Creative Thinking and Leadership Behavior NATURE OF THE STUDY Introduction

Unfortunately, as has been pointed out by Yukl (1981), existing theory and research offer no clear consensus regarding the term "leadership." For example, leadership has been defined in several ways. The most prominent of these definitions include definitions of leadership as:

(1) the behavior of an individual directing a group toward a shared goal (Hemphill & Coons, 1957);

(2) interpersonal influence wielded via communication toward the attainment of a specific goal (Tannenbaum, Weschler & Massarik, 1961);

(3) the initiation and maintenance of structure in expectation and interpersonal interaction (Stogdill, 1974);

(4) interpersonal interaction in which one person persuades one or more others to attain a personally desired outcome (Jacobs, 1970);

(5) a power relationship in which one prescribes behavior for others (Janda, 1960); and

(6) an influence over and above mechanical compliance with the routine directives of an organization (Katz & Kahn, 1978).

. . .
al Model. The Hersey-Blanchard model of leadership (Hersey & Blanchard, 1977) is widely used in management training programs. The model addresses matching leadership style (e.g. structure or task-oriented, relationship-oriented, etc.) to what is termed the "maturity" of followers. The maturity of followers (subordinate maturity) is defined in terms of worker capacity to set high but attainable goals, the willingness to take on responsibility, and the possession of relevant education and/or experience. Since maturity is judged in relation to a given job task, a particular subordinate can be mature in one task but immature in another. The Hersey-Blanchard model holds that there are two components to subordinate maturity: (1) job maturity (the technical knowledge, and task-relevant skills) and (2) psychological maturity (feelings of confidence and the willingness to accept responsibility). If a subordinate is highly mature, he or she possesses both technical competence and self-confidence for a given task. A low-maturity subordinate lacks both of these feelings. The central feature of the Hersey-Blanchard model is that as follower maturity increases, a leader should rely more on relationship-oriented behavior and less on task
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Approximate Pages = 38 (250 words per page)

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