Answer: FALSE
Learning Objective: Understand the different ways leadership has been defined.
AACSB: Reflective thinking
Difficulty Level: Easy
86) Ratings from a leader's superiors, peers, or subordinates are subjective measures of effectiveness.
Answer: TRUE
Learning Objective: Understand the different ways leadership effectiveness is determined.
AACSB: Reflective thinking
Difficulty Level: Easy
87) Absenteeism can be construed as an indirect indicator of dissatisfaction toward a leader.
Answer: TRUE
Learning Objective: Understand the different ways leadership effectiveness is determined.
AACSB: Reflective thinking
Difficulty Level: Easy
88) One example of an objective measure of a leader's effectiveness is productivity.
Answer: TRUE
Learning Objective: Understand the different ways leadership effectiveness is determined.
AACSB: Reflective thinking
Difficulty Level: Easy
89) The distinction between universal and contingency theories of leadership is a sharp dichotomy.
Answer: FALSE
Learning Objective: Understand which aspects of leadership have been studied the most.
AACSB: Reflective thinking
Difficulty Level: Easy
90) Classifying leadership theories in terms of level of conceptualization means describing a leader's influence on others.
Answer: TRUE
Learning Objective: Understand the major types of leadership theories that have been studied.
AACSB: Reflective thinking
Difficulty Level: Easy
91) Why do you suppose that there are so many definitions of leadership?
Answer: Student answers may vary. They will likely include the idea that the term itself is taken from the common language and incorporated into the technical vocabulary of a scientific discipline. This appropriation carries extraneous connotations that create ambiguity of meaning. Additionally, researchers usually define leadership according to their individual perspectives and the aspects of the phenomenon that are of most interest to them. The differences in definition reflect deep disagreement about the identification of leaders and leadership processes.
Learning Objective: Understand the different ways leadership has been defined.
AACSB: Analytical thinking
Difficulty Level: Moderate
92) Should influence attempts that are irrelevant or detrimental to followers be included in the definition of leadership? Why or why not?
Answer: Student answers may vary. One viewpoint holds that leadership only occurs when people are influenced to do what is ethical and beneficial for the organization and themselves. In this conception, a leader's attempts to gain personal benefits at the follower's expense would not be considered. Another opinion is that all attempts to influence the attitudes and behaviors of followers in an organizational context, regardless of the intended purpose or actual beneficiary, are part of leadership. Acts of leadership often have multiple motives, and it is seldom possible to determine the extent to which they are selfless rather than selfish. The outcomes of leader actions usually include a mix of costs and benefits, some of which are unintended, making it difficult to infer purpose. For this reason, it may be best not to limit the study of leadership processes based upon the leader's intended purpose.
Learning Objective: Understand the different ways leadership has been defined.
AACSB: Analytical thinking
Difficulty Level: Moderate
93) What is the difference between leadership and management?
Answer: Student answers may vary. It is obvious that a person can be a leader without being a manager (e.g., an informal leader), and a person can have the job title "manager" with no subordinates to lead. Nobody has proposed that managing and leading are equivalent, but the degree of overlap is a point of sharp disagreement. The most useful perspective is probably to view leadership as one of several managerial roles. Most scholars seem to agree that success as a manager or administrator in modern organizations also involves leading. How to integrate the two processes has emerged as a complex and important issue in organizational literature.
Learning Objective: Understand the different ways leadership has been defined.
AACSB: Analytical thinking
Difficulty Level: Moderate
94) Discuss the criteria that are used to assess the effectiveness of leadership.
Answer: Student answers may vary. The criteria selected to evaluate leadership effectiveness reflect a researcher's explicit or implicit conception of good leadership. Most researchers evaluate leadership effectiveness in terms of the consequences of influence on a single individual, a team or group, or an organization. One very relevant indicator of leadership effectiveness is the extent to which the performance of the team or organization is enhanced and the attainment of goals is facilitated. Follower attitudes and perceptions of the leader are another common indicator of leader effectiveness, and they are usually measured with questionnaires or interview. Leader effectiveness is occasionally measured in terms of the leader's contribution to the quality of group processes, as perceived by followers or by outside observers. A final type of criterion for leadership effectiveness is the extent to which a person has a successful career as a leader.