The awestruck effect: Followers suppress emotion expression in response to charismatic but not individually considerate leadership

This study examines how followers regulate their outward expression of emotions in the context of two types of leadership that are commonly associated with transformational leadership, namely charismatic leadership and individually considerate leadership. Based on new theorizing and a series of three studies involving experiments and field work, we show that the two types of leadership have different effects on followers' emotional expressiveness. Specifically, we find that followers under the influence of leaders' charisma tend to suppress the expression of emotions (we call this the “awestruck effect”), but followers express emotions when leaders consider them individually. Awestruck followers may suffer from expressive inhibition even as charismatic leaders stir their hearts.     

How outstanding leaders lead with affect: An examination of charismatic,ideological, and pragmatic leaders

Frameworks for understanding outstanding leadership have flourished in the past decade. Research into the charismatic, ideological, and pragmatic (CIP) model of leadership in particular has examined how leaders develop mental models, frame visions, communicate goals, and utilize political tactics to form relationships with followers and impact society in meaningful ways. However, a discussion of how these types of leaders use emotions and influence tactics to influence followers and affect society is notably absent in the literature. To fill this gap, the current effort focuses on how charismatic, ideological, and pragmatic leaders differ in their use of emotional displays and influence tactics. Results suggest that the emotional displays and influence tactics that leaders use successfully discriminate between CIP leader types and create expected leader styles. Implications of these findings are also discussed.     

Revisiting followership through a social identity perspective: The role of collective follower emotion and action

We review the concept of followership, with a specific focus on how followers actively influence leadership outcomes. We examine in particular research from four key areas: social identity perspectives on leadership, intergroup emotion theory, collective action, and reciprocal affect within leader–follower interactions. Our central proposition is that followers engage in actions, driven by both cognitive and affective-based processes, which affect leadership outcomes. Moreover, because leaders are part of the groups they lead and therefore embedded within the social context of a group, we propose that any action that affirms or threatens the salient group will trigger both cognitive and emotional responses from followers towards leaders. These include the extent to which a leader engages in actions that are perceived as (1) self-sacrificial, (2) procedurally fair, and (3) expressing emotions congruent with that of their group. We also propose that the extent to which followers translate their perceptions and emotions towards collective action towards their leaders will be moderated by individual-level group identification and group-level shared identity. To conclude, we highlight theoretical implications in light of these propositions and suggest areas for further research on followership.     

Charisma and organizational change: A multilevel study of perceived charisma,commitment to change,and team performance

What makes people perceive a leader as charismatic, and how do team leaders obtain performance outcomes from their followers? We examine leaders in times of organizational change and investigate the mechanisms through which leaders' change-promoting behaviors are associated with team performance. In a multilevel mediation model, we propose that the indirect relationship between change-promoting behaviors and team performance is sequentially transmitted through followers' perceptions of charisma and followers' commitment to change. A study of 33 leaders and 142 followers provides empirical support for the model, using multilevel structural equation modeling to analyze top-down relationships between leaders and followers and bottom-up relationships between followers and team outcomes. Results suggest that team leaders are perceived as more charismatic when they engage in change-promoting behaviors. These behaviors facilitate team performance through individual followers' perceived charisma and commitment to change.     

Predicting followers' preferences for charismatic leadership: the influence of follower values and personality

Existing research on charismatic leadership focuses primarily on the traits and behaviors of charismatic leaders and the effects of charismatic leaders on their followers. One issue that has been neglected, and others, is the disposition of the followers who form charismatic relationships with their leaders. To investigate this topic, we conducted a laboratory study in which participants' values and personality dimensions were used to predict participants' preferences for charismatic leadership vs. two other leadership styles: relationship-oriented and task-oriented leadership. The results showed that values and personality were useful in predicting leadership preferences. More research is needed to gain further insights into the active role of followers in the formation of charismatic relationships.     

