DRIVING PERFORMANCE THROUGH POSITIVE LEADERSHIP
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12775/JPM.2018.146Keywords
Authentic Leadership, Positive Leadership, Positive Organisational Scholarship, Transformational Leadership, Servant Leadership, Organisational BehaviourAbstract
This conceptual paper is an attempt to outline positive leadership and its sub-dimensions. Several progressive theories on positive leadership have observed that, the understanding, developmental process and implementation of positive leadership still remains largely under-researched by scholars from both the fi elds of leadership and positive psychology. Researchers have identifi ed that good job performance is strongly related to positive style of leadership. The aim of this article is to highlight varied concepts of positive leadership and its meaning. Positive leadership is bascially about respecting people with whom we work, recognising their competencies, contributions, and acknowledging the fact that they are our fi rst customer with whom we do business. It is also about how they shape optimisim as part of the organisational culture over time, formulate positive strategy, introduce positive organisational design and develop available talent using their strengths into potential human capital.
Method: A descriptive methodology was adopted to explore the available literature. The paper presents the concepts of positive leadership, leadership theories that form part of the positive leadership style, approaches and dimensions to positive leadership. They are defi ned and equated along with similar relationships with other leadership theories or concepts such as transformational, authentic and servant leadership.
Findings: The review of literature indicated many similiarities and associations between concepts of positive leadership and leadership behaviour styles. It also found strong relationship between positive leadership behaviour and outcomes such as performace, satisfaction, trust, empowerment, engagement and other critical behaviours that make organisations both eff ective and eff icient.
References
Albrecht, L.S., Andreetta, M. (2011), “The influence of empowering leadership, empowerment and engagement on affective commitment and turnover intentions in community health service workers: Test of a model”, Leadership in Health Services, Vol. 24 No. 3, pp. 228–237. DOI: 10.1108/17511871111151126
Anding, M., Quinn, E.J.R. (2005), “An Interview with Robert E. Quinn Entering the Fundamental State of Leadership: Reflections on the Path to Transformational Teaching”, Academy of Management Learning and Education, Vol. 4 No. 4, pp. 487–495. DOI: 10.5465/AMLE.2005.19086790
Andony, T., Gorjian, N., Finkelman, J. (2016), “Effects of positive leadership and flow on employee well-beingthrough the PERMA Lens”, Austin Journal Psychiatry Behavior Sciences, Vol. 3 No. 1, pp. 1–11.
Arakawa, D., Greenberg, M. (2007), “Optimistic managers and their influence on productivity and employee engagement in a technology organisation: Implications for coaching psychologists”, International Coaching Psychology Review, Vol. 2 No. 1, pp. 78–89.
Arnold, J.A., Arad, S., Rhoades, J.A., Drasgow, F. (2000), “The empowering leadership questionnaire: The construction and validation of a new scale for measuring leader behaviors”, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Vol. 21 No. 3, pp. 249–269. DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1099–1379(200005)21:3<249::AID-JOB10>3.0.CO;2-#
Avolio, B.J., Gardner, W.L. (2005), “Authentic leadership development: Getting to the root of positive forms of leadership”, The Leadership Quarterly, Vol. 16 No. 3, pp. 315–338. DOI: 10.1016/j.leaqua.2005.03.001
Bass, B.M. (1999), “Two decades of research and development in transformational leadership”, European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, Vol. 8 No. 1, pp. 9–32. DOI: 10.1080/135943299398410
Beechler, S. (2014), “Positive leadership: success without collateral damage”, available at: https://knowledge.insead.edu/blog/insead-blog/positive-leadership-success-withoutcollateral-
damage-3123
Bennis, G.W. (1989), “Managing the Dream: Leadership in the 21st Century”, Journal of Organizational Change Management, Vol. 2 No. 1, pp. 6–10. DOI: 10.1108/09534818910134040
Bennis, G.W. (1999), “The leadership advantage”, Leader to Leader, Vol. 1999 No. 12, pp. 18–23.
Bennis, G.W. (2000), Managing the Dream: Reflections on Leadership and Change, Perseus Publishing, Cambridge.
Berscheid, E., Walster, E.H. (1978), Interpersonal Attraction, Addison-Wesley, Reading.
