Leadership Theories: Historical Trends, Analysis and Frameworks

This essay provides a comprehensive overview of leadership theories, examining historical trends, various leadership styles, and their applications in organizational settings. It explores the evolution of leadership thought, from early trait theories to contemporary models like transformational and transactional leadership. The analysis includes a comparison of leadership and management, differentiating between coercion and other forms of authority. The essay also delves into the integration of a biblical framework in leadership, highlighting its unique attributes and principles. The discussion covers the strengths and weaknesses of different leadership styles, providing a critical appreciation of their behaviors and impact on organizational effectiveness. The paper concludes with a review of the contemporary leadership landscape and its challenges.

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Title: Leadership Theory
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Table

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Historical Trends in Leadership.......................................................................................................3
Analysis of Leadership and Management........................................................................................4
Theories and Practices of Leadership in Organizations..................................................................5
Contemporary Leadership Theory in Spectrum of Organization....................................................7
Differentiating between Leadership and Coercion and Other Forms of Authority.........................8
Integrated Biblical Framework in Leadership Theories.................................................................9
Critical Appreciation of Leadership Styles and Behaviors............................................................11
References......................................................................................................................................13

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Introduction
In this era of development, organizational structures need to undergo the needful changes
in order to meet the demands of the people and that of the business competition. However, in
Australian business scenario, the leadership challenges are observed. Nowadays, the majority of
the organizations are moving from a typical hierarchical structure to more networked and
connected teams. According to surveys ‘leadership’ is a key area of focus for Human Resource
Management. Every leader wants to gain a competitive edge and for that, they need to adopt the
latest trends in the business industry, even if it means leaving behind years’ of well-established
leadership patterns.

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Historical Trends in Leadership
Over the years, many researchers have presented studies on the leadership practices,
especially because it is the core of several budding topics such as decision-making,
communication between the leader and the subordinate, leader’s authority, etc. (Cacioppe, 1997).
Max Weber was the first one to originate the studies on leadership. He explored the status,
authority, and politics with regard to leadership. He was convinced that ongoing trends of
leadership are both problematic and important.
 Dominant Leadership- The 19th century was a time of a dominant leadership. It was
believed that only some people have the ability to lead others (Wart, 2003).
 Trait Theory- In the late 1920s and 1930s, the trait theory was the basis to identify the
leaders and separate them from non-leaders. The main idea of the theory was on ‘what’
an effective leader is and not on ‘how’ will he lead effectively. The basic traits that were
considered are- social, physical, personal attributes.
 Behavioral Theory- In the 20th century, the focus shifted from the trait theory towards
the behavioral theory. It was aimed at finding the leadership determinants that would
further help in training the leaders. It included the development of personality tests for
aspiring leaders. The theory, however, had a few drawbacks. The list of the traits became
huge and many of the attributes were not ideal in certain circumstances.
 Ohio State and the University of Michigan Studies- The studies inferred that
leadership is not an inborn trait and people can learn how to be effective leaders (Zedeck,
1988). It modified the way of working in the organizations, the culture became task-
oriented and gave equal emphasis to people-oriented things.

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 Leader Interaction- It emphasized that successful leaders are the ones that are able to
adapt as per the need and keeps his followers in confidence. It implies that leaders have
to be adaptive.
 Contingency Theories- This theory is more about the leader’s ability to influence people
and his leadership style. The conclusion was drawn that one leadership style is not
suitable in all situations rather specific leadership styles are suitable for specific
situations.
Analysis of Leadership and Management
Leadership and Management are overlapping concepts, but they differ in execution. A
manager is assigned with the task of management, but a leader is the decision maker and the
controlling authority. A leader is tasked with motivating and inspiring people (Bohoris & Vorria,
n.d.). The terms, leadership, and management are often used synonymously but they are very
different. A manager has to manage the operations to reach that goal. Both these people have
separate roles to play in an organization (Wajdi, 2017). Authors like Jaques 1996, Selznick 1957,
Nicholls 2002, and others have asserted that these two concepts are more or less similar. If
observed closely, the leadership and management vary significantly in their characteristics and
functions. For example- the task of reading a book and writing a book are different than each
other and thus they cannot be used similarly. Another main point to consider is that leadership
inspires people, whereas management plans. They vary in processes in their everyday roles. A
good leader should be able to manage people, but vice-versa is not mandatory (Young &
Dulewicz, 2008).