A chronotype circadian model of charismatic leadership expressions and perceptions

We investigate the impact of the circadian process (24-h biological cycles that influence sleep/wake periods) and chronotypes (individual differences in the timing of those cycles) in charismatic leadership. We theorize that the expressions of charismatic signals by leaders, and the perceptions of those signals by followers are influenced by the circadian process. Moreover, considering that individuals vary in their sleep awake preferences (larks vs. owls), we argue that chronotype interacts with time of day to influence expressions and perceptions of charismatic leadership. In Study 1, we found that synchrony between leader chronotype and time of day affects expressions of charismatic leadership. In Study 2, we turned our attention to the followers' circadian process and found that synchrony between a follower's chronotype and time of day affects follower's perceptions of charismatic leadership. Our new model highlights how charismatic leadership can be driven by circadian process.     

The enduring allure of charisma: How Barack Obama won the historic 2008 presidential election

We apply charismatic leadership theory to the historic 2008 United States presidential election, in hopes of inspiring dialogue around how leadership theory can inform the critical process of evaluating and electing public leaders. While numerous leadership theories are relevant to understanding the 2008 election, charismatic leadership theory highlights aspects of the leader, followers, and the unfolding economic crisis that are particularly relevant in helping us to understand how a relatively inexperienced political outsider ascended to the US Presidency. Given the potential perils and challenges newly elected President Barack Obama faces in the months and years ahead, we also suggest four core strategies rooted in charismatic leadership theory that may help him capitalize on his early charismatic appeal, as well as avoid the pitfalls of charisma that have plagued some of his predecessors.     

When leaders victimize: The role of charismatic leaders in facilitating group pressures

We present a conceptual model exploring the process by which employees seek out and process information from their social context in response to victimizing behaviors from their leader. In particular, we explore how charismatic leaders with personalized values can facilitate group processes whereby group members pressure the target into conforming. Followers of charismatic leaders have been found to ingratiate themselves with, and revere, their leader. This creates the potential for followers to prematurely comply with destructive behaviors from their leader. Research on social influence is drawn upon to theorize how targets who experience confusion about victimizing behaviors can become particularly susceptible to group pressures to conform. Through our theoretical model, we advance theory on the potential dark side of charismatic leadership, specifically how personalized charismatic leaders may trigger negative consequences for the target, group, and organization. We conclude with theoretical and practical implications and propose avenues for future research.     

Leading across language barriers: Managing language-induced emotions in multinational teams

This study shows which negative emotion language barriers can provoke among multinational team (MNT) members and investigates how MNT leaders can successfully mitigate these detrimental effects. Multilingual teams constitute a leadership context of paramount importance in today's organizations, which prior research has neglected. Our study contributes to the literature on MNT leaders' emotion regulation strategies by investigating the specific challenges they face in this setting. We advance research on leadership in teams by exploring successful leadership strategies geared towards addressing language-induced emotions and by demonstrating the positive outcomes of MNT leaders leveraging their power in this context. Our study contributes to research on language barriers in multinational corporations by introducing the interplay of language-induced emotions and leadership to this area. Furthermore, it contributes to emotion-sensitive organizational studies by specifying previously established emotion management models for multilingual environments. On this basis, we draw conclusions for the development of future MNT leaders.     

Acting with the best of intentions… or not: A typology and model of impression management in leadership

Impression management (IM) is important for effective leadership. Followers accept influence from individuals who meet their perceptions of what it means to be a leader, and IM is an important way of impacting those perceptions. Yet, the extant literature on leader IM is fragmented. We unify the literature in this area by creating a multi-dimensional typology and multi-level model of IM in leadership. We examine the multi-dimensional nature of IM as a construct composed of information processing, communicative, and goal-directed components, thereby creating eight IM archetypes. Then, we examine how IM can be used to impact follower perceptions of the leader through the lenses of transformational/charismatic, authentic, and leader categorization theories. This research unites a currently fragmented area of research and sparks new questions about how leader behaviors can be used to influence followers toward multi-level leadership outcomes.     

