Download Explain what/how situational variables affect

Week Three Overview
Assignment
Situational Variables
Leadership Styles
Path-Goal Style
Due Date
Day 3
(1st post)
Day 3
(1st post)
Day 7
Format
Discussion Forum
Grading
Percent
3
Discussion Forum
3
Written Assignment
5
Learning Outcomes
This week students will:
1. Explain how situational variables affect task and relationship-motivated leaders and
identify three factors that have the most impact on your situation.
2. Identify four path-goal leadership styles and explain how these styles compare to styles
described in other theories.
3. Analyze the path-goal style being used by a leader with whom you are familiar and
evaluate this leader’s effectiveness.
Readings
1. Read. the following chapters in your text, Leadership:
o Chapter 6: Contingency Theory
o Chapter 7: Path Goal Theory
o Chapter 8: Leader Member Exchange Theory
Recommended Readings
1. It is highly recommended that you read the following articles to gain a better understanding of leadership:
o
o
Discussions
Tse, H. & Mitchell, R. (2010). A theoretical model of transformational leadership and knowledge
creation: The role of open-mindedness norms and leader-member exchange. Journal of
Management and Organization, 16(1), 83-99.
Whitener, J.K. (2007). Year of wonders: The wonder of leadership. Advances in Developing
Human Resources, 9(2), 214-235
To participate in the following Discussion Forums, go to this week's Discussion link in the left
navigation:
1. Situational Variables
Explain what/how situational variables affect task motivated and relationship-motivated
leaders. Apply these factors to a work situation in which you were involved as a worker
or a leader. Which of the 3 factors had the greatest impact on your situation and why?
What category does this situation fall into? Respond to at least two of your fellow
students' postings.
2. Leadership Styles
Identify four leadership styles associated with path-goal theory. Explain each style and
relate it to styles described in other theories. Can leaders exhibit more than one style?
Respond to at least two of your fellow students' postings.
Assignments
To complete this assignment, go to this week's Assignment link in the left navigation:
Path-Goal Style
Write a three to four page paper (not including the title and reference pages) about a contemporary leadership
situation that is familiar to you. You may use the same situation from the week two assignment. Your paper needs
to:





Define path-goal leadership.
Identify the path-goal leadership style used in this situation; provide the tasks, and the
subordinates’ characteristics.
Support your position with specific examples.
Explain whether the action taken was appropriate and effective.
Discuss if the path-goal leadership approach would be useful in understanding the leadership
applied to the situation.
In addition to the requirements above, your paper:

Must be double-spaced and 12 point font





Must be formatted according to APA style
Must include an introductory paragraph with a thesis statement
Must conclude with a restatement of the thesis and a conclusion paragraph
Must reference at least two scholarly resources
Must include a reference page written in APA format
Carefully review the Grading Rubric for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your
assignment.
Ashford 4: - Week 3 - Instructor Guidance
Are Leaders Born or Made?
Leadership’s Essential Function in Society
Leadership is essentially a description of an observation. An observation in reference
to an individual’s ability to inspire others to act in a unified
manner towards the attainment of a common goal. In The Leader Within, Zigarmi
(2005) suggests that leadership is “the act of arousing, engaging, and satisfying the
motives of followers in an environment of conflict, competition, or change that results
in the followers taking a course of action towards a mutually shared vision”(p. 174).
According to Drucker," Leadership is lifting a person's vision to higher sights, the
raising of a person's performance to a higher standard, the building of a personality
beyond its normal limitations “(“Drucker quotes,” n. d.). Leadership is the driving
force in societal change.
Martin (1998) suggests without a recognized leader, status quo becomes acceptable
and the desire to grow and achieve higher goals never develops. Strong compelling
leadership is at the root of all great accomplishments. Leaders create follower
attitudes that motivate them to trust and follow them (Martin, 1998, p.1). Leaders
also have the ability to make an impact in terms of changes in an organization and in a
society (Martin, 1998, p.1). Does this imply that leaders have a unique ability to do
what others are unable to do?
Do Circumstances Reveal Leadership Abilities?
“Great necessities call forth great leaders.” Abigail Adams
My Family Leadership Story
In response to increasing crime in the Orlando Metro area area, my brother, Mr. N.
Smith answered the leadership call to become a grass roots community organizer. His
decision to act was in response to a 300% increase in crime, a decrease in police
patrols and a significant increase in home invasions in the Orlando Metro area. In
response to these community issues Mr. Smith organized community members to
become proactively involved in ridding the neighborhood of crime.
Mr. Smith’s leadership call to action was in response to a leadership vacuum and a
need for a unified community effort. Subsequently, he enlisted the aid of community
members in establishing a fact- finding committee and presenting these findings to
elected city officials. As a result of these efforts, he was able to establish a productive
working relationship with elected city officials.
Mr. Smith’s leadership was built on the foundation of strong community ties, trust,
credibility, and sacrifice. This trust was implied by his proactivity. He spends a
significant amount of his personal time conducting community meetings, gathering
crime data, and meeting with city officials. Accordingly, he has been able to garner
community support by demonstrating his sincere care and concern for the safety and
welfare of its members. He clearly understands that without trust, an individual has no
power in relationships. Trust is central to cultural ideas of empowerment, expectation,
and predictability (Fairholm, 1994, p. 97). To this end he enjoys a reciprocal trust
relationship with members of his community and elected officials.
Mr. Smith has faced significant challenges as a community leader. Initially some
community members were reluctant to become involved in neighbor watch activities
in fear of reprisals. However, he was able to convince community members that their
unified efforts in combating the neighborhood crime problem would be successful. As
a leader, he demonstrates the traits of pioneering, organizing, integrity, encouraging
and supporting. Most importantly, he has demonstrated vision, commitment, and
sacrifice. He has also demonstrated a willingness to challenge the status quo and
demand accountability of city leaders. In spite of his demanding career as a fire
fighter, he daily checks on the welfare of elderly community members.
Mr. Smith could have chosen to relocate his family. When asked why he chose to take
up the leadership responsibilities of a community organizer he replied “This is
something that needed to be done. I love my community; this is where I grew up” (N.
Smith, personal communication, April 5, 2007). In his opinion, he is merely filling a
leadership responsibility by building a collaborative social network in a neighborhood
where one previously did not exist. He is merely filling a leadership void.
Is this situation unique? How often have we seen leaders emerge without recognizing
what was occurring? What is needed in a leader in terms of traits and character is the
same as it has always been. Leaders need to be individuals of integrity and vision. As
stated by a Zen Master over 2000 years age ago; there is nothing special to leadership;
essentially, it is a matter of controlling the evils of biased information and autocracy.
(Cleary, 1993:p. 159) .Leaders emerge, flourish, and grow in situations where there is
a leadership void and they and their followers share unifying values, ideals, and
goals.
References:
Cleary, T. (1993). ZEN LESSONS: The Art of Leadership. Boston and
London:Shambala Pocket Classics
Fairholm, G. W. (1994). Leadership and the Culture of Trust. Westport, CT: Praeger
Publishers.
Martin, M. M. (1998). Trust Leadership. Journal of Leadership Studies, 5(41), 3.
Peter F. Drucker Quotes. (n.d.) retrieved April 5, 2007 from
http://www.inspirationalquotes4u.com./druckerquotes/index html
Zigarmi, D., Blanchard, K., Edeburn, C., & O'Connor, M. (2005). The leader within:
Learning enough about yourself to lead others. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall
DISCUSSIONS
Situational Variables
Explain what/how situational variables affect task motivated and relationship-motivated leaders.
Apply these factors to a work situation in which you were involved as a worker or a leader.
Which of the 3 factors had the greatest impact on your situation and why? What category does
this situation fall into? Respond to at least two of your fellow students' postings.
Leadership Styles
Identify four leadership styles associated with path-goal theory. Explain each style and relate it
to styles described in other theories. Can leaders exhibit more than one style? Respond to at least
two of your fellow students' postings.
Path-Goal Style
Write a three to four page paper (not including the title and reference pages) about a contemporary leadership
situation that is familiar to you. You may use the same situation from the week two assignment. Your paper needs
to:





