Longitudinal data analysis: Applications of random coefficient modeling to leadership research

Understanding how leaders develop, adapt, and perform over time is central to many theories of leadership. However, for a variety of conceptual and methodological reasons, such longitudinal research remains uncommon in the leadership domain. The purpose of this paper is to introduce the leadership scholar to conceptual issues involved in longitudinal design and analysis, and then demonstrate the application of random coefficient modeling (RCM) as a framework capable of modeling longitudinal leadership data. The RCM framework is an extension of the traditional regression model, so many readers will already have the fundamental knowledge required to use RCM. However, RCM has the additional capability of analyzing the kinds of data commonly found in longitudinal studies, including correlated observations, missing data, and heterogeneity over time. Further, the RCM allows for testing predictors of change over time. Thus, we introduce conceptual issues related to longitudinal research, discuss RCM within the context of regression, and conclude with an application of the RCM approach. We use a common substantive example throughout the paper to facilitate our discussion of the RCM.     

Are there advantages to seeing leadership the same? A test of the mediating effects of LMX on the relationship between ILT congruence and employees' development

Although there has been an increased interest in implicit leadership theories (ILTs) over the last two decades, only a handful of studies have examined the effects of ILT congruence among leader-follower dyads. Just as important, this research has largely suggested few effects for ILT congruence, focused exclusively on prototype congruence, examined a limited number of potential outcomes, and has failed to examine questions about ILT congruence utilizing the most appropriate statistical approaches. We examine the effects of ILT congruence, with an explicit focus on the possibility that congruence between supervisors and their employees on both prototypes and antiprototypes impacts the LMX developed within their dyads. We predict that LMX, in turn, affects employees' opportunities to engage in developmental activities. Using a sample of 74 matched pairs of supervisors and employees and polynomial regression and response surface methodology, we found that congruence between supervisors' and employees' prototypes positively influenced LMX. We also found limited evidence that LMX explained the effects of this congruence on employees' engagement in developmental activities. Although we found no evidence of antiprototype congruence effects, supervisors who rated antiprototypical traits as characteristic of leaders had lower LMX with their employees.     

Human-robot collaboration: A multilevel and integrated leadership framework

In an era of rapid advances in artificial intelligence, the deployment of robots in organizations is accelerating. Further, robotic capabilities are expanding to serve a broader range of leadership behaviors related to task accomplishment and relationship support. Despite the increasing use of robots in various roles across different industries, research on human-robot collaboration in the workplace is lagging behind. As such, the current research aims to provide a state-of-the-science review and directions for future work in this underdeveloped area. Drawing on current leadership paradigms, we review human-robot collaboration studies from four academic disciplines with a history of publishing such work (i.e., management, economics, psychology, engineering) and propose that the research trajectory of human-robot collaboration parallels the evolution of leadership research paradigms (i.e., leader centric, relational view, and follower centric). Given that leadership is an inherently multilevel phenomenon, we apply a levels-of-analysis framework to integrate and synthesize human-robot collaboration studies from cross-disciplinary research areas. Based on our findings, we offer suggestions for future research in terms of conceptualization, theory building and testing, practical implications, and ethical considerations.     

Self–other rating agreement in leadership: A review

This paper reviews the theoretical and empirical literature on self–other rating agreement (SOA) related to leadership in the workplace, focusing primarily on research published between 1997 (the year of Atwater &; Yammarino's seminal paper on SOA) and the present. Much of the current interest in SOA derives from its purported relationships with self-awareness and leader effectiveness. The literature, however, has used a variety of metrics to assess SOA, resulting in discrepancies between findings across studies. As multi-rater (360-degree; multisource) feedback instruments continue to be widely used as a measure of leadership in organizations, it is important that we more clearly understand the relationships between SOA and its predictors and outcomes. To this end, in this article, we review (a) models of agreement, (b) factors affecting self-ratings and the congruence between self–others' ratings, (c) factors affecting others' ratings, (d) correlates of agreement, and (e) measurement issues and data analytic techniques. We conclude with discussions of practitioner issues and directions for future research.     