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Theories and Practices of Leadership in Organizations
In any organization, leadership is the cornerstone of all decisions, successes, and failures.
It is responsible for driving the employees towards the desired goal and share the vision. Over
the years, there are many different leadership styles that have been chosen by the leaders and
organizations (Malmir, Esfahani & Emami, 2013). However, certain situations demand some
specialized style of leadership.
Laissez-faire Leadership- Royal Dutch Shell is a global oil company. The leadership style of
the corporation is Laissez-Faire wherein the employees are free to work as their regulations and
leaders do not involve much. However, the perfect style would have been participative which
gives freedom to the employees within regular boundaries but also gives enough control to the
leaders. Efficiency and consistency are enhanced in this style (Wellman & LePine, 2017).
Transformational Leadership- This type of leadership style includes motivating, inspiring, and
employees. The employees have sufficient independence and a sense of ownership in the
organization. Such type of leadership is beneficial for both the employer and the employees. It
gives employees a chance to be innovative and present new ideas. Thus, making the problem-
solving task easier. IBM, Microsoft, and Intel use a transformational style of leadership
(Manurung, 2012).
Transactional Leadership- It is more focused on supervising, organizing, and performing. The
leaders motivate the employees to use their full potential and generate the best results. It is best
for projects that need to be systematic. It conveys the message that employees should perform

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better because it will benefit them. CEO of large corporations, military leaders, and NFL coaches
follow this style (Rodrigues & Ferreira, 2015).
Authoritarian Leadership- In this leadership, the sole authority lies with the leader. The Nobel
Group uses an authoritarian style of leadership. The leader directs the people and employees
work towards the strategy. The best style, however, will be the participative style of leadership.
It has more chances of getting the task done with more innovative ideas (Busse & Regenberg,
2018). Donald Trump, Martha Stewart Howell Raines are examples of such leadership styles.
Charismatic Leadership- This type of relationship involves inspiring the employees with the
help of communication and force of-of one’s personality. It enhances the way things are
addressed and done. The convictions and charm of the leader get the task done. They have many
similarities with transformational leaders. For instance- Steve Jobs and Jack Welch are
charismatic leaders. Jobs owned Apple which is one of the most successful companies in the
world (Sy, Horton & Riggio, 2018).
Contemporary Leadership Theory in Spectrum of Organization
The contemporary leadership includes transactional leadership, inspirational leadership,
and transformational leadership. The contemporary leadership theory portrays that leadership can
be more effective if they identify the changing environment and task complexity. The
transformational style of leadership motivates innovation and creativity. Leaders in such style are
able to bring the change swiftly. The second style of leadership is transactional leadership
recognizes the wants of the followers and inspire them to do better (Mullins, 2006). The

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improvement is rewarded and thus yields better results. The basis of this theory is Maslow’s
hierarchy of needs. The inspirational leadership inspires the people to follow the vision of the
leader and accept the desired change. However, in the organizational spectrum, the existing
leadership trends are strong, but at the same time vulnerable. The transparency in operations
makes more room for mistakes (Herrmann & Felfe, 2012). The contemporary style of leadership
is more transparent and visionary style. However, there are times that the long term vision misses
out the short and important details. If there is improper management this might be a reason for
failure. The inspirational leader is both good and bad i.e. if the leader is self-centered and
unethical, the message conveyed can bear adverse effects.
Differentiating between Leadership and Coercion and Other Forms of
Authority
The words leadership, power, authority, influence, coercion, etc. are used in the same context
but they have very different meanings (Shamir & Eilam-Shamir, 2017). Listed below are five
forms of authority:
 Coercion- It means forcing someone to do something that they are unwilling to do. The
focus here is on compliance. The person who is coerced is expected to carry out the said
task without considering his personal thoughts and motivation to do the same. Example-
demotion, transfer, taking away good projects, etc.

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 Reward- This is the most commonly used forms of power in use, especially in an
organizational setting. Employees are rewarded when they follow the instructions and
comply with the leader. Example- promotion, raise, paid leave, paid holidays, etc.
 Legitimate- To use this, the person needs to be in the leading position in the organization
such as the boss. This power can be used only when the authority of the boss is
recognized by the people in the organization. Example- HR manager who is responsible
for managing and supervising all the activities in the HR department.
 Expert- This power demand knowledge, skills, expertise, and experience. Over time, the
experience in a particular field makes a person the expert in that area. Then the expert
power can be used to meet the goals. Example- an accountant who has been in the field
for many years.
 Referent- Such power comes only when a person is respected. It is about trust and the
way situations are managed by that person. Example- A fair auditor who does not include
personal relationships while doing audits.
Integrated Biblical Framework in Leadership Theories
The biblical leadership constitutes of four main elements- relying on God, kingdom
relationships, kingdom attributes, and kingdom ethics. The biblical leadership and spiritual
leadership are two separate concepts. This type of leadership is also known as Christ leadership.
The concepts of this framework are distinct from contemporary styles of leadership. It is
considered that the last few decades more so the 20th century has been away from God’s
paradigm of leadership and accepted the worldly leadership criteria. In biblical leadership style,