Define path-goal leadership.
Identify the path-goal leadership style used in this situation; provide the tasks, and the subordinates’
characteristics.
Support your position with specific examples.
Explain whether the action taken was appropriate and effective.
Discuss if the path-goal leadership approach would be useful in understanding the leadership applied to the
situation.
In addition to the requirements above, your paper:






Must be double-spaced and 12 point font
Must be formatted according to APA style
Must include an introductory paragraph with a thesis statement
Must conclude with a restatement of the thesis and a conclusion paragraph
Must reference at least two scholarly resources
Must include a reference page written in APA format
Situational Variables
Explain what/how situational variables affect task motivated and relationship-motivated leaders. Apply
these factors to a work situation in which you were involved as a worker or a leader. Which of the 3
factors had the greatest impact on your situation and why? What category does this situation fall into?
Discussion 1 - Situational Variables
According to contingency theory, leadership style can be described as task motivated and
relationship motivated. Task motivated leaders emphasizes on attaining set goals whereas the
relationship motivated leaders focuses on building a friendly atmosphere. As per the
contingency theory, a situation can be described on the basis of three variables: leader-followers
relationship, task structure and position power. Leader-follower relationship refers to loyalty,
trust, and confidence felt by a follower for the leader (Gill, 2011). Task structure refers to
structure and clearness of tasks that need to be executed by followers. Position power shows the
power of the leader to reward and punish his followers.
All three variables influence performance of leaders in different situations. Below in the
given chart is showing how situations becomes favorable and unfavorable due to these three
variables.
Leader-follower
Good
Poor
relationship
Task structure
High
Position power
Strong
Low
Weak
Strong
High
Weak
Strong
Low
Weak
Strong
Weak
Situation
Favorable
Intermediate Situation
Situation
Very unfavorable
Situation
Task motivated leaders are very clear about their goals and objectives; hence they show good
performance even in a situation that have a weak relationship, unstructured goals, and low
power. Task leaders also show good performance if all three variables are strong. Whereas,
relationship motivated leaders perform good in moderate situations where goals are not properly
structured and the leader does not have full power (Northouse, 2010).
Work Situation: I was working as sales manager in a retail store and my jobs involved taking
care of in-store sales activities and achieving desired sales targets in all product categories. The
job profile was task motivated and the tasks of my subordinates were highly structured. The
position of power was very strong as I was entitled to take any decision related with changes in
reward and recognition of my subordinates. The relationship I shared with my subordinates was
very strong and they had full confidence on me despite of our high sales targets.
This situation was a very favorable situation as a Leader-follower relationship was good,
tasks were structured, and the sales manager had authority to take major decisions. In such a
situation the leader-follower relationship variable has a great impact; good relationships would
develop into a friendly working environment that enables employees to handle the stress of high
sales targets smoothly.
References
Gill, R. (2011). Theory and Practice of Leadership. London: SAGE.
Northouse, P. G. (2010). Leadership: Theory and Practice. California: SAGE.
Leadership Styles
Identify four leadership styles associated with path-goal theory. Explain each style and relate it to styles
described in other theories. Can leaders exhibit more than one style?
Discussion 2 - Leadership Styles
Path-goal theory describes behavior of a leader towards his subordinates and followers.
According to this theory, leaders reflect different behaviors to motivate and support their
subordinates in accomplishing goals by adopting a clear path. The leader shows behaviors that
compliment capabilities and compensate deficiencies of their followers. According to this
theory:

Leader shows clearly a path that should be followed by followers.

Leader removes obstructions that create any hurdles for followers.

Leader motivates followers by rewarding them along the path.
The approach adopted by the leader while supporting and motivating his followers could vary. It
depends on that leader whether he wants to adopt a strong approach or very limited. According
to the path-goal theory, four styles depicted by a leader are:

Supportive Leadership: this leadership style emphasizes on developing a healthy working
environment by considering the welfare and different needs of followers. This style is
very suitable for some boring and stressful jobs (House, 1971). This style is similar with
the relationship behavior of the style approach where a leader emphasizes on a
comfortable and relaxed working environment.