Bremer, M. (2015), “Positive leadership starts with one uplifting person. Will that be you?”, available at: https://www.leadershipandchangemagazine.com/positiveleadership-will-that-be-you/
Bremer, M. (2016), “Positive Leadership: Why it’s crucial for Organizational Change”, available at: https://www.ocai-online.com/blog/2016/10/Positive-Leadership-Whycrucial-for-Organizational-Change
Bremer, M. (2018), “How could I develop a positive culture?”, available at: https://www.leadershipandchangemagazine.com/how-could-i-develop-a-positive-culture/
Brun, J., Dugas, N. (2008), “An analysis of employee recognition: Perspectives on human resources practices”, The International Journal of Human Resources Management, Vol. 19 No. 4, pp. 716–730.
Burns, J.M. (1978), Leadership, Harper and Row, New York.
Cameron, K.S. (2008), Positive leadership: Strategies for extraordinary performance, Berrett-Koehler, San Francisco.
Cameron, K.S. (2010), “Five keys to flourishing in trying times”, Leader to Leader, Vol. 2010 No. 55, pp. 45–51.
Clifton, D.O. (2000), “Positive management: New perspectives on leadership and employee well-being”, The Psychologist-Manager Journal, Vol. 4 No. 2, pp. 125–127. DOI: 10.1037/h0095886
Clifton, D.O., Harter, J.K. (2003), “Investing in Strengths”, in: Cameron, K.S., Dutton, J.E., Quinn, R.E. (Eds.), Positive Organizational Scholarship: Foundations of a New Discipline, Berrett-Koehler Publishers, pp. 111–121.
Conger, J.A., Kanungo, R.N. (1994), “Charismatic leadership in organizations: Perceived behavioral attributes and their measurement”, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Vol. 15 No. 5, pp. 439–452. DOI: 10.1002/job.4030150508
de Klerk, S., Stander, M.W. (2014), “Leadership empowerment behaviour, work engagement and turnover intention: the role of psychological empowerment”, Journal of Positive Management, Vol. 5 No. 3, pp. 28–45. DOI: 10.12775/JPM.2014.018
den Hartog, D.N., Belschak., F.D. (2012), “When does transformational leadership enhance employee proactive behavior? The role of autonomy and role breadth self-efficacy”, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 97 No. 1, pp. 194–202.
Diener, E. (2000), “Subjective well-being: The science of happiness and a proposal for a natural index”, American Psychology, Vol. 55 No. 1, pp. 34–43. DOI: 10.1037/0003–066X.55.1.34
Fairholm, G.W. (1997), Capturing the heart of leadership: Spirituality and community in the new American workplace, Praeger Publishers, Westport, Connecticut.
Fredrickson, B.L. (2003), “Positive emotions and upward spirals in organizations”, in: Cameron, K.S., Dutton, J.E., Quinn, R. (Eds.), Positive organizational scholarship, Berrett-Koehler, San Francisco, pp. 163–175.
Fredrickson, B.L., Losada, M.F. (2005), “Positive affect and complex dynamics of human flourishing”, American Psychologist, Vol. 60 No. 7, pp. 678–686. DOI: 10.1037/0003–066X.60.7.678
Fry, L.W. (2003), “Toward a theory of spiritual leadership”, The Leadership Quarterly, Vol. 14 No. 6, pp. 693–727. DOI: 10.1016/j.leaqua.2003.09.001
Furnham, A., Brewin, C.R., O’Kelly, H. (1994), “Cognitive style and attitudes to work”, Human Relations, Vol. 47 No. 12, pp. 1509–1521. DOI: 10.1177/001872679404701204
Furnham, A., Sadka, V., Brewin, C.R. (1992), “The development of an occupational attributional style questionnaire”, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Vol. 13 No. 1, pp. 27–39. DOI: 10.1002/job.4030130104
Furnham, A., Sadka, V., Brewin, C.R. (1992), “The development of an occupational attributional style questionnaire”, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Vol. 13 No. 1, pp. 27–39. DOI: 10.1002/job.4030130104
Gardner, W.L., Avolio, B.J., Luthans, F., May, D.R., Walumbwa, F. (2005), “Can you see the real me? A self-based model of authentic leader and follower development”, The Leadership Quarterly, Vol. 16 No. 3, pp. 343–372. DOI: 10.1016/j.leaqua.2005.03.003
George, B. (2003), Authentic Leadership: Rediscovering the secrets to creating lasting value, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco.
