Leadership Theories: Evolution, Applicability, and Relevance

This literature review examines the evolution and applicability of leadership theories, tracing their development from the early 20th century to the present day. The paper explores major theories, including the Great Man Theory, transactional and transformational leadership, contingency theory, and situational theory. It analyzes how these theories have adapted and evolved, considering the shift from focusing on inherent traits to emphasizing behavioral aspects and situational factors. The review highlights the relevance of these theories in various contexts, including the military, and underscores the importance of a group-oriented approach to leadership, emphasizing the influence leaders exert on others to achieve common goals. The analysis concludes that while no single theory is universally applicable, the situation and context significantly impact the effectiveness of leadership styles, making it a complex and multifaceted concept.

LITERATURE REVIEW
[Type the document title]
LEADERSHIP THEORIES
4/17/2019
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admin

Contents
Introduction.................................................................................................................................. 3
Analysis and Evaluation............................................................................................................... 4
Conclusion................................................................................................................................... 7

Introduction
Leadership may be defined as a quality required by an individual in order to lead others, whether it be for
the fulfillment of a task, completion of a project, attainment of a mission or achieving a said goal or
vision. Leadership is an indispensable quality required by many managers, business owners and even
employees these days as being a great leader essentially means one can get a large number of people to
follow him/her. Such qualities are extremely sought after in many workplaces and businesses (Mango,
2018).
This research paper aims to review the current and ongoing research on the topic of evolution of the
theories of leadership. This paper also aims to review whether or not these theories are relevant,
applicable and effective in the modern day.
The theories of leadership are guidelines that suggest why certain individuals are better leaders than
others and how any person can become a great leader by acquiring specific qualities and abilities. For the
purpose of this paper, the research question shall be as follows-
“How has the research on the evolution and applicability of leadership theories changed in the current
times?”
It is said that any leader has certain common characteristics or qualities such as charisma, charm, ability
to give direction and delegation to others, confidence, perseverance, great communication skills, intellect
among others (Junker & van Dick, 2014).
Leadership has been quite an interesting topic ever since the dawn of time and been researched over time
and again. However it was Dr. Peter North house who laid the foundation for the study of leadership
skills and theories in the early 20th century in his book called as "Leadership: theory and practice". His
works were contributed to by Dr. Gary Yukl who also shared his perspective on leadership in his
publication titled "Leadership in Organizations". Since then an enormous amount of research has been
done on the topic of leadership and several theories have been postulated. Whether or not these theories
remain relevant in the current era or how they have been modified or changed is what shall be discussed
further(Dion, 2012).

Leadership theories are schools of thought brought forward to explain how and why certain individuals
become leaders (Cherry, 2019). As mentioned earlier, leadership theories were first research upon in the
20th century. Since then, several authors and writers have done an immense amount of research relating
to the theories of leadership. These theories have evolved overtime and overlap with one another at
various points, so much so, that it is difficult to comprehend the timeline and the chronological order of
the development of these theories.
Analysis and Evaluation
While there are several theories that have been given over the years many numerous different authors and
researchers, a great amount of research has been taken up fairly recently. While earlier studies suggested
that leadership is derived from certain personality traits that selected individuals possessed from the time
of their birth, recent piqued interest and following intensive studies suggest something else. Some more
recent theories propose that possessing certain traits may help make people natural leaders (Cherry,
2019). Even more recent research takes into account the situation and overall experience in a work
environment. In order to review the current evolution and application of the theories of leadership, it is
imperative to briefly discuss what the main theories of leadership have been state. It must be noted that
there are several theories. However, the brief discussion shall entail only 4 major theories which are most
popular (Van Wart, 2013).
This theory was based on the belief that certain individuals are born with particular traits in their
personalities which make them born leaders. The Great Man Theory is a perfect example of trait theory.
Great man theories assume that the capacity for leadership is inherent – that great leaders are born, not
made (Cherry, 2019). This theory is of the belief that either one is inherently a great leader or one is not.
Needless to say, individuals who inherited these personality traits were often men with dominant
personalities having qualities such as charm, confidence, charisma and wisdom etc (Johnson, 2017).
However, later on, more and more research started paying attention to the behavioral aspects of the
individuals, meaning more light was now being shed on what a person does rather than who the person is.
James MacGregor Burns in the late 20th century brought to light the behavioral aspects of a leader’s
personality and gave two theories, the transactional theory and the transformational theory. As the name
suggests, in a transactional leadership, the leader brings about influence in others in exchange for what he