Directive Leadership: this leadership style focuses on telling things that need to be
executed along with providing appropriate guidance. It involves proper schedule of tasks
and respective timeliness for task completion. Directive leadership style is very effective
if the assigned task is difficult and unstructured. This leadership style is similar to the
telling style of the effective leadership theory where a leader instructs his followers on
things that need to be executed and in what manner they need to be executed.

Participative Leadership: this style emphasizes on considering their followers ideas at the
time of decision making. This approach is suitable if followers are well experienced and
willing to perform their job. This leadership style is similar to the participating style of
effective leadership and transformational style of contemporary leadership (House,
1996).

Achievement-Oriented Leadership: in this leadership style, the leader establishes difficult
task related and self-development related goals. The task oriented behavior of style
approach also emphasizes on achieving desired goals.
The leader also designed the reward system according to the motivation level of followers and
requirement of situation. The leadership style is a dependent variable that changes as per demand
of situation, task, complexities, individual personalities, performance pressure, etc. Thereby a
leader may exhibit more than one style as per the demand of tasks.
References
House, R. (1971). A path-goal theory of leader effectiveness. Administrative Science Quarterly ,
321-339.
House, R. J. (1996). Path-goal theory of leadership: Lessons, legacy, and a reformulated theory.
Leadership Quarterly , 323–352.
Path-Goal Leadership
Student Name
BUS 691
Discussion 2 - Leadership Styles
Path-goal theory describes behavior of a leader towards his subordinates and followers.
According to the theory, leaders reflect different behaviors to motivate and support their
subordinates in accomplishing goals by adopting clear path. Leader shows behaviors that
complement capabilities and compensate deficiencies of followers. According to the theory:

Leader shows clear path that should be followed by followers.

Leader removes obstructions that create hurdle for followers.

Leader motivates followers by rewarding them along with the path.
The approach adopted by leader while supporting and motivating his followers could vary. It
depends on leader whether he wants to adopt strong approach or very limited. According to pathgoal theory, four styles depicted by a leader are:

Supportive Leadership: this leadership style emphasizes on developing healthy working
environment by considering welfare and different needs of followers. This style is very
suitable for boring and stressful jobs (House, 1971). This style is similar with the
relationship behavior of style approach where leader emphasizes on comfortable and
relaxed working environment.

Directive Leadership: this leadership style focuses on telling things that need to be
executed along with providing appropriate guidance. It involves proper schedule of tasks
and respective timeliness for task completion. Directive leadership style is very effective
if assigned task is difficult and unstructured. This leadership style is similar to telling
style of effective leadership theory where leader instruct his followers on things that need
to be executed and in what manner they need to be executed.

Participative Leadership: this style emphasizes on considering followers ideas at the
time of decision making. This approach is suitable if followers are well experienced and
willing to perform the job. This leadership style is similar to participating style of
effective leadership and transformational style of contemporary leadership (House,
1996).

Achievement-Oriented Leadership: in this leadership style, leader establishes difficult
task related and self-development related goals. Task oriented behavior of style approach
also emphasize on achieving desired goals.
Leader also designed reward system according to the motivation level of followers and
requirement of situation. Leadership style is a dependent variable that changes as per demand of
situation, task, complexities, individual personalities, performance pressure etc. Thereby a leader
may exhibit re than one style as per demand of tasks.
References
House, R. (1971). A path-goal theory of leader effectiveness. Administrative Science Quarterly ,
321-339.
House, R. J. (1996). Path-goal theory of leadership: Lessons, legacy, and a reformulated theory.
Leadership Quarterly , 323–352.
Path-Goal Leadership
Leaders provide support and motivation to their team members to achieve desired results.
In present scenario when competition is continuously increasing and organizations are more
focused on generating calculative results, performance pressure on employees has raised
significantly. Effective leaders provide all types of desired support to motivate employees and
make them more productive as well as result oriented. Good leaders help in maintaining healthy
and friendly working environment to facilitate processes. Path-goal leadership emphasizes on
motivating team members by clearly defining goals and directions to achieve those goals. This
paper intends to discuss path-goal leadership and analysis of one situation where path-goal
leadership was used.
Path-goal leadership theory describes how a leader can support his team members in
designing path to achieve desired goals. Leader support his team members by specifying certain
behaviors that are most suitable according to the situation and environment. Path-goal leadership
theory focuses on:

Defining goals and objectives

Defining path to achieve goals

Removal of obstacles

Extending desired support
Path-goal leadership theory is complex theory that consist leadership behaviors, team
members characteristics, motivation and job characteristics (Northouse, 2010). Path-goal theory
depicts four styles of leadership:

Supportive Leadership: According to supportive leadership style, healthy working
environment and consideration of different needs of team members is essential to
generate desired results.

Directive Leadership: this style emphasizes on telling processes and tasks that need to be
performed along with appropriate guidance. Directive leadership involves appropriate
scheduling of tasks and formed timeliness for each task completion.

Participative Leadership: this style emphasizes on involving followers in decision making
process. This style is appropriate if team members are experienced (House, 1971).

