1

Running Head: Empirical Research - Leadership

Empirical Research - Leadership

[Author’s Name]

[Institute’s Name]
 2

Introduction

Robert Jarvick, inventor of the artificial heart stated, "Leaders are visionaries with a poorly

developed sense of fear and no concept of the odds against them...they make things happen”. A

group comprises of individuals carrying various roles. However, the role of leadership is without

doubts the most valuable and important role amongst all. Leadership influences and directs the

behavior of the people in the group. A leadership style comprises of all characteristics

demonstrated by the leader of a certain group in order to direct the members of the group

accordingly. Psychologists divide the styles of leadership into two broad categories: Socially

oriented (leadership style focusing on the emotional and social well being of the group) and Task

oriented (leadership style focusing on the achievement of the target goal). These two categories

further project three leadership styles which are: Autocratic (the leader controlling the decision-

making process single handedly), democratic (the leader encourages and motivates all group

members to take part in the decision-making process), and finally the laissez-faire leader (the

leader who lets the group members work in any way they desire and takes no responsibility for

the group).

Research Question

The purpose of this research is to identify which of the three leadership styles (autocratic,

democratic, and laissez-faire) is most effective.

Methodology

The method of collecting the information I chose ranges from academic journals, books, online

publications, to student interviews along with my personal experiences. As the information

 3

collected is not primarily through direct observation, the participants of this research cannot be

conclusively classified into a specific group.

FINDINGS

Public sector organizations, for many years have been the model of autocratic leadership, where

leaders were termed similar to administrators. The role of the leaders was to maintain a

bureaucratic approach where they could only engage in iterative and cautious changes (Gabris,

2004). Medical workers and low level managers are perceived only as followers and not as

leaders themselves. Rather than offering members the power to influence others, the primary

purpose of this bureaucratic approach is leadership development which would enable the lower

level individuals to coupe up with uncertain events in the future resulting in greater flexibility.

One of the most well-known autocratic leaders was Howell Raines, the Executive Editor of the

New York Times from 2001 to 2003. Raines was known was his rigid policy of flooding all of

the New York Times’ resources to cover the stories which he, on his own judgment, deemed was

important.

Democratic leadership offers a great level of freedom in terms of decision-making. In this

approach, leaders consult with their sub-ordinates to make form strategies and to come about to a

certain decision. The teamwork of the US Military is a perfect example of this style of

leadership. Most of the US military teams after receiving basic training use this approach to

promote teamwork and fellowship within the unit. Such democratic leaders give their

subordinates opportunities to involve in the task and advance their skills through on-the-job

leadership and training. On the other hand US military officers frequently use the Laissez-faire

leadership approach to delegate jobs and to sergeants and officers. Leaders, in order to educate,
 4

delegate the competent subordinates to lead allowing the officers to focus on other important

tasks. Similarly, military officers delegate tasks to expert subordinates, who have better

knowledge and expertise about a particular job than them. This act of delegating maintains span

of control whilst allowing the subordinates to do their jobs efficiently and without interruption.

The student interviews were conducted where questions were regarding the impact of the

leadership style of various professors on their course work, motivation and involvement in class.

The interview was conducted from random 50 students belonging to various demographic and

psychographic groups. The responses received from the students were greatly dependent on the

program they were enrolled with. Nearly 60% of the students enrolled in Business

Administration responded that their motivation and involvement towards the course work is

fuelled by the autocratic leadership style of the professor. 20% of the students stated that

autocratic professors reduce their motivation and involvement, 10% said that they have no effect

and the remaining 10% was unable to determine. On the other hand, 90% of the students enrolled

in Performing arts stated that laissez-faire leadership style has a great positive effect towards

their motivation, reason being the nature of their studies which involves the expression of

oneself. The remaining 10% stated that their motivation towards the course-work was constant

regardless of the leadership style of the instructor.

Conclusion

Each of the three leadership styles is suitable in its’ own way depending on the nature of the

situation. New and untrained staff in an organization cannot be treated with a democratic or

laissez-faire leadership style. In order to make them learn the norms and methods of their work,

they have to be treated with an autocratic leadership style. Situations where there is no room for
 5

error, limited time to make a crucial decision or when the power of a manager is challenged by

the staff demands this style of leadership.

Team building, participation and situations where a large or complex problems arrive

requiring lots of input to solve, a democratic leadership style is appropriate which would give the

staff the sense of belongingness and importance. Similarly when working with a staff that is

highly skilled, experienced and educated, where they have pride in their work and the drive to do

it successfully on their own, the most appropriate leadership style is laissez-faire.

Based on the findings of the research, it cannot be conclusively deduced as to which of

the three leadership styles is the most effective of all, primarily because of the difference in their

effects. The findings show that one leadership style cannot be adopted in all situations and all

fields of work. To sum it all up, the success of an organization or group and for it to work

efficiently, leadership itself is dependent on the independent factor which range from

environmental conditions, political stability to social and industrial trends.

 6

Bibliography

Journal of US-China Public Administration. An empirical research on the leadership and

effectiveness in public healthcare organizations. Volume 7, No.2. Retrieved from
http://www.managers.org.cn/mag/doc/ucman201002/ucman20100201.pdf

Josh Wepman, Leadership Styles in the Military. Retrieved from:

http://www.ehow.com/list_6572273_leadership-styles-military.html#ixzz13ySqAqVS

David R. Frew, Perceptions of Leadership Effectiveness and Organizational Ideology,

Management International Review, Volume 13. Retrieved from
http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublication?journalCode=manainterev

Daniel Goleman, Peter F. Drucker, John P. Kotter, Ronald A. Heifetz, Donald L. Laurie,
Robert Goffee, Gareth Jones, Warren G. Bennis, Robert J. Thomas, Jim Collins, David
Rooke, William R. Torbert, William W. George, Peter Sims, Andrew N. McLean, Diana
Mayer, Deborah Ancona, Thomas W. Malone, Wanda J. Orlikowski, Peter M. Senge,
HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Leadership, June 07, 2010.

Jim Collins, Level 5 Leadership, The triumph of Humility and Fierce Resolve. Retrieved
from http://hbr.org/hb-main/resources/pdfs/comm/microsoft/level-five.pdf