Contingency Approaches

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Chapter 3

• Contingency Approaches

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Chapter Objectives

• Understand how leadership is often contingent on
  people and situations.
• Apply Fiedlers contingency model to key
  relationships among leader style, situational
  favorability, and group task performance.
• Apply Hersey and Blanchards situational theory
  of leader style to the level of follower
  readiness.
• Explain the path-goal theory of leadership.
• Use the Vroom-Jago model to identify the correct
  amount of follower participation in specific
  decision situations.
• Know how to use the power of situational
  variables to substitute for or neutralize the
  need for leadership.
• Note all action memos in the chapter

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Leaders bookshelf - Wheatley

• Nurture relationships with a clear vision,
  statements of values, expressions of caring,
  sharing of information, and freedom from strict
  rules and controls
• Focus on the whole, not on the parts in isolation
• Reduce boundaries between departments to allow
  new patterns of relationships
• Become comfortable with uncertainty and recognize
  that any solutions are only temporary
• Recognize that healthy growth of people and
  organizations is found in disequilibrium, not in
  stability

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Ex. 3.1 Comparing the Universalistic and
Contingency Approaches to Leadership
Outcomes (Performance, satisfaction, etc.)
Leadership Traits/behaviors
Universalistic Approach
Leader
Style Traits Behavior Position
Contingency Approach
Outcomes (Performance, satisfaction, etc.)
Needs Maturity Training Cohesion
Task Structure Systems Env.
Situation
Followers
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Ex. 3.2 Metacategories of Leader Behavior and
Four Leader Styles
High
High Task-Low Relationship
High Task-High Relationship
TASK BEHAVIOR
Low Task-Low Relationship
High Relationship -Low Task
Low
Low
High
RELATIONSHIP BEHAVIOR
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Contingency Approaches
Contingency approaches approaches that seek to
delineate the characteristics of situations and
followers and examine the leadership styles that
can be used effectively
Fiedlers contingency model a model designed to
diagnose whether a leader is task-oriented or
relationship-oriented and match leader style to
the situation
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Fiedlers Contingency Theory

• Fiedlers Contingency Theory - classifies the
  favorableness of the leaders situation
• Least Preferred Coworker (LPC) - the person a
  leader has least preferred to work with over his
  or her career
• Task Structure - degree of clarity, or ambiguity,
  in the groups work activities
• Position Power - authority associated with the
  leaders formal position in the organization
• Leader-Member Relations quality of
  interpersonal relationships among a leader and
  group members

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Leadership Effectiveness in the Contingency Theory
High LPC relations oriented
Correlations between leader LPC
group performance
Low LPC task oriented
Unfavorable for leader
Favorable for leader
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Fiedlers theory

• Fit between leaders style (task or relationship)
  and the situation (favorable or unfavorable)
• Both relations and task oriented leaders can be
  effective in the right situation.

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Situational Theory
Hersey and Blanchards extension of the
Leadership Grid focusing on the characteristics
of followers as the important element of the
situation, and consequently, of determining
effective leader behavior
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Ex. 3.4 Hersey and Blanchards Situational Theory
of Leadership
Follower Characteristics
Appropriate Leader Style
Low readiness level Moderate readiness
level High readiness level Very high
readiness level
Telling (high task-low relationship)
Selling (high task-high relationship)
Participating (low task-high rel.)
Delegating (low task-low relationship)
Can be tailored to individual followers
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Hersey-Blanchard Situational Leadership Model
Leaders concern with task
Low
High
High
Leaders concern with relationship
Low
Immature Employees
Mature Employees
Willing/Able Unwilling/able
Willing/unable Unwilling/unable
4 3 2
1
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Hersey-Blanchard SituationalLeadership Model
Follower Readiness
LeaderDirected
FollowerDirected
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Path-Goal Theory
A contingency approach to leadership in which the
leaders responsibility is to increase
subordinates motivation by clarifying the
behaviors necessary for task accomplishment and
rewards
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Ex. 3.5 Leader Roles in the Path-Goal Model
Increase Rewards
Path Clarification
Leader learns followers needs
Leader defines what follower must do to attain
work outcomes
Leader clarifies followers work role
Leader matches followers needs to rewards if
work outcomes are accomplished
Follower has increased knowledge confidence to
accomplish outcomes
Leader increases value of work outcomes for
follower
Follower displays increased effort and motivation
Organizational work outcomes are accomplished
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Ex. 3.6 Path-Goal Situations and Preferred Leader
Behaviors
Situation
Leader Behavior
Impact on Follower
Outcome
Supportive Leadership
Followers lack self-confidence
Increases confidence to achieve work outcomes
Directive Leadership
Increased effort improved satisfaction and
performance
Ambiguous job
Clarifies path to reward
Achievement-Oriented Leadership
Lack of job challenge
Set and strive for high goals
Participative Leadership
Clarifies followers needs to change rewards
Incorrect reward
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The Vroom-Jago Contingency Model
A contingency model that focuses on varying
degrees of participative leadership, and how each
level of participation influences quality and
accountability of decisions
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Ex. 3.7 Five Leader Decision Styles
Area of Freedom for Group
Area of Influence by Leader
Delegate
Decide
Consult Individually
Consult Group
Facilitate
See page 101-106
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Substitute and Neutralizer
Substitute a situational variable that makes
leadership unnecessary or redundant
Neutralizer a situational characteristic that
counteracts the leadership style and prevents the
leader from displaying certain behaviors
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Ex. 3.10 Substitutes and Neutralizers for
Leadership