 It fails to explain why leadership with certain leadership styles are effective
in some situations but not others
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5.7 Styles of Leadership
• The method or style used by a leader greatly influences his or his
effectiveness as a leader as well as the extent to which organizational
goals are achieved. It is therefore important that leaders gain
knowledge of the various leadership styles that have been used by
leaders in various organizations so that they can know the
strengths/advantages and the weaknesses/disadvantages of using a
given leadership style. This section therefore examines the nature and
characteristics of three leadership styles namely, i)
authoritarian(autocratic), ii) democratic and iii) the leissez faire styles
of leadership.
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Types of Leadership Styles
i) Autocratic (authoritarian) leadership style
ii) Democratic (participatory) leadership style
iii) Leissez Faire leadership style
• N.B. The above figure portrays the relationship between the leader and the
subordinates. Autocratic leader issues orders to subordinate, Democratic leader
allows a majority of the people to give ideas and Leissez Faire leader only provides
leadership when called upon to do so.
• Autocratic leadership is also known authoritative leadership (Source: Lewis B
Sappington and C.G Brawne in William Lazer and Engene J. Kelly eds in Herbert G.
Hikes D.C. Ray Gullet ‘Organization’ Theory and Behaviors McGraw-Hill, Inc.
Auckland, 1981 p. 303)
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5.7.1 Autocratic/Authoritarian Style of leadership
• Authoritarian leadership: An autocratic leader
more often than not has absolute power and as
a result he/she tends to be dictatorial. The
autocratic leader wields a lot of power over the
subordinates for he/she is in a position to use
‘rewards, praise, or fear of criticism or
punishment.’ (See ,Hikes & Gullet, 1981:301).
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As D’Souza (1989) has noted about the characteristics of authoritarian-
style leaders, they include:
i) Are generally strong-willed, domineering and to some extent,
aggressive.
ii) Must have their own way, which for them, seems the only way.
iii) Look upon subordinates more as functionaries than as persons, and
the best subordinates, in their estimation, follow directions without
questions.
iv) Ordinarily are not ready to listen to views and suggestions of others
(although may pretend to), if they are different opinions.
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v) Do not encourage equal relationships (i.e. adult to adult)
with underlings. As a rule, they do not allow themselves to get
close to employees. They do not like to see employees get
close to one another, for such cliques, as authoritarian leaders
perceive them, might endanger their authority.
vi) Have business-like and task-oriented attitudes. The job
comes first.
vii) Generally, blame poor results on the inability of others to
carry out instructions correctly
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Characteristics of an Organization with autocratic Leadership
An organization where authoritarian/autocratic style of
leadership is being used one therefore tends to find that:
i) The leader tends to be dictatorial, that is, he issues orders
and instructions to the employees and expects them to obey
without any questioning. Violation of orders is heavily
punished.
ii) Power and authority is centralized on the leader
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iii)The leader sets policy, structures, integrates, modifies tasks as he
wishes.
iv)The leader does not consult his followers on important matters e.g.
policies, rules, definition of tasks, structure.
v) The leader makes decisions without any consultations.
vi) Rules are very harsh.
vii) Employees are closely supervised, controlled and directed.
viii) The flow of communication tends to be from the top to the bottom.
ix) There is little consideration for employees needs and interests e.g. when
issuing responsibility.
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Advantages of Autocratic style
• Decisions are made without any delays as leader does not consult or
consider the employees opinions, needs, desires, interest.
• Work is accomplished quickly because employee is expected to
perform work without questioning. Employees are also dealt with
harshly when they fail to perform work as expected.
• This type of leadership is suitable for uncommitted workers e.g. those
who neglect their work, come to school drunk are frequently absent
from work.
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Disadvantages
• Creates low jobs morale. Workers feel frustrated and demoralized as the
leader has little regard for their interests and needs.
• Workers are expected to give unquestionable support to leader and
whether they agree with him or not. Failure to support the leader results in
punishment.
• Leaders tend to overcontrol and direct employees even when it is not
necessary. This may lead to feelings dissatisfaction and they may even rebel
against the leader.
• The leader also set policies, regulations, and structure, among others. He
also sets and modifies tasks without consulting others in the organization
for school. This may result in harsh rules, policies and working conditions
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5.7.2 Democratic/participative style
Democratic leadership is also known as
participative leadership. In a democratic
organization all members are involved in decision
making and all other matters concerning the
organization and as a result the leader receives
more cooperation from the employees in the
achievement of organizational goals.
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D’Souza (1989) summarizes the characteristics of democratic leaders as
follows:
i) They are generally concerned with maintaining group effectiveness as
with completing the task to be done.
ii) They encourage members in their groups to express their ideas and
feelings, because they because they believe that such a climate leads to
greater creativity and commitment.
iii) If they encounter resistance or conflicts, they allow them to surface
and they seek the help of these groups in removing the resistance on
resolving the conflicts.
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iv) They encourage joint decision-making as well as shared goal-setting.
v) They rarely set policies without explaining the reasons, and
proposing them to their groups, when they can, for suggestions and
criticisms.
vi) They believe that responsibility for getting a job done depends as
much on the group as upon themselves. They try to have this attitude
shared by all group members.
vii) They allow group members a good deal of freedom in their work,
once they have shown their ability to do it.