offers to them, while in a transformational leadership, the influence and impact is more of a connection
and motivational in nature(House, 2012).
Third comes the contingency theory which suggests that no leadership style is best in all situations
(Cherry, 2019). This theory states that effectiveness of leadership is related to the interplay of a leader’s
traits, behaviors and other situational factors (Chakrabarti, 2014).
Lastly, there is also the situational theory. According to the exponents of this theory the leadership
changes from group to group and from situation to situation (Singh). In other words, it can said that this
theories lays extreme emphasis on the situation that an individual is as well as the external factors that are
varying rather than his or her traits or behavior. This theory has been considered to be confusing and
inconclusive. It doesn't pay any heed to the individual's actions, behaviors and personality traits, rather
completely disregards all of the aforementioned.
In the past half century, the study of leadership has grown, offering many new theories and frameworks
for exploring what it means to be a leader, and how to do leadership well (Johnson, 2017). Time and
again people have wondered whether leadership is a god-gift, whether certain individuals are born with it
or whether such qualities and characteristics can be identified and acquired.
In recent times, there has been a dramatic change in the way leadership is viewed. It was observed that
leadership did not solely depend on a single individual and his or her qualities, but a number of other
factors also contribute to the how well the individual performed as a leader. While these factors were
external and varying in different circumstances, they had a huge impact on the type and quality of
leadership. In areas where high precision work might be involved requires a different type of leadership
as compared to areas of simple management-oriented portfolios (Dess & Picken, 2000). In simpler words,
it can also be said that as with the passage of time, many of the theories had been modified and it was
found that all the theories are relevant in particular contexts but not one can be applicable in all contexts.
Therefore, the situation and context is just as relevant for the validation of any of the leadership theories.
The leadership concept is extremely affected by variable factors such as the culture, situations, working
environment as well as other organizational complexities (Amabile, Schatzel, & Kramer, 2004). It must
be noted that current research is taking into account the variable factors and shifting the focus from the
individual or leader to the environment and circumstances in which leadership of an individual id being
analysed or researched upon.

As recent research develops, there has been tremendous evolution in the way leadership and all its
theories are perceived. An interesting thing to note is that even in recent times and after years of research,
there hasn’t been any change in the theories. Various organizations use a various types of questionnaires
to measure individuals’ personality characteristics or traits (Practical Application of Trait Theories of
Leadership, 2013). Businesses, companies and organizations base questionnaires for the selection and
recruitment process and on these theories. A lot of these tests determine whether or not a candidate is fit
for the position of a supervisor or a leader based on their personality traits. While such a process may be
able to determine certain qualities in an individual, often times companies do take into account that the
results of the questionnaires might be inaccurate. This points to the affirmation of the contingency and
situational theories. All in all there is no perfect way of determining whether an individual is a good
leader or not. An article by Matthew Paul Earnhardt is based on the application of various leadership
theories and whether or not these were valid in a United States naval vessel. It was found that on a naval
vessel, the situational approach is applicable in several situations (Earnhardt, 2007). As there are a variety
of tasks and decisions to be taken, the situational theory holds ground in this case. It was also found that
the contingency theory was also particularly applicable in this case. On a naval vessel, the leader needs to
be alert, decisive and active at all points of time. He also needs to know which tasks he can delegate to
which subordinate. A commanding officer that effectively employs the contingency theory can save time,
resources and lives by fitting the correct military officer with the job of tactical action officer. Therefore,
it must be noted that many different theories can be applicable at once (Earnhardt, 2007).
All of the current and recent applicabilities of the theories of leadership make two things very apparent.
First is that as research on the topic has evolved it has become clear that leadership theories are applicable
and hold true in different situations which have high levels of specificity. In other words, not every theory
is applicable in every situation and not every theory is applicable in all situations. Secondly, all theories
of leadership and the research that has been conducted till date point to the fact that leadership is a group
rather than individual process and leaders try actually to influence the behavior of others (Dashtahi,
2016).
From believing and theorizing that leadership is an innate personality trait that some selective people are
born with to acquiring theorizing certain skills can be acquired to become a leader and everything in
between, the evolution of leadership theories has been thorough. It is an amalgamation of all the varying
factor and possibilities that test the true potential of an individual and a group and determine whether or
not a person is a great leader.

Conclusion
A simple definition is that leadership is the art of motivating a group of people to act towards achieving a
common goal (Ward, 2019). Right from the 20th century there has been an innate interest amongst
researchers regarding leadership. Defining and determining what it is and how it works is a question that
still doesn’t have any specific answer although a number of theories have been given by several
researchers, writers and authors.
Applicability of the theories of leadership in current times concludes not factualising any of the theories
rather that leadership process is one that requires a group rather than just a single individual. A leader
can’t be so if there is no one to lead. In addition to this, it has also been observed that a leader all the
different theories given be all the different researchers and writers agree on the fact that leaders work by
influencing other people. By giving others the direction that they need, leaders are able to realize goals,
missions and visions.
Leadership characteristics and situation qualities must be considered to determine appropriate leadership
(Dashtahi, 2016). It is not the qualities or personality traits that make a great leader while having those
personality traits might help. In the same way, it is not acquiring these traits that assure being a leader.
Nor is it solely dependent on the situation.

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