Assessing global leadership competencies: the critical role of assessment centre methodology

The purpose of this conceptual paper is to examine the use of assessment centre (AC) methodology for addressing the ever-increasing demand for effective talent management of global leaders. Research is reviewed on the most commonly used questionnaire tools for assessing global leadership competencies, which lack the AC’s ability to provide behavioural evidence of leadership competency. A literature search is conducted to identify the extent to which scholarly research to date has examined the use of ACs to measure global leadership competencies. Based on the findings from the review of the literature, the authors recommend further exploration of a leadership AC approach as a ‘best practice’ talent management tool for measuring global leadership competencies. A framework is provided for designing ACs to evaluate and provide developmental feedback on the competencies identified as critical for successful leadership performance in an organization’s global environment.     

Leadership theory and practice: Fostering an effective symbiosis

Leadership theory has not lived up to its promise of helping practitioners resolve the challenges and problematics that occur in organizational leadership. Many current theories and models are not contextualized, nor do the dynamic and critical issues facing leaders drive their construction. Alternatively, practitioners too often approach leadership problems using trial and error tactics derived more from anecdotes and popular fads than validated scientific data and models. Yet, while this gap between theory and research has bedeviled the leadership community for much of its history, there have been few if any systematic examinations of its causes. In this review, we have sought to highlight the particular barriers on the leadership practice and theory-building/testing constituencies, respectively, that constrain efforts to integrate them. We also offer a number of propositions and guidelines that we hope can break through these barriers and help stakeholders create a more effective leadership theory and practice symbiosis (LTPS). Finally, we have offered two cases of effective LTPS as examples and models for such integrative research efforts.     

Followership theory: A review and research agenda

While theory and research on leaders and leadership abound, followers and followership theory have been given short shrift. It is accepted wisdom that there is no leadership without followers, yet followers are very often left out of the leadership research equation. Fortunately this problem is being addressed in recent research, with more attention being paid to the role of followership in the leadership process. The purpose of this article is to provide a systematic review of the followership literature, and from this review, introduce a broad theory of followership into leadership research. Based on our review, we identify two theoretical frameworks for the study of followership, one from a role-based approach (“reversing the lens”) and one from a constructionist approach (“the leadership process”). These frameworks are used to outline directions for future research. We conclude with a discussion of conceptual and methodological issues in the study of followership theory.     

A review of the effectiveness of empowering leadership

Based on a review of empirical literature on empowering leadership, given incongruent and mixed results, the current work suggests reconsidering the effectiveness of empowering leadership. We propose a framework for examining the effectiveness of empowering leadership that considers: 1) feasibility of non-linear main effects of empowering leadership on work-related outcomes, 2) possibility of reverse causation between empowering leadership and work-related outcomes, 3) potential contradictory mediating mechanisms through which empowering leadership influences work-related outcomes, 4) consideration of boundary conditions which could alter the relationships between empowering leadership and work-related outcomes, and 5) consideration of levels-of-analysis and multilevel issues in empowering leadership. Our framework considers the multifaceted nature of empowering leadership and offers a guiding tool for advancing future research in this area.     

Understanding indigenous leadership research: Explication and Chinese examples

Integrating the constructivist and positivist research traditions, we propose a three-step methodological framework and use a study of Chinese indigenous leadership practices as an example to illustrate how to utilize the framework to study indigenous leadership practices. We argue that indigenous leadership research is an ideal way to examine and interpret leadership practices in a specific social context because not all leadership practices are captured in dominant Western perspectives that utilize Western-built instruments, which often fail to account for perspectives and practices of leadership in non-Western contexts. Finally, we discuss implications of the proposed methodology on leadership research and offer suggestions on how to deal with challenges when conducting indigenous leadership research in various cultures.     

In pursuit of causality in leadership training research: A review and pragmatic recommendations

Although research shows a reliable association between leadership training and positive organizational outcomes, a range of research design issues mean we do not know to what degree the former causes the later. Accordingly, the paper has two main aims. First, to describe the conditions necessary to determine causality in leadership training research and the ability of different research designs to achieve this. Six important, but often ignored, issues associated with determining causality are described (control conditions, sample representation, condition randomization, condition independence, temporal design, and author involvement). Second, to review the extent to which the leadership training literature is able to demonstrate causality. The review shows that the majority of studies do not meet many of the criteria, even the most basic criteria, required to establish causality. Finally, we provide guidelines for designing future research to improve causal identification and is capable of generating meaningful theory and policy recommendations.     

