BUS 120 Principles of Management: 4. Leadership Theories

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• Contingency Theory

  From Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Psychology
  A theory (Fiedler 1978) that leadership effects on group performance depend on three ‘contingencies’ (see s. 1) – leader–member relations (good–bad), task (structured–unstructured) and leader’s power (weak–strong) – and their moderating effect on leadership style.
• Expectancy theory

  From The New Penguin Business Dictionary
  A theory of motivation. An employee will exert more effort when he believes increased effort will result in a good performance appraisal, that a good appraisal will lead to some form of tangible reward (such as a pay rise), and that it will also satisfy personal goals.
• Great man theory
  From The Penguin Dictionary of Psychology
  A point of view in historical investigations which contends that accomplishments in a field are due primarily to the efforts of great men.

• Situational leadership theory

  From The New Penguin Business Dictionary
  A contingency theory of leadership that focuses on the readiness and maturity of followers. In essence, it says ‘leaders are as good as their followers’.
• Trait theory

  From Business: The Ultimate Resource
  The belief that all leaders display the same key personality traits. Trait theory developed from the great man theory of leadership as researchers attempted to identify universally applicable characteristics that distinguish leaders from other people. 
• Transactional leadership

  From Business: The Ultimate Resource
  A theory that describes sets of feelings, thoughts, and behavior or ego states that influence how individuals interact, communicate, and relate with each other.
• Transformational leadership

  From Business: The Ultimate Resource
  The idea that effective leadership is based on inspiring and enthusing subordinates with a corporate vision in order to gain their commitment.

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