Achievement-Oriented Leadership: this leadership style emphasizes on establishing
complicated tasks related and self-development related goals.
Situation: GNC Live Well is an American based retail outlet. The retail store deals in
retailing broad range of health supplement products. Last year the company has decided to
launch a new category of fitness equipments products to maintain its competitive advantages and
to respond to increasing competition. Company, instead of hiring new employees to promote and
sale new range of fitness equipments products, it directed its store managers to look after
promotion and sales with available workforce. This decision created confusion in mind of
employees as they were not clear how they will handle this new category along with meeting
higher expectations of management (GNC Live Well).
Store manager decided to handle this situation very effectively without de-motivating his
sales staff. Store manager formed sub-categories of fitness products and assigned different subcategories to individual staff. According to new work allocation, each sales person will be
responsible for sales of assigned sub-category. Sales manager evaluated knowledge of each staff
member on the assigned sub-category and organized customized training sessions accordingly.
Store manager informed sales staff on how to deal with new customer base and how to handle
client’s queries related with new product range. Store manager also decided not to establish sales
target for category as a whole but for each sub-category. Appropriate reward program also
designed after taking all concerns of sales staff into consideration. Initiatives taken by store
manager generated good results and realized sales targets.
In the above situation the task is ambiguous because employees do not have desired
knowledge and prior experience to sale new product range. Subordinates are not clear how to
perform the task and how to handle new customer base. In the situation store manager reflected
participative leadership style. Store manager shown participative leadership style by
understanding different needs of sales staff in terms of skills, knowledge, and incentives required
to perform the job effectively (Hein, 1998). Store manager designed the tasks very effectively to
increase the motivation level of sales staff and maintain healthy working environment. Store
manager depicted participative leadership style by forming sub-categories and establishing sales
target for each sub-category that provided clarity to the staff members. Store manager informed
staff members on how to perform their tasks in an effective manner. Store manager also shown
participative style of leadership by involving sales staff in designing incentive programs.
Actions taken by store manager were very effective and generated desired results. Store
manger designed tasks in a manner that it cleared confusion and motivated sales staff. Initially
sales staff was confused, de-motivated and shown their resistance towards the management
decision of introducing new product category. Store manager created healthy environment,
understand the needs of staff members, and designated clear responsibilities by adopting
participative leadership style.
Path-goal leadership style is very useful in understanding the style adopted by store
manager in the situation. Store manager was able to designed clear tasks, shown appropriate path
to his sales team members and removed confusion. The decision taken by management created
confusion in the mind of sales staff as they were aware how to perform the tasks. Store manager
removed that confusion and motivated sales staff by implementing appropriate reward program.
Store manager very evaluated requirements of sales team members and provided all desired
support.
From the above analysis it can be concluded that path-goal leadership style is very
effective when tasks are ambiguous, employees are not clear about their goals and how to
achieve those goals. Path-goal leadership style helps in managing situation by clearing
describing the goals and path to achieve those goals along with providing desired support.
References
GNC Live Well. (n.d.). Retrieved August 15, 2013, from www.gnc.com:
http://www.gnc.com/home/index.jsp
Hein, E. C. (1998). Contemporary leadership behavior. USA: Lippincott.
House, R. (1971). A path-goal theory of leader effectiveness. Administrative Science Quarterly ,
321-339.
Northouse, P. G. (2010). Leadership: Theory and Practice. California: SAGE.
Discussion 1
Michael Hargrave
8/13/2013 4:29:12 PM
“Contingency theory suggests that situations can be characterized in terms of three
factors: leader-member relations, task structure, and positional power.” Northouse, P. pg.
124) In the case of relationship-motivated leaders their primary concern is to preserve the
state of the relationship regardless of the task. Their outlook is people oriented so their
focus on the task is really secondary to the relationship they developed with their
followers. In a task motivated situation the leader is much more focused on the task and
could really care less about the interpersonal relationships that might be developed as the
result of the team properties. In my 20 years in the Navy and now my 8 years working in
the oil and gas industry I have seen both systems and traits at work. In certain situations
each of these leadership styles have their place in each of the systems at play.
Early on in my Navy career I met up with a total task based leader who really didn’t care
much about his personnel and was so focused on the mission that he failed to recognize
he was causing mental issues with several sailors onboard the ship. Since I worked for the
people he drove over the edge I was not as directly affected by his tactics as the
supervisors who were appointed to report to him. His lack of personal skills came to a
head when one member tried to commit suicide during a deployment. The member was
removed from the ship and sent ashore for mental health treatment. It was only then that
he decided he needed to become more of a people person. There were several factors at
play in his attitude towards his sailors namely he was recently promoted to CPO and we
felt that this went to his head until the suicide attempt. That made him realize he had to
not only be the task master but he needed to take better care of his personnel.
My next example is my last supervisor while I as assigned to the High Island II drilling
rig in Saudi Arabia. My boss there was a relationship motivated leader who would do
everything to support and back his people. Often times he could be heard telling the rig
manager that he would not implement a policy because it would affect the morale of his
people. Being assigned to a rig in Saudi Arabia was a challenge all in itself but when
corporate would implement a policy that just didn’t fit out personnel model he would
submit the required paperwork o not institute the policy he knew would fail his people.
While both are extremes of each model, they have both impacted my life and affected my
leadership style immensely. I have become both a task master and a people person. My
personal leadership style is to develop those relationships with my people but also hold
them accountable for timelines and project production.
Northouse, P. (2013). Leadership theory and practice (6th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA
Respond
RE:
Situational
Variables
Instructor Smith
8/14/2013 8:26:56 PM
Hello Michael,
Thank you for sharing, "Early on in my Navy career I met up with a total task based leader
who really didn’t care much about his personnel and was so focused on the mission that he
failed to recognize he was causing mental issues with several sailors onboard the ship.
Since I worked for the people he drove over the edge I was not as directly affected by his
tactics as the supervisors who were appointed to report to him. His lack of personal skills
came to a head when one member tried to commit suicide during a deployment. The
member was removed from the ship and sent ashore for mental health treatment. It was
only then that he decided he needed to become more of a people person. There were
several factors at play in his attitude towards his sailors namely he was recently promoted
to CPO and we felt that this went to his head until the suicide attempt. That made him
realize he had to not only be the task master but he needed to take better care of his
personnel." I am certain his poor leadership style was exacerbated by being confined to a
ship for long periods of time.
Good example..
All the best,
Dr. Mel
JOHN NEAL
Explain what/how situational variables affect task motivated and relationship-motivated leaders.
Situational variables are characterized by three main factors. These factors are: leader-member
relations, task structure, and position power. In the leader-member relations, the group sets the
atmosphere and the degree of confidence, loyalty, and attraction for the leader. This can result in