Measuring the Congruence Between Market Requirements and Manufacturing: A Methodology and Illustration*

This paper presents a measurement methodology, based on existing research in the manufacturing strategy and general strategy areas, for evaluating the congruence between market needs and manufacturing plant capabilities. The proposed methodology has several important advantages over current approaches. First, the methodology uses available data and statistical techniques to measure market-manufacturing congruence. As a result, it is not dependent on assumptions about “classic” process choices. Second, the proposed methodology can evaluate the strategic fit between market needs and manufacturing in light of one or more performance criteria. Third, the methodology can be used to derive scalar measures of market-manufacturing congruence, allowing users to evaluate congruence for a large number of products, customers, or market segments. The theoretical basis, research objectives and major steps of the methodology are discussed, followed by an illustrative example from a North American manufacturer. Finally, the applicability of the methodology to a wide range of strategic manufacturing decisions is discussed.     

Natural experiments in leadership research: An introduction,review, and guidelines

Endogeneity is a serious challenge for leadership research. To overcome the problem, researchers increasingly rely upon experimental designs, such as laboratory and field experiments. In this paper, we argue that natural experiments — in the form of standard natural experiments, instrumental variable, and regression discontinuity designs — offer additional opportunities to infer causal relationships. We conduct a systematic, cross-disciplinary review of 87 studies that leverage natural experimental designs to inquire into a leadership topic. We introduce the standard natural experiment, instrumental variable, and regression discontinuity design and use topic modeling to analyze which leadership topics have been investigated using natural experimental designs. Based on the review, we provide guidelines that we hope will assist scholars in discovering natural exogenous variations, selecting the most suitable form of natural experiment and by mobilizing appropriate statistical techniques and robustness checks. The paper is addressed to leadership and management scholars who aim to use natural experiments to infer causal relationships.     

Putting emergence back in leadership emergence: A dynamic,multilevel, process-oriented framework

The study of leadership emergence has increased substantially over the past few decades. However, due to a lack of integrative theory, we believe limited advancement has been made regarding the full process of leadership emergence. To address this concern, first, we conceptualize the leadership emergence process from a complexity perspective and define emergence as a dynamic, interactive process grounded in three principles of emergent phenomena. Second, we review how previous research has modeled leadership emergence by focusing on the content areas of the lower-level elements, the mechanisms that facilitate their emergence, and the dynamism of the process once it has emerged. Third, based on the findings from the review, we introduce a process-oriented framework of leadership emergence. Fourth, we offer propositions to guide developing and testing emergent leadership processes, and we conclude with recommendations for future leadership process research. Our hope is that by realigning the study of leadership emergence with complexity and multilevel theory, we can reorient this area to focusing more on the process mechanisms within emergence, connecting back to research progress made over 60?years ago.     

A systematic and critical review of research on respect in leadership

Respect is an important psychological and interpersonal phenomenon that has been included in various theoretical and empirical approaches to leadership for nearly 70 years. In this systematic and critical review article, we provide a comprehensive summary and critique of theories, definitions, measures, and empirical studies of respect in leadership. We first provide an overview of the historical and theoretical background, including the most common theories, definitions, and measures that inform empirical studies of respect in leadership. Second, we present a systematic literature review of empirical studies on respect in leadership, including a critical evaluation of research designs and statistical analyses that support claims of the validity of various conceptualizations of respect that pertain to the study of leadership. Finally, we offer a new working definition of respect in leadership, and an accompanying conceptual framework which informs a number of recommendations for future theory development, empirical research, and leadership practice.     

Measuring Market‐Manufacturing Congruence: Conceptual Reaffirmations and Mathematical Modifications

Narasimhan and Wang (2000) provide a valuable addition to the research base by identifying a limitation in two of the original equations in Bozarth and Berry (1997), which we resolve, and a possible research direction for the calibration of indifference profiles. However, they fall short in their interpretation of key conceptual and methodological issues, including the distinction between indifference and ideal profiles, the difference between individual profile dimensions and overall congruence, and firm versus industry‐level manufacturing strategy research. We use this opportunity to clear up these points of confusion, and to reaffirm the value of the methodology introduced in Bozarth and Berry (1997).     