George, B. (2016), “The Massive Difference between Negative and Positive Leadership”, available at: http://fortune.com/2016/03/21/negative-positive-leadership-politics-fordalan-mulally
Glynn, M., Dowd, T.J. (2008), “Charisma (un)bound: Emotive leadership in Martha Stewart living magazine”, The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, Vol. 44 No. 1, pp. 71–93. DOI: 10.1177/0021886308314461
Goleman, D., Boyatzis, R.E., McKee, A. (2002), “Primal leadership: Realizing the power of emotional intelligence”, Harvard Business School Press, Boston.
Gordon. J. (2017), “The Power of Positive Leadership”, available at: http://jongordon.com/ books/positiveleadership/
Grawitch, M.J., Gottschalk, M., Munz, D.C. (2006), “The path to a healthy workplace: A critical review linking healthy workplace practices, employee well-being, and organizational improvements”, Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, Vol. 58 No. 3, pp. 129–147. DOI: 10.1037/1065–9293.58.3.129
Greenleaf, R.K. (1991), The servant as leader, Robert K. Greenleaf Center, Indianapolis.
Greenleaf, R.K. (1970), The servant as leader, Robert K. Greenleaf Publishing Center.
Hakimi, N., Van Knippenberg, D., Griessner, S. (2010), “Leader empowering behaviour: The leader’s perspective”, British Journal of Management, Vol. 21 No. 3, pp. 701–716. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467–8551.2010.00703.x
Haney, B. (2012), “Charismatic leaders: They are beacons of positivity”, available at: http://www.executiveforums.com/resources/le1112.pdf
Helland, M.R., Winston, B.E. (2005), “Towards a deeper understanding of hope and leadership”,
Henry, P.C. (2005), ”Life Stresses, Explanatory Style, Hopelessness, and Occupational Class”, International Journal of Stress Management, Vol. 12 No. 3, pp. 241–256. DOI: 10.1037/1072–5245.12.3.241
Henryhand, C.J. (2009), “The effect of employee recognition and employee engagement on job satisfaction and intent to leave in the public sector”, Doctoral dissertation, available at: http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.882004&res_dat=xri:pqdiss&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation&rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:3369470
Holland, B.M. (2000), “Bringing out the best in people: an interview with Warren Bennis”, available at: https://thesystemsthinker.com/bringing-out-the-best-in-people-aninterview-with-warren-bennis
House, R.J. (1976), “Theory of Charismatic Leadership”, Working Paper Series 76–06. Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies, Vol. 12 No. 2, pp. 42–54. DOI: 10.1177/107179190501200204
Kelloway, E.K., Weigand, H., McKee, M.C., Das, H. (2013), “Positive leadership and employee well-being”, Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, Vol. 20 No. 1, pp. 107–117. DOI: 10.1177/1548051812465892
Konczak, L.J., Stelly, D.J., Trusty, M.L. (2000), “Defining and measuring empowerment leader behaviours: Development of an upward feedback instrument”, Educational and Psychological Measurement, Vol. 60 No. 2, pp. 301–313. DOI: 10.1177/00131640021970420
Kouzer, M.J., Posner, Z.B. (1999), Encouraging the Heart: A leader’s guide to rewarding and recognizing others, Jossey-Bass.
Krueger, J., Killham, E. (2005), “At work, feeling good matters: Happy employees are better equipped to handle workplace relationships, stress and change according to the latest GMJ survey”, available at: http://gmj.gallup.com/content/20311/ Work-Feeling-
Good-matters.aspx#1
Liden, R.C., Wayne, S.J., Liao, Ch., Meuser, J.D. (2014), “Servant leadership and serving culture: Influence on individual and unit performance”, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 57 No. 5, pp. 1434–1452. DOI: 10.5465/amj.2013.0034
Linley, P.A., Govindji, R., West, M.A. (2007), “Positive psychology approaches to public services leadership: An introduction to strengths-based leadership”, The International Journal of Leadership in Public Services, Vol. 3 No. 4, pp. 44–55.
