1
Leadership Unit 1
Study Sheet
Slide 1: Theories of Leadership
- Trait theory of leadership
- Personality theory of leadership
- Behavior theory of leadership
- Comprehensive theory of leadership
- Situational theory of leadership
1. Trait Theory of Leadership
● Great leaders exhibit certain key personality traits across a wide range of situations.
● Great leaders are born, not made
● Traits include:
- Drive and ambition
- Desire to lead and influence others
- Honesty and integrity
- Self-confidence
- Intelligence
- In-depth technical knowledge related to area of expertise.
Examples:
- The late Steve Jobs was known for his charisma.
- If they are talkative at home, they tend also to be talkative at work.
2. Personality Theory of Leadership
● A person’s leadership style develops naturally based on his or her strengths and
preferred behaviors.
● Completing personality tests will give you insight into your own behavior in a group
and the behavior of others
● Example: True Colors
● my-personality-test.com/true-colours
Side Notes:
, 2
- According to trait leadership theory, effective leaders have in common a pattern of
personal characteristics that support their ability to mobilize others towards a shared
vision.
- These traits include dimensions of personality and motives, sets of skills and
capabilities, and behavior in social relationships.
3. Behaviour Theory of Leadership
● Great leaders exhibit certain key behaviors across a wide range of situations.
● Leadership is based on:
- Task orientation
- Relationship orientation
Side Notes:
- A great example of behavioral theory is looking at a task-oriented leader vs. a
people-oriented leader. If there’s a problem with a team, a task-oriented leader will
look at the process to see if something needs to be adjusted with the workflow.
- The behaviors and skills of effective leaders:
1. Listening to feedback
2. Encouraging communication between team members
3. Supporting employees to improve their productivity
4. Giving employees autonomy
5. Setting realistic deadlines for deliverables
6. Considering each team member’s interest and skills when assigning tasks
- Some advantages of behavioral theory is its ability to define behavior clearly and to
measure changes in behavior.
- The behavioral approach focuses exclusively on what leaders do and how they act.
Task Orientation Relationship Orientation
- Characterized by an emphasis on - Characterized by an emphasis on
achieving performance tasks or goals interpersonal relationships, with less
attention on performance
- Defining and achieving performance - Genuine personal interest in the
goals individuals feelings
- Responsibilities for individual - Friendly and approachable
performance
Leadership Unit 1
Study Sheet
Slide 1: Theories of Leadership
- Trait theory of leadership
- Personality theory of leadership
- Behavior theory of leadership
- Comprehensive theory of leadership
- Situational theory of leadership
1. Trait Theory of Leadership
● Great leaders exhibit certain key personality traits across a wide range of situations.
● Great leaders are born, not made
● Traits include:
- Drive and ambition
- Desire to lead and influence others
- Honesty and integrity
- Self-confidence
- Intelligence
- In-depth technical knowledge related to area of expertise.
Examples:
- The late Steve Jobs was known for his charisma.
- If they are talkative at home, they tend also to be talkative at work.
2. Personality Theory of Leadership
● A person’s leadership style develops naturally based on his or her strengths and
preferred behaviors.
● Completing personality tests will give you insight into your own behavior in a group
and the behavior of others
● Example: True Colors
● my-personality-test.com/true-colours
Side Notes:
, 2
- According to trait leadership theory, effective leaders have in common a pattern of
personal characteristics that support their ability to mobilize others towards a shared
vision.
- These traits include dimensions of personality and motives, sets of skills and
capabilities, and behavior in social relationships.
3. Behaviour Theory of Leadership
● Great leaders exhibit certain key behaviors across a wide range of situations.
● Leadership is based on:
- Task orientation
- Relationship orientation
Side Notes:
- A great example of behavioral theory is looking at a task-oriented leader vs. a
people-oriented leader. If there’s a problem with a team, a task-oriented leader will
look at the process to see if something needs to be adjusted with the workflow.
- The behaviors and skills of effective leaders:
1. Listening to feedback
2. Encouraging communication between team members
3. Supporting employees to improve their productivity
4. Giving employees autonomy
5. Setting realistic deadlines for deliverables
6. Considering each team member’s interest and skills when assigning tasks
- Some advantages of behavioral theory is its ability to define behavior clearly and to
measure changes in behavior.
- The behavioral approach focuses exclusively on what leaders do and how they act.
Task Orientation Relationship Orientation
- Characterized by an emphasis on - Characterized by an emphasis on
achieving performance tasks or goals interpersonal relationships, with less
attention on performance
- Defining and achieving performance - Genuine personal interest in the
goals individuals feelings
- Responsibilities for individual - Friendly and approachable
performance