Integrating Software into PRA: A Test-Based Approach

Probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) is a methodology to assess the probability of failure or success of a system's operation. PRA has been proved to be a systematic, logical, and comprehensive technique for risk assessment. Software plays an increasing role in modern safety critical systems. A significant number of failures can be attributed to software failures. Unfortunately, current probabilistic risk assessment concentrates on representing the behavior of hardware systems, humans, and their contributions (to a limited extent) to risk but neglects the contributions of software due to a lack of understanding of software failure phenomena. It is thus imperative to consider and model the impact of software to reflect the risk in current and future systems. The objective of our research is to develop a methodology to account for the impact of software on system failure that can be used in the classical PRA analysis process. A test-based approach for integrating software into PRA is discussed in this article. This approach includes identification of software functions to be modeled in the PRA, modeling of the software contributions in the ESD, and fault tree. The approach also introduces the concepts of input tree and output tree and proposes a quantification strategy that uses a software safety testing technique. The method is applied to an example system, PACS.     

State-of-the-science review of leader-follower dyads research

Despite its importance in multilevel research, the dyad level of analysis has been known as the most poorly understood level. Suggestions have been made recently in terms of levels alignment issues and methodologies to enhance the understanding of dyadic phenomena. Given recent remedies for dyads research and that the leader-follower dyad is generally considered the key dyad in organizations, we conducted a comprehensive review of the current state of leader-follower dyads research to assess what we know and how much we know about leader-follower dyads research conducted at the dyad level. Specifically, we summarized empirical studies that focused on leader-follower dyads that used data collected on the same variables from both dyadic partners. This review involved coding studies of these “pure” leader-follower dyads based on several dyadic theories (e.g., vertical dyad linkage, individualized leadership, leader-member exchange, leader-follower congruence) and multiple analytic methods (e.g., multilevel modeling, polynomial regression, WABA) that dealt with leader-follower dyads directly. Based on the results, this review generated a nomological network of constructs for understanding leader-follower dyads and to provide suggestions for future leader-follower dyads research.     

Implicit theories in organizational settings: A systematic review and research agenda of implicit leadership and followership theories

Implicit theories play important roles in many areas of human life. In this review, we focus on implicit leadership and followership theories, i.e. implicit assumptions of (good) leaders and followers, respectively. We provide a framework for categorizing the existing research in this field. We use this framework to show the current state of research and to illustrate the gaps in the literature. More precisely, we review which types of prototypes of leaders and followers have been studied, the effects of comparisons between the actual leader (respectively follower) with these activated prototypes as well as the contextual factors that influence prototype activation and prototype fit. We conclude by outlining implications for human resource management and for future research, thereby focusing on research questions that can be used to integrate the distinct paths in implicit leadership and followership theories.     

Romancing leadership: Past, present, and future

This paper presents a review of the romance of leadership and the social construction of leadership theory 25 years after it was originally introduced. We trace the development of this theoretical approach from the original formulation of the romance of leadership (RoL) theory as attributional bias through its emergence as a radical, unconventional approach that views leadership as a sensemaking activity that is primarily ‘in the eye of the beholder.’ We subsequently review research published in management and organizational psychology journals, book chapters and special issues of journals from 1985 to 2010. Three overall themes emerged from this review: 1) biases in (mis)attributions of leadership, including attributions for organizational success and failure; 2) follower-centered approaches, including the role of follower characteristics, perceptions, and motivations in interpreting leadership ratings; and 3) the social construction of leadership, including interfollower and social contagion processes, the role of crisis and uncertainty, and constructions and deconstructions of leadership and CEO celebrity in the media. Within each of these themes, we examine developments and summarize key findings. Our review concludes with recommendations for future theoretical and empirical work in this area.     

Leadership research and cognitive neuroscience: The state of this union

Advances in cognitive neuroscience and other approaches to understanding human behavior from a biological standpoint are only now beginning to filter into leadership research. The purpose of this introduction to the Leadership Quarterly Special Issue on the Biology of Leadership is to outline the organizational cognitive neuroscience approach to leadership research, and show how such an approach can fruitfully inform both leadership and neuroscientific research. Indeed, we advance the view that the further application of cognitive neuroscientific techniques to leadership research will pay great dividends in our understanding of effective leadership behaviors and as such, a future symbiosis between the two fields is a necessity.