Embedded Files
reduce team member motivation. 2. Democratic leadership (also called participative). Democratic leaders share leadership. Important plans and decisions are made with the team (Chrispeels, 2004). Although this appears to be a less efficient way to run things, it is more flexible and usually increases motivation and creativity. In fact, involving team members, giving them “permission to think, speak and act” brings out the best in them and makes them more productive, not less (Wiseman & McKeown, 2010, p. 3). Decisions may take longer to make, but once made everyone supports them (Buchanan, 2011). 3. Laissez-faire leadership (also called permissive or nondirective). The laissez-faire (“let someone do”) leader does very little planning or decision making and fails to encourage others to do it. It is really a lack of leadership. For example, when a decision needs to be made, a laissezfaire leader may postpone making the decision or never make the decision at all. In most instances, the laissez-faire leader leaves people feeling confused and frustrated because there is no goal, no guidance, and no direction. Some mature, self-motivated individuals thrive under laissez-faire leadership because they need little direction. Most people, however, flounder under this kind of leadership. Pavitt summed up the differences among these three styles: a democratic leader tries to move the group toward its goals; an autocratic leader tries to move the group toward the leader’s goals; and a laissez-faire leader makes no attempt to move the group (1999, pp. 330ff ). Task Versus Relationship Another important distinction is between a task focus and a relationship focus (Blake, Mouton, & Tapper, 1981). Some nurses emphasize the tasks (e.g., administering medication, completing patient records) and fail to recognize that interpersonal relationships (e.g., attitude of physicians toward nursing staff, treatment of housekeeping staff by nurses) affect the morale and productivity of employees. Others focus on the interpersonal aspects and ignore the quality of the job being done as long as people get along with each other. The most effective leader is able to balance the two, attending to both the task and the relationship aspects of working together. Motivation Theories The concept of motivation seems simple: we will act to get what we want but avoid whatever we don’t want to do. However, motivation is still surrounded in mystery. The study of motivation as a focus of leadership began in the 1920s with the historic Hawthorne studies. Several experiments were conducted to see if increasing light and, later, improving other working conditions would increase the productivity of workers in the Hawthorne, Illinois, electrical plant. This proved to be true, but then something curious happened: when the improvements were taken away, the workers continued to show increased productivity. The researchers concluded that the explanation was found not in the conditions of the experiments but in the attention given to the workers by the experimenters. table 1-1 Comparison of Autocratic, Democratic, and Laissez-Faire Leadership Styles Autocratic Democratic Laissez-Faire Amount of freedom Little freedom Moderate freedom Much freedom Amount of control High control Moderate control Little control Decision making By the leader Leader and group together By the group or by no one Leader activity level High High Minimal Assumption of responsibility Leader Shared Abdicated Output of the group High quantity, good quality Creative, high quality Variable, may be poor quality Efficiency Very efficient Less efficient than autocratic style Inefficient Source: Adapted from White, R.K., & Lippitt, R. (1960). Autocracy and democracy: An experimental inquiry. New York: Harper & Row. 3663_Chapter 1_0003-0016.indd 5 663_Chapter 1_0003-0016.indd 5 9/15/2014 4:36:37 PM /15/2014 4:36:37 PM Process Cyan rocess CyanProcess Magenta rocess MagentaProcess Yellow rocess YellowProcess Black rocess Black 6 unit 1 ■ Professional Considerations Frederick Herzberg and David McClelland also studied factors that motivated workers in the workplace. Their findings are similar to the elements in Maslow’s Hierarchy of
Report abuse