- Leadership is an interpersonal influence exercised in a given situation, directed through the process of human communication, toward the achievement of one or more specific objectives.
- The personality traits theory assumes it is possible to find a finite number of personal, intellectual, emotional and physical characteristics that identify successful leaders.
- The leadership styles theory identifies three styles of leadership: the autocratic, the democratic and the laissez-faire.
- The contingency theory rests on three pillars — the leader, the followers and the situation — and holds that one cannot speak of leaders without speaking of followers.
In this article, we will examine three major theories of leadership: the personality traits theory, the leadership styles theory, and the contingency theory.
What is the personality traits theory?
This theory is concerned with identifying the personality traits capable of characterizing leaders. It starts from the assumption that it is possible to find a finite number of personal, intellectual, emotional, and physical characteristics that identify successful leaders. Leadership must not be confused with management or administration. A good administrator should ideally be a good leader, yet a good leader does not always succeed as an effective administrator. Within this framework, leadership is defined as an interpersonal influence exercised in a given situation, directed through the process of human communication, toward the achievement of one or more specific objectives.
What is the leadership styles theory?
This theory identifies three styles of leadership: the autocratic, the democratic, and the laissez-faire.
- The autocratic leader makes decisions unilaterally and expects compliance.
- The democratic leader seeks the participation of others and gives equal attention to both the task and the group. They act as a facilitator to guide the group, coordinating and suggesting ideas.
- The laissez-faire leader allows total freedom for individual or group decision-making, and participates only when requested by others.
What is the contingency theory?
The contingency theory connects the figure of the leader with the phenomenon of leadership itself. It holds that you cannot speak of leaders without speaking of followers, and it rests on three pillars: the leader, the followers, and the situation. Many leaders are not prepared to embrace the shift toward team-based leadership. However, it is possible to learn by developing skills such as patience for sharing information, trust in others, willingness to relinquish authority, understanding the right moment to intervene, and knowing when to grant greater autonomy to the group.
Among the many responsibilities team leaders assume, some key functions include counseling, facilitation, handling disciplinary issues, reviewing group and individual performance, training, communication, and managing the conflicts that naturally arise among people. Many of these responsibilities apply to managers in general, but the leader's work has two primary priorities: managing the team's external boundaries and facilitating internal processes.
The leader represents their team to outside groups, ensuring the necessary structure and resources, clarifying the expectations others have of the team, and serving as a conduit for external information shared with team members. Leaders also serve as problem-solvers. When members face difficulties and ask for help - whether personal or professional - leaders meet with them to seek solutions, understanding how vital that support is for achieving shared goals.
In general, these problems are not technical or operational in nature, since team members typically have greater command of that type of knowledge than the leader does. The leader's true value lies in facilitating the human process that enables the team to function and grow.
The short answer
Leadership has been explained by three major theories: the personality traits theory, which looks for the characteristics that identify successful leaders; the leadership styles theory, which distinguishes the autocratic, democratic and laissez-faire styles; and the contingency theory, which places the leader, the followers and the situation together as inseparable pillars. None of them reduces leadership to administration, since a good leader does not always succeed as an effective administrator. In the contingency view, the leader’s true value lies in facilitating the human process that enables the team to function and grow.