Linley, P.A., Harrington, S. (2006), “Strengths coaching: A potential-guided approach to coaching psychology”, International Coaching Psychology Review, Vol. 1 No. 1, pp. 37–46.
Luthans, F., Avolio, B.J. (2003), “Authentic leadership development”, in: Cameron, K.S., Dutton, J.E., Quinn, R.E. (Eds.), Positive Organizational Scholarship. Foundations of a new discipline, Berrett-Koehler Publishers, San Francisco, pp. 241–259.
Luthans, K. (2000), “Recognition: A powerful, but often overlooked, leadership tool to improve employee performance”, The Journal of Leadership Studies, Vol. 7 No. 1, pp. 31–39. DOI: 10.1177/107179190000700104
Lyubomirsky, S., Sheldon, K.M., Schkade, D. (2005), “Pursuing happiness: The architecture of sustainable change”, Review of General Psychology, Vol. 9 No. 2, pp. 111–131. DOI: 10.1037/1089–2680.9.2.111
Maidique, M.A. (2013), “Positive Leadership. Center for Leadership Current Research”, available at: http://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/lead_research/4
Manz, C.C., Sims, H.P. (1990), Super Leadership, Berkeley Books, New York.
Meng, H., Cheng, Z., Guo, T. (2016), “Positive team atmosphere mediates the impact of authentic leadership on subordinate creativity”, Social Behavior and Personality, Vol. 44 No. 3, pp. 355–368.
Meyer, J., Allen, N. (1991), “A Three-Component Model Conceptualization of Organizational Commitment”, Human Resource Management Review, Vol. 1 No. 1, pp. 61–89. DOI: 10.1016/1053–4822(91)90011-Z
Nel, T., Stander, M.W., Latif, J. (2015), “Investigating positive leadership, psychological empowerment, work engagement and satisfaction with life in a chemical industry”, Journal of Industrial Psychology, Vol. 41 No. 1. DOI: 10.4102/sajip.v41i1.1243
Nolan-Hoeksema, S., Girgus, J.S., Seligman, M.E.P (1986), “Learned helplessness in children: A longitudinal study of depression, achievement and explanatory style”, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 51 No. 2, pp. 435–442. DOI: 10.1037/0022–3514.51.2.435
Patrick, H.A., Sunil, K.R. (2019), “Does trust in the workplace influence work engagement? An investigation among information technology employees”, International Journal of Advance and Innovative Research, Vol. 6 No. 1, pp. 126–133.
Peterson, C., Barrett, L.C. (1987), “Explanatory style and academic performance among university freshman”, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 53 No. 3, pp. 603–607. DOI: 10.1037/0022–3514.53.3.603
Peterson, C., Seligman, M.E.P. (1984), “Causal explanations as a risk factor for depression: Theory and evidence”, Psychology Review, Vol. 91, pp. 347–374.
Proctor, C., Maltby, J., Linley, P.A. (2011), “Strengths use as a predictor of well-being and health-related quality of life”, Journal of Happiness Studies, Vol. 12 No. 1, pp. 153–169. DOI: 10.1007/s10902–009–9181–2
Quinn, R.E. (2005), “Moments of greatness: Entering the fundamental state of leadership”, Harvard Business Review, July-August, pp. 75–83.
Quinn, R.E., Spreitzer, G.M. (1997), “The road to empowerment: Seven questions every leader should consider”, Organizational Dynamics, Vol. 26 No. 2, pp. 37–49. DOI: 10.1016/S0090–2616
Recker, J., Mertens, W. (2017), Positive Deviance and Leadership: An Exploratory Field Study. DOI: 10.24251/HICSS.2017.025
Reivich, K., Shatte, A. (2002), The Resilience Factor, Broadway Books, New York.
Russell, R.F., Stone, A.G. (2002), “A review of servant leadership attributes: Developing a practical model”, Leadership and Organization Development Journal, Vol. 23 No. 3, pp. 145–157. DOI: 10.1108/01437730210424
Ryan, R.M., Deci, E.L. (2000), “Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being”, The American Psychologist, Vol. 55, pp. 68–78. DOI: 10.1037/0003–066X.55.1.68
Saleh, A. (2014), Leadership Development for Young People, The University Of Edinburgh.