a range from positive and good, to unfriendly and poor. Task structure is determined by how
clear and structured the tasks are. This ultimately determines the leaders’ ability, control and
influence upon the group. The third factor is position power. This pertains to the amount of
power that the leader has when it comes to rewarding or punishing his followers. Its strength is
in the leaders’ ability to hire, fire, give raises, or promote. If the leader does not have the power
or authority to do these things it is weak (Northouse, 2013).Apply these factors to a work
situation in which you were involved as a worker or a leader. The variable of leader-member
relations is prominent in my organization. As a group my employees are treated fairly and not
expected to do anything that I would not do myself. We treat each other as family because we
spend more time together than each of us does with our own family and therefore, share personal
things that do not always relate to work. This has resulted in incredible loyalty towards me.
When I was planning on quitting, several planned to leave when I did. When I realized they
were serious, I chose to stay longer as I knew they really needed their jobs. As a result, there
have been times when overtime was not allowed that they clocked out and helped clean at night.
While this is illegal, they insisted that they were willing to work on their own time to help. When
it comes to task structure, each of my employees know what their job requirements are and have
great job performance. I have worked hard to cross-train my employees so they can each help
out where needed if they are not busy. They also voluntarily offer to help each other with their
tasks if they are not busy at the time.
Position power is needed in every business; however, I don’t really like the word power as it
relates to tight control in my mind. I have the ability to hire, fire, promote, and give raises to my
employees. While I enjoy these things for the most part, I never like to fire anyone. I believe in
second chances and sometimes even third. However, there comes a time when I do have to let
people go.
Which of the 3 factors had the greatest impact on your siutation and why?
In my position, I feel that all three factors impact my role as manager in a given situation. I feel
that if I lack in any of these areas in a negative way then I am failing my employees as well as
the business that I manage. I feel that in any given situation that presents itself to me it is
important that I am able to utilize these variables as necessary. This will maintain the
relationship that I have with my employees and their desire to go the extra mile for the business
and myself. Reference:
Northouse, P. (2013). Leadership theory and practice (6th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Publications
Scott Richardson
8/14/2013 5:19:25 PM
Situational variables include leader-member relations, task structure, and position
power. Leader-member relations center on the cultural relationship between the leader
and members (atmosphere, confidence in leader, loyalty, and mutual attraction between
leader and members (Northouse, 2013). Task structure centers on the clarity of the
requirements for the task; clear, concise task requirements equal more leader control.
Position power centers on the amount of reward/punishment power the leader has.
“Together, these three situational factors determine the favorableness of various
situations in organizations”(Northouse, 2013, p. 125).
My position as a lieutenant of a tower ladder company of a fire department
typically spans two of the three variables. The reason is there are two distinct leadership
venues a fire officer (at the station level) deals with on a daily basis. The two venues are
emergency response venues and non-emergency response venues.
Emergency response venues include any incident that the company responds to
from medical assists, to auto accidents or structure fires. These incidents require clear,
concise communication and emphasize task structure. For obvious reasons my crew and I
must be on the exact same page under all circumstances in emergency response.
Non-emergency response venues include station management, public interaction,
and professional development. Typically members of a career fire department spend
approximately 1/3 of their lives at the fire station, living together. We eat meals, work
out, study, and interact with each other and the public on a regular basis. This situation
requires leader-member relations to be solid. When they are not, the entire crew suffers,
as do the other two shifts at the station. This requires a lot of empathy, understanding,
patience, and personal development.
Northouse, P. (2013). Leadership theory and practice (6th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA:
Sage Publication
Instructor Smith
8/14/2013 8:33:09 PM
Hello Scott,
I agree, I worked with IAFF members around the country. Firefighters appear to have close
bonds. Good example, "Typically members of a career fire department spend
approximately 1/3 of their lives at the fire station, living together. We eat meals, work out,
study, and interact with each other and the public on a regular basis. This situation requires
leader-member relations to be solid. When they are not, the entire crew suffers, as do the
other two shifts at the station. This requires a lot of empathy, understanding, patience, and
personal development."
Keep up the good work,
All the best,
Dr. Mel
Tammy Braswell
8/14/2013 8:28:26 PM
Explain what/how situational variables affect task motivated and relationship-motivated
leaders.
The task-motivated leaders are mostly concern with reaching a goal, whereas the
relationship-motivated leaders are concerned with developing close interpersonal
relationships. The contingency theory, suggest, the leader may be characterized in three
factors: leader-member relations, task structure, and position power and the leader can
fall within any one of these three factors (Northouse, 2013, p. 123-24). The Least
Preferred Coworker (LPC) scale was developed by Fiedler to score leaders. Leaders who
score high on the scale are considered as relationship motivated and leaders who score
low on the scale are considered task motivated (Northouse, 2013, p. 123- 24). The leadermember relations situational variables consist of a group atmosphere and the degree of
confidence, loyalty, and attraction that followers feel for their leader. The second
situational variable, task structure, is where the tasks are clear and spelled out. The final
situational variable is position power, is the amount of authority a leader has to reward or
to punish followers (Northouse, 2013, p. 125).
Apply these factors to a work situation in which you were involved as a worker or a
leader. Which of the 3 factors had the greatest impact on your situation and why? What
category does this situation fall into?
In my past supervisory experience, I had a tough group of employees that was rebellious
to any suggestions or recommendation that I made. I was just entering the world of
supervisory and did not know much about how to leading a team; more so, dealing with
unhappy employees. Being the new supervisor on board, I had was classified in the
relationship-motivated role, more so than task-motivated. In this position, it was my
responsibility to get everyone to function as a cohesive team to work together as a unit.
As a new supervisor, I did a lot of team building exercises with the group, too reduce the
tension in the group atmosphere and so that employees would build trust and confidence
in me as their leader. After several exercises in team building, the groups began to trust
my judgment and became loyal and committed to getting along with one another. In
completing these tasks, I had to articulate team-building exercises in writing on how the
team would work together and identify issues for quick resolutions. The position power
given was to hire and write employees up, but it is weaken because I did not have the
power to fire anyone nor increase or decrease pay. In my opinion, all three situational
variables had a great impact, but relationship-motivated had the greatest impact because
it scored high on the LPC making it very unfavorable.
Northouse, P. (2013). Leadership theory and practice (5th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Saga
Publications
Respond
RE:
Situational
Variables
Instructor Smith
8/14/2013 8:35:37 PM
Hello Tammy,
Excellent example, "As a new supervisor, I did a lot of team building exercises with the
group, too reduce the tension in the group atmosphere and so that employees would build
trust and confidence in me as their leader. After several exercises in team building, the
groups began to trust my judgment and became loyal and committed to getting along with
one another." Remember, trust is earned.. it takes time.. Good example.
All the best,
Dr. Mel