Was Gandhi “charismatic”? Exploring the rhetorical leadership of Mahatma Gandhi

This study explores a deceptively simple question: was Gandhi a “charismatic” leader? We compare Gandhi's rhetorical leadership to social movement leaders and charismatic U.S. presidents to examine whether any consistencies in charismatic rhetoric emerge across historical and cultural contexts. Our findings indicate that charismatic themes of articulating the intolerable nature of the present and appealing to values and moral justifications emerged in similar levels across all three samples. In addition, Gandhi's speeches contained comparable levels of language that emphasized his similarity to followers, followers’ worth, links between the past and future, and abstract, intangible themes as compared to other leaders. In contrast, themes of collective focus and active, aggressive speech varied significantly across the three samples. Recognizing that content analysis should be utilized with caution across cultural settings, we suggest a number of possible explanations for Gandhi's pervasive appeal and implications for future research into the universality of visionary rhetoric.     

Follower behavior renders leader behavior endogenous: The simultaneity problem,estimation challenges,and solutions

Traditionally, leadership research has focused on unidirectional questions in which leader attributes are considered to determine follower outcomes. However, many phenomena between leaders (x) and followers (y) involve a simultaneous influence process in which x affects y, and y also affects x (i.e., simultaneity). Unfortunately, this simultaneity bias creates endogeneity and is often not properly addressed in the extant leadership literature. In three studies, we demonstrate the challenges of simultaneity bias and present two methodological solutions that can help to correct problems of simultaneity bias. We focus on simultaneity that occurs between follower resistance and leader control. We mathematically demonstrate the simultaneity bias using a simulated dataset and show how this bias can be statistically solved using an instrumental variable estimation approach. Furthermore, we present how the simultaneity bias can be resolved using an experimental design. We discuss how our approach advances theory and methods for leadership research.     

The effect of charismatic leaders on followers’ memory,error detection,persuasion and prosocial behavior: A cognitive science approach

Adopting a cognitive and follower-centric approach to charismatic leadership, we hypothesized that followers show lower levels of cognitive effort, reflected in superficial processing of factually correct information when listening to and viewing a charismatic leader. We conducted two experiments, using a 2 (charismatic versus neutral) × 2 (female versus male leader) between-subjects design and videos of trained actors delivering a speech. We examined the effects of leader charisma on (1a) followers’ ability to detect factually false information, (1b) accuracy to remember information from the leader (study 1, N = 100), (2a) the persuasiveness of factual messages, (2b) followers’ prosocial behavior and (2c) the mediating effect of the leader’s persuasiveness on followers’ prosocial behavior (study 2, N = 140). We did not find support for the effect of leader charisma on detecting false information, the persuasiveness of messages, or increased prosocial behavior among followers. We found an effect of leader charisma on memory. Participants recognized fewer messages in the charismatic compared to the neutral leader conditions. Exploratory analyses provided mixed results for an interaction effect of leader charisma and sex on detecting and remembering false information. Our studies offer first insights into the cognitive outcomes of the charismatic signaling process.     

Aesthetic leadership

We introduce aesthetic leadership as a promising approach in leadership studies. Two current movements in leadership research, the inclusion of followers in leadership models and the exploration of subjective leadership qualities, make taking an aesthetic perspective in leadership especially attractive and timely. Aesthetics relates to felt meaning generated from sensory perceptions, and involves subjective, tacit knowledge rooted in feeling and emotion. We believe the aesthetics of leadership is an important, but little understood, aspect of organizational life. For example, while we know followers must attribute leadership qualities such as charisma and authenticity to leaders to allow for social influence, we know little about how these processes operate. We propose that followers use their aesthetic senses in making these assessments. We relate aesthetic leadership to several current topics in leadership research, and outline the assumptions and methods of aesthetic leadership.     

