LEADERSHIP THEORY AND PRACTICE SIXTH EDITION Contingency Theory Chapter 6.

LEADERSHIP THEORY AND PRACTICE SIXTH EDITION

Contingency Theory

Chapter 6


Overview

Contingency Theory Approach Perspective

Leadership Styles

Situational Variables

Research Findings of Leader Style Effectiveness

How Does the Contingency Theory Approach Work?

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Contingency Theory Approach Description

Contingency theory is a leader-match theory (Fiedler & Chemers, 1974)

Tries to match leaders to appropriate situations

Leader’s effectiveness depends on how well the leader’s style fits the context

Fiedler’s generalizations about which styles of leadership are best and worst are based on empirically grounded generalizations

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Northouse - Leadership Theory and Practice, Sixth Edition © 2012 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Perspective


Contingency Theory Approach Description

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Effective leadership is contingent on matching a leader’s style to the right setting

Assessment Based On:

Leadership Styles

Situational Variables

Definition


Leadership Styles

Leadership styles are described as: Task-motivated (Low LPCs)

Leaders are concerned primarily with reaching a goal

Relationship-motivated (High LPCs) Leaders are concerned with developing close

interpersonal relationships

Leader Style Measurement Scale (Fiedler)

Least Preferred Co-Worker (LPC) ScaleHigh LPCs = Relationship-motivated

Low LPCs = Task-motivated

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Leader-Member Relations

Refers to the group atmosphere and the degree of confidence, loyalty, and attraction of followers for leader Group atmosphere –

• Good – high degree of subordinate trust, liking, positive relationship

• Poor – little or no subordinate trust, friction exists, unfriendly

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Task Structure

The degree to which requirements of a task are clear and spelled out• High Structure –

requirements/rules - are clearly stated/known

path to accomplish - has few alternatives task completion - can be clearly

demonstrated limited number - correct solutions exist

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Task Structure continued

• Low Structure – requirements/rules - not clearly

stated/knownpath to accomplish - has many

alternativestask completion - cannot be clearly

demonstrated/verified unlimited number - correct solutions

exist

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Situational Variables/3 Factors

Position PowerDesignates the amount of authority a leader

has to reward or punish followers• Strong Power –

authority to hire or fire, give raises in rank or pay

• Weak Power – no authority to hire or fire, give raises in

rank or pay

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3 Factors - determine the favorableness of various situations in organizations

Situations that are rated:

Most Favorable -

• good leader-follower relations,

• defined tasks (high structure), &

• strong leader position power

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Situations that are rated:

Least Favorable -

• poor leader-follower relations,

• unstructured tasks (low structure), &

• weak leader position power

Moderately Favorable –

• fall in between these extremes

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LEADERSHIP THEORY AND PRACTICE SIXTH EDITION 12




LPC ScoreFavorableness

of SituationDefinition

LowVery Favorable

Very Unfavorable

Situations going smoothly

Situations out of control

High

Moderately Favorable

Situations with some degreeof certainty; not completelyin or out of leader’s control

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Reasons for leader mismatch, ineffectiveness:

LPC style doesn’t match a particular situation; stress and anxiety result

Under stress, leader reverts to less mature coping style learned in earlier development

Leader’s less mature coping style results in poor decision making and consequently negative work outcomes

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How Does the Contingency Theory Approach Work?

Focus of Contingency Theory

Strengths

Criticisms

Application


Contingency Theory Approach

By assessing the 3 situational variables, any organizational context can be placed in one of the 8 categories represented in the Contingency Theory Model

After the nature of a situation is determined, the fit between leader’s style and the situation can be evaluated

By measuring Leader’s LPC score and the 3 situational variables, it is possible to predict whether a leader will be effective in a particular setting

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Focus

Overall Scope


How Does Contingency Theory Work?

Effective in Categories – 1, 2, 3, & 8

If individual’s style matches appropriate category in the model, leader will be effective

If individual’s style does not match appropriate category in the model, leader will not be effective

Low LPCs – Task-Oriented

Middle LPCs

High LPCs – Relationship-Oriented

Effective in Categories – 4, 5, 6, & 7

Effective in Categories – 1, 2, & 3

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How Does Contingency Theory Work?

Example:Situation

Leader–Member Relation – GoodTask Structure – HighPosition Power – HighCategory – 1Low LPC – (Individual who is task-oriented will be effective)

By measuring Leader’s LPC score and the 3 situational variables, it is possible to predict whether a leader will be effective in a particular setting.

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Strengths Empirical support. Contingency theory has been tested

by many researchers and found to be a valid and reliable approach to explaining how to achieve effective leadership.

Broadened understanding. Contingency theory has broadened the scope of leadership understanding from a focus on a single, best type of leadership (e.g., trait approach) to emphasizing the importance of a leader’s style and the demands of different situations.

Predictive. Because Contingency theory is predictive, it provides relevant information regarding the type of leadership that is most likely to be effective in particular contexts.

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Strengths Not an all-or-nothing approach. Contingency

theory contends that leaders should not expect to be effective in every situation; thus companies should strive to place leaders in optimal situations according to their leadership style.

Leadership profiles. Contingency theory supplies data on leadership styles that could be useful to organizations in developing leadership profiles for human resource planning.

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Criticisms Fails to fully explain why leaders with

particular leadership styles are more effective in some situations than others

Criticism of LPC scale validity as it does not correlate well with other standard leadership measures

Cumbersome to use in real-world settings Fails to adequately explain what should be

done about a leader/situation mismatch in the workplace

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Application

Useful in answering a multitude of questions about the leadership of individuals in various types of organizations

Helpful tool to assist upper management in making changes to lower level positions to ensure a good fit between an existing manager and a certain work context

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LEADERSHIP THEORY AND PRACTICE SIXTH EDITION Contingency Theory Chapter 6.

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