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Forces that Affect Leadership Styles Essays

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Forces that Affect Leadership Styles

A good leader uses all three styles, depending on what forces are involved between the followers, the leaders, and the situation. Some examples include:
· Using an authoritarian style on a new employee who is just learning the job. The leader is competent and a good coach. The employee is motivated to learn a new skill. The situation is a new environment for the employee.
· Using a participative style with a team of workers who know their job. The leader knows the problem well, but he wants to create a team where the employees take ownership of the project. The employees know their jobs and wan to become part of the team. The situation allows time.
· Using a delegative style with a …show more content…

Negative: If the emphasis is placed upon penalties, then the leader is using negative leadership. Although it has its place in a leader’s repertoire of tools, it should be used carefully due to its high cost on the human spirit. Negative leaders act domineering and superior with people. They believe the only way to get things done is through penalties, such loss of job, days off without pay, and reprimand in front of others. They believe their authority is increased by freighting everyone into higher levels of productivity.

Leaders are not strictly one or another, but are somewhere on a continuum ranging from extremely positive to extremely negative. Leaders who continuously work out of the negative are bosses while those who primarily work out of the positive are real leaders.
Leader Use of Consideration and Structure
Two other styles that leaders use are:
· Consideration (employee orientation) – Leaders are concerned about the human needs or their employees. They build teamwork, help employees with their problems, and provide psychological support.
· Structure (task orientation) – Leaders believe that they get results by consistently keeping people busy and urging them to produce.
There is evidence that leaders who are considerate in their leadership style are higher performers and are more satisfied with their jobs. Consideration and structure are independent of each other so they should not be viewed on opposite

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