Robert Leighton
8/15/2013 2:13:50 PM
Explain what/how situational variables affect task motivated and relationshipmotivated leaders.
Contingency theory suggests that situations can be characterized in terms of three factors:
leader-member relations, task structure and position power (Northouse, 2013, p. 124).
Leader-member relations involve the relationship between the leader and the member.
Task structure refers to how well a leader can communicate the duties necessary to
complete an assignment. Position power refers to the ability of the leader to be able to
reward or punish the members of the team.
Apply these factors to a work situation in which you were involved as a worker or a
leader.
As a member of a public safety forces, different personalities emerge throughout your
career. The advancement of personnel into supervisory positions is assigned leadership in
the way of promotional exams. The leaders who excelled in their positions were the ones
who “never forgot where they came from.” These leaders realized that being in the
position of a leader meant more responsibility, to not only themselves but also to the
people assigned to their station. These leaders who became successful were most often
respected as firefighters in the way they conducted themselves in performing the
functions of the job. The ones who had the most difficulty were the supervisors who
believed that the position made them more than they really were. They were the
supervisors who were constantly bringing up the fact they were the leader. This most
often changed over time as the culture of the organization worked to help change the
behavior of the leader.
Which of the 3 factors had the greatest impact on your situation and why?
Leader – member relations are the most important. If a leader has the respect from those
who follow them, the tasks assigned are easily accomplished and the cohesiveness of the
organization is apparent in the performance of their duties.
What category does this situation fall into?
The category of this situation falls into the low to middle LPC’s. The leader-member
relations are good and structure is high due to the framework of the organization. The
position power is weak, at least in my experience due to the fact we were civil service
employees and we were union firefighters. The likelihood of being fire required
substantial proof of lack of performance or other malicious intent.
Northouse, P. (2013). Leadership theory and practice (6th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Publications. ISBN: 9781421974882.
Respond
RE: Week 3
Instructor Smith
Discussion 1
8/16/2013 6:42:22 PM
Hello Robert,
Excellent observations and assertions, "As a member of a public safety forces, different
personalities emerge throughout your career. The advancement of personnel into
supervisory positions is assigned leadership in the way of promotional exams. The leaders
who excelled in their positions were the ones who “never forgot where they came from.”
These leaders realized that being in the position of a leader meant more responsibility, to
not only themselves but also to the people assigned to their station.'
As a newly promoted sergeant my police chief gave me some information that I never
forgot, " people will do anything for you if they know that you care about them." I enjoyed
a successful career, because I cared about the people I supervised and managed and I
deliberated , knowing the decisions I made affected them and their families, especially
when hard choices, were made. " Caring mean being vulnerable, connecting and being
human...
Keep up the good work.
All the best,
Dr. Mel
Jason Harper
8/15/2013 8:10:24 PM
Three situational variables affect task motivated and relationship motivated leaders. They are
task structure, leader-member relations and position power. Task structure involves "assessing
whether there were detailed descriptions of work products, standard operating procedures or
objective indicators of how well the task is being accomplished". (Hughes, Ginnett & Curphy,
2002, p. 372) Leader-member relations describes the relationship between the leader and
followers. If it is cooperative and friendly interaction or challenging and resistant. Position
power involves the degree of authority on the part of leader with the official title, right to give
rewards or punishment compared to the leader without the official title or rank.
I worked for a cleaning service a few years ago as a house cleaner. In my position I felt that I
needed to do a large portion of the work my boss should have been doing. I had to handle the
customer service portion of the business. This included speaking with my assigned clients and
other workers clients. In this position each time that I tried to take a leadership role it was faced
with resistance. I was primarily the only one who had an overall understanding of the business
and the clients needs. My boss would eventually listen to my suggestions and then relay them to
the other workers. Essentially I was doing his job but didn't have the title. Over time he realized
my commitment and I was promoted to a position of assistant manager. With this position I was
seen as an employee on the same level. The workers were more willing to listen to my
suggestions and instructions. The position power explains the relationship in both positions.
Though I was leading the business I didn't have the formal title. I was given the title and
continued doing the same things but now I had a title.
Hughes, R., Ginnett, R. & Curphy, G. (2002). Pp. 371-2. Leadership Enhancing the Lessons of
Experience. The McGraw Hill Companies, Inc
Respond
RE:
Situational
Variables
Instructor Smith
8/16/2013 6:49:34 PM
Hello Jason,
Thank you for sharing... good example of expert power, respect for knowledge and
experience,' Over time he realized my commitment and I was promoted to a position of
assistant manager. With this position I was seen as an employee on the same level. The
workers were more willing to listen to my suggestions and instructions. The position power
explains the relationship in both positions. Though I was leading the business I didn't have
the formal title. I was given the title and continued doing the same things but now I had a
title.'
Keep up the good work,
All the best,
Dr. Mel
DISCUSSION 2
Matthias B
The four leadership styles associated with path goal theory are directive, supportive,
participative, and achievement oriented. The “directive leadership is similar to the “initiating
structure” concept described in the Ohio State studies and the “telling” style described in
situational leadership” (pg. 139). “Supportive Leadership consists of being friendly and
approachable as a leader and includes attending to the well being and human needs of
subordinates” … “Participative leadership consist of inviting subordinates to share in the
decision making”… “Achievement-oriented leadership is characterized by a leader who
challenges subordinates to perform work at the highest level possible” (pg. 140). Each one of the
leadership has its own definition that take apart of the path goal theory. Directive leadership are
considered to be the demanding type of leader. Many people dislike these kind of leaders
because they are typically bossy and have a very low level of empathy. The supportive leaders
are the leaders that make sure that subordinates understand their process in which they are
directing them to do. Participative leadership is considered the soft and sensitive about their
subordinates’ feelings. Most of them are taken advantage of unless they are directive as well.
The Achieve oriented leader are leader that make employees and subordinates develop character
on their own through motivation and giving them job assignments without explaining in details
of what to do. Many people want to work under those kind of conditions.
Northouse, P.G. 2013. Leadership: theory and practice. Sixth Edition. SAGE Publications, Inc.
Michael H
Leaders can always exhibit more than one style of leadership trait or characteristic. As part of the
path-goal leadership theory there are four basic types of leadership styles that were examined.
While there can be any number of leadership styles attributed to the leader the theory is based on
the followers needs rather than the leader’s style. “Path-Goal theory emphasizes the relationship
between the leader’s style and the characteristics of the subordinates in the work setting.”
(Northouse, P. pg. 137) Under this theory leaders must establish and communicate the path to the
goal and tailor their leadership style to help the subordinates reach that goal.
“For the leader, the challenge is to use a leadership style that best meets the subordinate’s
motivational needs.” (Northouse, P. pg. 137) While there are four styles to this leadership style
each could be broken down into a separate and distinct leadership mantra. The directive
approach stylizes that a leader give clear and concise direction to subordinates. Some followers
