Leaders perceived as distant and close. Some implications for psychological theory on leadership

This paper deals with some principles derived from the concept of psychological distance, which are relevant to the differential view of distant and close leaders as perceived by the followers. The claim is that psychological distance is a subjective dimension that affects the manner of construal and attributions with regard to leaders. The more distant the leaders in the followers' perception the more they will be construed in abstract categories; more weight will be attributed to them in explaining occurrences of events; the followers will relate more to their traits and less to their behaviors, and will derive from their image more meaning for their own self worth. The theoretical and empirical significance of these arguments is discussed in the paper.