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viii) They keep looking for better ways to do things and are
open to change when convinced that such changes seem
called for and would lead to greater effectiveness.
ix) They believe in the effectiveness of groupwork. They
also believe that groups of concerned individuals working
together have greater potential than when those same
members work as individuals.(D’Souza, 1989:49-50)
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Characteristics of an organization with democratic leadership
An organization where democratic leadership is being exercised has the following
identifiable characteristics:
i) A democratic leader is chosen through popular election or is appointed because of
ability and qualifications.
ii) The people’s basic needs, rights and freedom are guaranteed and respected by the
organization’s leader is therefore able to obtain workers cooperation in achieving of
organizational goals.
iii) The democratic leader recognizes the fact that his followers are capable of making good
decisions and suggestions based on the followers training and experiences. Hence, he
allows workers to participate in decision making. It is therefore assumed that workers will
support decisions that they have helped to make and that consequently this will lead to
the achievement of organizational goals.
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iv) Ideas are exchanged between a democratic leader and his workers and
also between the workers themselves. A democratic organization is more
likely to be better organized and more effectively run than an autocratic one
for ideas are contributed by many people and not just a selected few.
v) In democratic style of leadership, power and authority are decentralized
unlike with autocratic leadership style. In other words, power and authority
is derived from both the governed and governed.
vi) Followers are consulted on important matters concerning decisions,
policies, rules, and structure, definition of tasks and all other important
matters. They are also generally informed about their working conditions.
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vii) There is a good interpersonal relation between
leader and workers. The morale is high and there is job
satisfaction. Workers do not also cover depend on the
leader.
viii) Decisions on organizational matters are reached
after necessary consultations and communications with
various section/people in organization.
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Advantages of democratic style
• Job morale is high
• There is commitment and team effort towards achievement of
organizational goals. Employees are allowed to participate in decision
making and their ideas are appreciated and considered in all matters.
• Interpersonal relations between the leader and other workers is good.
• Communication is good.
• There is delegation of authority.
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Disadvantages/Limitations
• Employees with weak self-motivation tendencies may relax.
• Decisions may be low if there are too many considerations e.g. If
teachers request to teach his proffered subject and not one which
school authorities would prefer.
• Students may fail examination if weak teachers are not controlled and
directed to some extent e.g. if teachers are not closely supervised by
ensuring schemes of work and lessons plans are well written.
• However, there may be low productivity or poor decisions may be
made of when everyone’s wishes is taken into account.
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5.7.3. Leissez faire style of leadership.
This leadership is also referred to as free rein, meaning
“free” style of leadership. In this type of style, the leader
does not provide external motivation as is the case with
autocratic or democratic leadership styles but instead
workers are left to “motivate themselves based on their
need, wants, 3desires.They are given a goal and left
mostly up to their own to achieve it, using their
ingenuity.” (see Hicks&Gullet,1975:303).
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Characteristics of an organization with Leissez- faire
leader.
i) The leaders have very little authority and power over the workers and
he tends to be very tolerant
ii) There are very few rules or regulations and is no code of conduct for
employees.
iii) The leader assumes the role of group member rather than that of
leader, that is, the employees see him/her as being on the
organizational level and consequently he has very little influence on
them.
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iv) The leader does not provide external motivation but
instead workers are left to motivate themselves according to
their ability, needs, interest and desires, among others.
v)Employees tend to work independently of the leader and
there are also very few committed workers. At best, the leader
only assigns task and then leaves employees to accomplish
work on their own.
vi) Accomplishment of goals depends on individual’s effort,
expertise and knowledge.
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Advantages of the leissez faire style
• It increases the workers independence, expression
and make them function as members of a group.
• Makes employees (especially those at the self-
actualization level) to be creative for they are
allowed to work independently without
unnecessary controls.
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Disadvantages
i) Lack of a strong leader can result in lack of direction and
control and can easily result in chaos
ii) Workers can easily become frustrated, insecure, and
demoralized, among others, due to lack of guidance from the
leader.
iii) Organizational goals may never be achieved.
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Summary
This lesson has discussed the concepts of authority, power as well as
leadership. In as far as leadership is concerned ,meaning of term
leadership has been examined .The three approached to leadership,
that is ,trait, situational and contingency approaches or theories ,which
attempt to explain the determinant or variables that are considered in
identifying who becomes the leader in organizational setups have been
described .The leadership styles, that is, autocratic, democratic and
leissez fairre have also been discussed in an attempt to understand
more about leadership behavior and its consequences.
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Revision questions
• Define the term authority and power.
• Differentiate between any two types of authority.
• What is acceptance theory of authority?
• Differentiate between any two types of powers
• Do you agree (or disagree) with the trait approach theories explanation
that traits determine a leader? Give a reason for your answer.
• In your opinion, which of the three approaches of leadership best
explains the determination of effective leadership?
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References
• Cunningham, W, G; Cordeiro,P, A. (2003). Educational Leadership: A problem-
Based approach (2nd ed.). New York: Pearson Education, Inc.;
• Daresh, J.C. (2006): Leading and Supervising Instruction. Thousand Oaks,
California: Corwin Press
• D’Souza A. (1989) Leadership: Trilogy on leadership and Executive
Management.Paulines publications Africa, Nairobi.
• Hicks H. G& Gullet C.R. (1981) Organizations: theory and behavior. McGraw-
Hill, Inc. Aukland.
• Hoy, W.H. and Miskel, C.G. (2008). Educational Administration: Theory,
Research and Practice (8th ed.). New York: Higher Education;
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• Hoy W & Mikel (1987) Educational Administrational: Theory
Research, and practice.
• New York: McGraw-Hill, Inc.;
• Koontz H & Weick H. (1990). Essentials of management (5th
edition) Tata McGraw-Hill
• New Delhi;
• Sergiovanni, T. J. (2007). Rethinking Leadership: A collection
of articles (2nd ed.).Thousand Oaks, California: Corwin Press.