require that this approach be used in order to reach their peak performance under normal
circumstances. Some followers like the idea that they are directed to do and not have to think
about any variables in the job situation. While this approach is essentially a do as I say approach
people do respond to this path to the goal.
The supportive approach would be used when a follower requires some form of support to reach
the goals of the organization. This leadership style would require the leader to “support” the
subordinate in their endeavors. The leader needs to be well mannered and friendly towards their
subordinates and attend to their human needs. “Leaders using supportive behaviors go out of
their way to make work pleasant for subordinates.” (Northouse, P. pg. 140) this is different that
the supportive method of leadership which essentially mandates that all personnel be involved in
the decision making process within the organization. Supportive leaders allow followers to feel
like they have a viable input to the ultimate decisions in the direction of the organization. This is
very similar to participative leadership in that leaders invite subordinates to participate in the
decision making process of the organization. The primary difference in the two are that
supportive leaders make the actual decisions where in the participative model everyone gets a
say in the organizations direction.
The final aspect of the path-goal theory is the achievement-oriented leader. In this case the leader
inspires their subordinates with rewards for obtaining goals established by the leader. “A leader
challenge their subordinates to perform work at the highest level possible.” (Northouse, P. pg.
140) in my case I was working as a maintenance Supervisor with Coca-Cola in Houston, Texas
and I inspired my personnel with rewards for achieving the line performance goals for a month.
These were cash rewards distributed in the fashion of allowing personnel to purchase goods from
any of the company of vendor catalogs for achieving the goal. In my current role as a rig asset
manager we do much the same for safety performance. When a rig reaches one year with no
recordable incidents the entire crew gets rewarded with a certificate that allows them to purchase
a gift from the safety incentive catalog. All of these are very good examples of a leadership
structure that is achievement oriented.
Northouse, P. (2013). Leadership theory and practice (6th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA
Tammy Braswell
8/14/2013 9:27:22 PM
Identify four leadership styles associated with path-goal theory.
According to Norhouse (2013), “Path-goal theory suggests that each type of leader behavior has a different
kind of impact on subordinates’ motivation. The four leadership styles that leaders can use with
subordinates are directive, supportive, participative, or achievement oriented” (p. 138-39).
Explain each style and relate it to styles described in other theories.
Directive Leadership – “is similar to the “initiating structure” concept described in the Ohio State studies
(Halpin & Winer, 1957) and the “telling” style described in situational leadership. This style of leadership
gives explanation about task, what’s expected of the subordinates, how it is to be done, and the time frame
in which it is to be completed. The leader sets clear standards of performance and makes clear rules and
regulations for subordinates” (Northouse, 2013, p. 139).
Supportive Leadership – “resembles the consideration behavior construct that was identified by the Ohio
State studies. The leader in this leadership role demonstrates being friendly and approachable as well as
tending to the well-being and human needs of subordinates. It is also stated that the supportive leaders treat
subordinates as equals and give them respect for their status” (Northouse, 2013, 140).
Participative Leadership – This leadership has not been related to other styles described; however, the
leadership style consists of “inviting subordinates to share in the decision making” (Northouse, 2013,
p.140). In this style, the subordinates ideas and opinions matter.
Achievement-Oriented leadership – “is characterized by a leader who challenges subordinates to perform
work at the highest level possible. The leaders show a high degree of confidence that subordinates are
capable of establishing and accomplishing challenging goals” (Northouse, 2013, p. 140).
Can leaders exhibit more than one style?
Yes. Leaders can exhibit more than one style of leadership because the leader must adopt to the styles of
leadership for the situations or the motivational needs of the subordinate. The leader must conform to the
call of different types of leadership behavior. For example, if subordinates need participative leadership at
one point in a task and directive leadership at another, the leader can change her or his style as needed”
(Northouse, 2013, p. 140). However, switching from one leadership to another leadership may not always
be appropriate; it depends on the task, and the subordinate.
Northouse, P. (2013). Leadership theory and practice (5th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Saga Publications
Robert Leighton
8/15/2013 2:54:10 PM
Identify four leadership styles associated with path-goal theory.
The four leadership styles associated with path-goal theory are: directive, supportive,
participative and achievement-oriented (Northouse, 2013, p. 139).
Explain each style and relate it to styles described in other theories.
Directive leadership – Characterizes a leader who gives subordinates instructions about
their task, including what is expected of them, how it is to be done, and the time line for
when it should be completed. A directive leader sets clear standards of performance and
makes the rules and regulations clear to the subordinates (Northouse, 2013, p. 139).
Directive leadership is similar to the “initiating structure” described in the Ohio State
studies on Style approach and the “telling” style described in situational leadership
(Northouse, 2013, p. 139).
Supportive Leadership – consists of being friendly and approachable as a leader and
includes attending to the well-being and human needs of subordinates (Northouse, 2013,
p. 140)
Supportive leadership is similar to the consideration behavior in the Ohio State Study on
Style approach (Northouse, 2013, p. 140)
Participative Leadership – consists of inviting subordinates to share in the decision
making by consulting with subordinates, obtains their ideas and opinions and integrates
their suggestions into the decision making process (Northouse, 2013, p. 140).
Participative Leadership is similar to the S2 style of situational leadership. This style is
the coaching style is high-directive –high supportive style. The leader focuses
communication on both achieving goals and meeting subordinate’s socioemotional needs.
This coaching style requires the leader involve himself or herself with subordinates by
giving encouragement and soliciting input (Northouse, 2013, p. 101)
Achievement-oriented Leadership – characterized by a leader who challenges
subordinates to perform work at the highest level possible (Northouse, 2013, p. 140).
Achievement-oriented leadership is similar to Team Management (9,9) of the Blake and
Mouton’s Managerial (Leadership) Grid in the style approach of leadership. Team
management places a strong emphasis on both tasks and interpersonal relationships. It
promotes a high degree of participation and teamwork in the organization and satisfies a
basic need in employees to be involved and committed to their work (Northouse, 2013, p.
81).
Can leaders exhibit more than one style?
Path-goal theory is about how leaders motivate subordinates to accomplish designated
goals. The underlying assumption of path-goal theory is derived from expectancy theory,
which suggests that subordinates will be motivated if they think they are capable of
performing their work, if they believe their efforts will result in a certain outcome, and if
they believe that the payoffs for doing their work are worthwhile (Northouse, 2013, p.
137).
The success of this style is the leaders understanding of the workforce and the motivating
factors for the workers. Each worker may have their own motivation f to be successful
and the key of a good leader is to understand the motivation and continue to provide
opportunities which will encourage and drive the motivation of the worker.
Northouse, P. (2013). Leadership theory and practice (6th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Publications. ISBN: 9781421974882.
Scott Richardson
8/15/2013 5:48:01 PM
Identify four leadership styles associated with path-goal theory.
Four leadership styles associated with path-goal theory that leaders can use
with subordinates are directive, supportive, participative, or achievement
oriented (Northouse, 2013, p. 138-39).
Explain each style and relate it to styles described in other theories.

