Equity theory | | Category of leadership theories that states that leaders can flex their behaviors to meet the needs of unique situations, employing both task or directive behaviors and relationship or supportive behaviors; includes Hersey-Blanchard situational leadership, Fiedler’s contingency theory, and path-goal theory. |
Coaching leadership approach | | Motivation theory that states that individuals are motivated by a desire to satisfy certain needs and that understanding these needs allows leaders to offer the right incentives and create the most motivational external environments; includes self-determination and theories of Maslow, Herzberg, and McClelland. |
Motivation | | Leadership approach in which the leader creates strong relationships with and inside the team; team members are motivated by loyalty. |
Theory X/Theory Y | | Leadership theory that emphasizes a leader’s preference for order and structure; focuses on control and short-term planning. |
Expert power | | Motivation theory that states that the way a person interprets the causes for past success or failure is related to the present level of motivation; includes theories of Heider and Weiner. |
Attribution theory | | Motivation theories dealing with the amount of control in the workplace; motivation is seen as either absolutely irrelevant or absolutely critical. |
Transactional leadership | | Leadership theory that focuses on a two-way relationship between leaders and chosen employees; the leader mentors selected team members and gives them access to more information and resources in order to strengthen levels of trust and support. |
Referent power | | Leadership approach in which the leader proposes a bold vision or solution and invites the team to join this challenge. |
Pacesetting leadership approach | | Leadership theory that states that leaders possess certain innate characteristics that followers do not possess (and probably cannot acquire), such as physical characteristics and personality traits. |
Transformational leadership | | Power that is created by the force of the leader’s personality. |
Affiliative leadership approach | | Leadership approach in which the leader sets a model for high performance standards and challenges followers to meet these expectations. |
Reward power | | Theory that states that motivation can be increased by providing employees with goals against which they can assess their achievement. |
Expectancy theory | | Motivation theory that states that effort increases in relation to one’s confidence that the behavior will result in a positive outcome and reward; includes Vroom’s theory. |
Authoritative leadership approach | | Category of leadership theories that states that leaders influence group members through certain behaviors; includes Blake-Mouton theory. |
Emergent theory | | Power that is created when the leader can offer followers something they value in exchange for their commitment. |
Coercive power | | Leadership approach in which the leader focuses on developing team members’ skills, believing that success comes from aligning the organization’s goals with employees’ personal and professional goals. |
Goal-setting theory | | Legitimate power |
Leader-member exchange theory | | Leadership theory that states that leaders are not appointed but emerge from the group, which chooses the leader based on interactions. |
Needs theory | | Factors that initiate, direct, and sustain human behavior over time. |
Trait theory | | Leadership theory that emphasizes a leader’s ability to inspire employees to embrace change; leaders encourage and motivate employees to innovate and seek out changes that can add value and growth to the organization. |
Democratic leadership approach | | Leadership approach in which the leader imposes a vision or solution on the team and demands that the team follow this directive. |
Behavioral theories | | Power that is created when a leader is recognized as possessing great intelligence, insight, or experience. |
Coercive leadership approach | | Leadership theory in which the leaders’ goal is to serve the needs of their employees; emphasizes the sharing of power. |
Legitimate power | | Power that is created when the leader can punish those who do not follow. |
Situational theories | | Leadership approach in which the leader invites followers to collaborate and commits to acting by consensus. |
Servant leadership | | Theory that states that motivation is based on an employee’s sense of fairness; the individual compares their perceived value with that of others in similar roles and makes a calculation based on their inputs and outputs. |