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the objective is achieved via the methods prescribed in the bible. This is totally different from the
contemporary style of leadership that involves only the humanitarian context of the leadership.
Any form of leadership demands fame, recognition, etc. but it is not so in the case of biblical
leadership. It rests on the Christian literature and the fact that God is watching and all decisions
must be taken as per the moral boundaries of Christianity (Tan, Chin, Seyal, Yeow & Tan,
2013). Further, there isn’t much literature available on Christian literature with regard to its
influence on business leadership. There are five attributes of this leadership-
 Character- It refers to the moral attributes of a leader such as truthfulness, integrity,
strength, and more. These attributes should be associated with one’s identity. However,
the identity should be authentic and not self-invented because a leader has to present
these qualities while leading the people. Jesus was a leader and people who follow his
character will have integrity and morality as leaders. It is a character that gets the leader
respect and trust and influence to motivate people. The leader who is of good character is
an inspiration to his employees in both contemporary styles of leadership and biblical
leadership.
 Competence- Competence is linked to character and therefore having the skills like that
of a moral Christian would help gain competence in a fair manner. Discovering one’s
skills will help attain the desired goal. In contemporary leadership, competence is often
referred to as the ethics and morals of the leadership style (Tan, Chin, Seyal, Yeow &
Tan, 2013). The success is with those who play fair and same is portrayed in biblical
leadership framework.
 Calling- It means the purpose. The leader shall be well aware of his purpose of leading.
If he lacks purpose he will eventually be moving towards failure. The whole idea of a

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leader is to motivate his people towards a goal or a purpose. Without the calling, no
efforts will bear fruit. It is also true for contemporary leadership styles because they have
a goal to achieve and without that goal in mind, no task is useful.
 Community- The biblical leadership is more concerned with the impact it has on people
and on the relationships with the people. It focuses on the development of people and
their transformation through leadership. However, the main aim of contemporary
leadership is to get the job done and earn a profit. The ultimate goal in both frameworks
differs very profoundly.
 Christ- The source of biblical leaders is ‘Bible’. They operate on different moral grounds
and contexts. The leaders in contemporary leadership, however, depend on their
expertise. The biblical style of leadership does not rely on human abilities. It is a walk of
faith, whereas the counterpart is more about personal skills (Tan, Chin, Seyal, Yeow &
Tan, 2013).
The biblical framework can be integrated into leadership styles and theories to be more
ethical and focused on moral decisions. The Christianity aspect will help get the trust of
employees, suppliers, and stakeholders all the same.
Critical Appreciation of Leadership Styles and Behaviors
People have varying leadership styles based on their preferences, personality traits,
organizational culture, and more. The most successful leadership styles I said to be the
participative leadership and the most criticized is an authoritative style of leadership (Keskes,
2014). Various situations demand various leadership styles and it is not always suitable that one

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style is followed in every scenario. No leadership can exactly be defined as good or bad, the
process is what matters. A leader should have the capability to influence the people around him
and motivate them to do better. The most commonly used style of leadership is the transactional
style of leadership. It can be understood as an exchange. The employee is asked to deliver better
results in exchange for a reward. This type of leadership conveys the goal clearly and there is no
or little room for confusion, but it hinders innovation because the expectations and processes are
predetermined.
Another successful leadership style is transformation leadership styles in which the aim
of the leader is to bring about a transformation in people by inspiring them. It lets the employees
be innovative and creative and the employer, as well as the employees, share a common goal and
the communication is also great. The change in the existing process can be difficult to
implement.
One less liked and less preferred style is the autocratic style which is not used by many
organizations now. It restricts the participation of the employees and the leaders expect them to
follow what is being told (Jogulu, 2010). This style of leadership often lacks communication and
the decision making power is in the hands of the leader only. If an organization wants to take
decisions in a strategic manner and quickly this can be the ideal style but employee engagement
is rather low.
The best leadership style is the participative style of leadership wherein the decision is in
the hands of the leader, but the employees have a say in this. They can present their ideas and
help in solving problems. The idea here is working together and encouraging the participation of
each member of the organization (Burns, 2017). It gives a boost to innovation and creativity.

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People feel free to express their ‘out of the box’ ideas. However, if a decision has to be made
quickly, this leadership style is not ideal.
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