Directive Leadership:
Directive leadership provides explanation about the task including what’s
expected of the subordinates, how it is to be done, and the time frame in
which it is to be completed. According to the text the leader sets clear
standards of performance and makes clear rules and regulations for
subordinates” (Northouse, 2013, p. 139).

Supportive Leadership:
Supportive leadership provides the follower with an approachable leader
whose main concern is the people the leader works with. Further, supportive
leadership is similar to the consideration behavior in the Ohio State Study on
Style approach (Northouse, 2013, p. 140)

Participative Leadership:
Participative leadership provides a collaborative approach that encourages
leader-subordinates decision making by consulting with subordinates in this
style, leaders obtain subordinates’ ideas and opinions and consider their
suggestions in the decision making process (Northouse, 2013, p. 140).

Achievement-oriented Leadership:
Achievement-oriented leadership provides a leader who has high
expectations of subordinates. Additionally, an achievement-oriented leader
has confidence in the abilities of those on their team (Northouse, 2013, p.
140). Achievement-oriented leadership is similar to Team Management in so
much as team management places a strong emphasis on both tasks and
interpersonal relationships. That is, like team management, Leaders expect a
lot of their team members and they place the same expectation on taking
care of their team members (Northouse, 2013, p. 81).
Can leaders exhibit more than one style?
Strong leaders DO exhibit more than one style. I believe that is a large part
of the definition of a strong leader; one who exhibits the right leadership
style based on the situation, team members, and goals. The key, in my
opinion is consistency. Meaning that a leader must fully understand
leadership situations and styles in order to match the best styles with the
situation and use that refine their skills set in the styles they use from their
leadership toolbox.
Northouse, P. (2013). Leadership theory and practice (5th ed.). Thousand
Oaks, CA: Saga Publications
Jason Harper
8/15/2013 10:00:22 PM
Four leadership styles associated with path goal theory are directive, participative, supportive
and achievement oriented leadership behaviors. There is not one leadership style that works in
all situations. Leadership styles can be utilized in conjunction with another in order to meet the
requirements of an effective leader/member relationship.
Robert House's path goal theory deals with expectancy that effort leads to effective
performance; expectancy that performance leads to reward; intrinsic job satisfaction;
performance and overall satisfaction.
Directive: Leader tells subordinates what their tasks are, how they should be done and closely
monitors subordinates activities and practices constant follow-ups until execution of tasks
Participative: Leaders believe in more democratic system within the delegation process.
Subordinates are allowed to offer suggestions or opinions. They can create ways in which to
meet the needs of their tasks and duties. In cases where suggestions or opinions aren't used,
leaders explain to subordinates the reasoning behind their final decision.
Supportive: Leaders focus on being courteous and friendly, "expressing genuine concern for
followers well being, individuals needs and remaining approachable and open to followers".
(Hughes, R., Ginnett, R. & Curphy, G. (2002)
Achievement-oriented: Leaders are a combination of supportive and demanding. They set
higher goals for followers to reach; yet provide the support needed to accomplish goals. They
show subordinates they can succeed, will succeed and will look to enhance their behavior in the
future.
Romeo, D. & Carter, C. (1992). A test of path goal theory: The effects of leadership and faculty
satisfaction. Retrieved August 15, 2013 from: http://search.proquest.com.proxylibrary.ashford.edu/docview/304028652/13FEAA646A57EA7BD97/3?accountid=32521
Muczyk, J.P. & Reimann, B.C. (1987). The Case for Directive Leadership. Retrieved August 15,
2013 from: http://search.proquest.com.proxylibrary.ashford.edu/docview/210523044/13FEAAB28F77FECBE33/3?accountid=32521
Hughes, R., Ginnett, R. & Curphy, G. (2002). Leadership: Enhancing The Lessons of Experience. p.
377. The McGraw Hill Companies, Inc.