Exploring social constructions of followership: A qualitative study

This study adopts a qualitative approach to deconstruct the meaning of followership. Interviews were conducted with employees in various industries to examine how individuals socially construct their roles as followers and to explore followership schemas and contextual influences that relate to these constructions. Results suggest that while some individuals socially construct definitions around passivity, deference and obedience, others emphasize the importance of constructively questioning and challenging their leaders. With regard to personal qualities that are thought to make followers effective, major themes such as obedience, expressing opinions, and taking initiative were found to be most disparate across different groups of followers. Results also revealed that contextual factors may affect both followership constructions and behavior in the follower role. These findings have important implications regarding a need to examine the construct of followership in leadership research, as well as raise interesting possibilities for advancing an “expanded” view of leadership in organizations.     

The effects of leader negative emotions on evaluations of leadership in a crisis situation: The role of anger and sadness

While existing literature on leadership articulates the importance of leader emotion, there has been little attention to the potential roles of more specific emotions. Emotions such as anger and sadness have been linked to leaders in times of crisis. The current paper examined the effect of leader emotion on evaluations of leadership in the context of a failed product. In particular, we examined how the expression of anger and sadness influences the evaluation of leaders. Results revealed that a leader expressing sadness was evaluated more favorably than a leader expressing anger. We found that participants' emotion mediated the relationship between leaders' emotion and the evaluation of leaders. Furthermore, accepting responsibility for the crisis led to more favorable evaluations than not accepting responsibility.     

The downside of transformational leadership when encouraging followers to network

Network scholars argue that one responsibility of leaders is to help their followers develop social capital. We suggest that one way leaders do this is by encouraging followers to engage in networking behavior. However, we argue that such encouragement is more effective when leaders are seen as less transformational, because followers are then less able to benefit from their leaders’ social capital. We support our arguments with a study of 142 followers and their leaders. Our findings show that followers engage in greater networking behaviors when encouraged by their leaders to do so, but this association is moderated by leaders’ transformational leadership style such that it is stronger as transformational leadership behaviors decrease. We thus introduce an unrecognized cost of leaders’ transformational leadership behaviors. Our findings contribute to research on networking behavior by investigating the role of transformational leadership style, and suggest avenues for research linking social capital and leadership.     

Leading with emotion: An overview of the special issue on leadership and emotions

This introduction to the special issue on leadership and emotions provides an overview of the topic and articles included in this issue. We discuss the motivation behind this collection of theoretical and empirical articles, how they contribute to the goals of the issue and where we see this domain of leadership research heading in the future. One goal of this issue was to expand the focus of research beyond moods and generalized affect to discrete emotions and mechanisms through which emotions exert influence such as emotional contagion, empathy, and emotional authenticity. Relative to positive and negative affectivity, discrete emotions, mediators, and moderators of leader emotions have been studied far less. A second goal was to highlight the importance and role of emotion regulation strategies, mechanisms, and effects in the dynamic exchanges between leaders and followers. Finally, we wanted to increase the representation of multi-level perspectives and studies with regard to leadership and emotions. The compiled studies achieve these goals drawing on a variety of theoretical perspectives (e.g., Emotions as Social Information (EASI), Affective Events, Transformational leadership) as well as range of methods (qualitative, quantitative and mixed-methods) and settings (lab and field). Taken together, the findings from this special issue illuminate some interesting relationships and we hope will inform future research on leadership and emotions in a significant way.     

Beneath the mask:: Examining the relationship of self-presentation attributes and impression management to charismatic leadership

We tested several hypotheses derived from Gardner and Avolio's [Acad. Manage. Rev. 23 (1998) 32.] self-presentational theory of charismatic leadership. We collected multisource field data in an information technology (IT) consulting firm and examined linkages among managers' self-system attributes (i.e., desired charismatic identity, self-monitoring), pro-social and self-serving impression management of managers, charismatic leadership of managers, and two measures of performance. Eighty-three managers provided self-reports of self-system attributes. Six months later, 249 subordinates rated the focal managers' impression management and charismatic leadership styles. Superiors of the focal managers provided performance ratings 7 months after collecting the subordinate ratings. Results indicated that complexity of desired charismatic identity was positively related to self-monitoring. Self-monitoring was negatively related to ratings of pro-social impression management and positively related to ratings of self-serving impression management. Pro-social impression management related positively to charismatic leadership, which predicted managerial and unit performance.