Seligman, M.E., Schulman, P. (1986), “Explanatory style as a predictor of productivity and quitting among life insurance sales agents”, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 50 No. 4, pp. 832–838. DOI: 10.1037/0022–3514.50.4.832
Seligman, M.E.P. (1998), “Positive social science”, APA Monitor, Vol. 29 No. 2.
Spreitzer, G., Cameron, K. (2012), “Applying a POS to bring out the best in organizations”, Organizational Dynamics, Vol. 41 No. 2, pp. 85–88. DOI: 10.1016/j.orgdyn.2012.01.001
Spreitzer, G.M. (1995), “Psychological empowerment in the workplace: Dimensions, measurement, and validation”, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 38 No. 5, pp. 1442–1465. DOI: 10.2307/256865
Spreitzer, G.M., Sonenshein, S. (2004), “Toward the construct definition of positive deviance”, American Behavioral Scientist, Vol. 47 No. 6, pp. 828–847.
Tombaugh, R.J. (2005), “Positive leadership yields performance and profitability: Effective organizations develop their strengths”, Development and Learning in Organizations: An International Journal, Vol. 19 No. 3, pp. 15–17. DOI: 10.1108/14777280510590031
van Dierendonck, D. (2011), “Servant leadership: A review and synthesis”, Journal of Management, Vol. 37 No. 4, pp. 1228–1261. DOI: 10.1177/0149206310380462
Vianello, M., Galliani, E.M., Haidt, J. (2010), “Elevation at work: The effects of leaders’ moral excellence”, The Journal of Positive Psychology, Vol. 5 No. 5, pp. 390–411. DOI: 10.1080/17439760.2010.516764
Walumbwa, F.O., Avolio, B.A., Gardner, W.L., Wernsing, T.S., Peterson, S.J. (2008), “Authentic Leadership: Development and Validation of a Theory-Based Measure”, Journal of Management, Vol. 34 No. 1, pp. 89–126. DOI: 10.1177/0149206307308913
Wayne K.H., Smith, A.P. (2007), “Influence: a key to successful leadership”, International Journal of Educational Management, Vol. 21 No. 2, pp. 158–167.
Wood, A.M., Linley, P.A., Maltby, J., Kashdan, T.B., Hurling, R. (2011), “Using personal and psychological strengths lead to increases in well-being over time: A longitudinal study and the development of the strengths use questionnaire”, Personality and Individual Differences, Vol. 50 No. 1, pp. 15–19. DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2010.08.004
Youssef-Morgan, C.M., Luthans, F. (2013), “Positive leadership: Meaning and application across cultures”, Organizational Dynamics, Vol. 42 No. 3, pp. 198–208. DOI: 10.1016/j.orgdyn.2013.06.005
Yulk, G. (2011), Leadership in Organisation, Pearson Education, Dorling Kindersely, India.
Zbierowski, P. (2016), “Positive leadership - attempt to clarification and assessment of novelty”, Journal of positive Management, Vol. 7 No. 4, pp. 61–70. DOI: 10.12775/JPM.2016.023
Zbierowski, P., Góra, K. (2014), “Positive leadership: Its nature, antecedents and consequences”, Journal of Positive Management, Vol. 5 No. 1, pp. 85–99. DOI: 10.12775/JPM.2014.008
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright
Articles submitted to the journal should not have been published before in their current or substantially similar form, or be under consideration for publication with another journal. Authors submitting articles for publication warrant that the work is not an infringement of any existing copyright and will indemnify the publisher against any breach of such warranty. For ease of dissemination and to ensure proper policing of use, papers and contributions become the legal copyright of the publisher unless otherwise agreed.
Plagiarism and ghostwriting
In response to the issue of plagiarism and ghostwriting the editors of the Journal of Positive Management has introduced the following rules to counteract these phenomena:
1. Contributors should be aware of their responsibility for a content of manuscripts.
2. Collective authors are obliged to reveal the contribution and an affiliation of each author (i.e. who is an author of specified part of a paper).
3. Any act of dishonesty will be denounced, the editors will inform appropriate institutions about the situation and give evidence of all cases of misconduct and unethical behaviour.
4. The editors may ask contributors for financial disclosure (i.e. contribution of specified institutions).
Stats
Number of views and downloads: 20
Number of citations: 0
