Organizational Behavior and Theory Commons^™

The Character Fractal: A Theory Of Virtue Replication In Organizations, Kevin Davis, Scott Kozlak, Matthew M. Orlowsky, David Levy

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

Organizational ethics has long been treated as an individual problem requiring individual solutions: the right traits, the right training, the right people in the right roles. This paper argues that framing is fundamentally insufficient. While character and virtue ultimately reside in persons, character development within organizations emerges through recursive ethical interactions shaped by incentives, narratives, feedback loops, and habituation structures cultivated by systems leaders. It replicates, or fails to, across every scale of human interaction, from the unobserved micro-decision of a single employee to the macro-level architecture of executive leadership. Drawing on Mandelbrot's fractal geometry, Lorenz's chaos theory, Kauffman's complexity …

The Effect Of Servant Leadership And Psychological Safety On Employee Commitment And Workplace Engagement, Pierce J. Ippolito, Joshua S. Kay, Kevin J. Hurt

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

This paper presents a conceptual model of servant leadership, psychological safety, work engagement, and individual commitment. Psychological safety is positioned as a causal factor that provides answers addressing why servant leaders have positive effects on individual commitment and work engagement. The depicted model operates under the consideration that commitment and engagement serve two distinct roles based on the study conducted by Hirschfeld and Feild (2000). Theory-based propositions are developed linking servant leadership and psychological safety to individual commitment and work engagement. Finally, the authors provide a framework that may be utilized for future research.

Change Management With Ethical Leadership, Sophia Rudisill Holmes

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

Ethical leadership ensures organizational environments are created and nurtured to support complex dilemmas that surface during change management. Leaders and followers in particular can navigate change management with intentional advance planning guided by the motives of their heart. The motives of a leader’s heart is observed by the ethical practices of their core values. Morally leaders and followers core values inform their ethical behaviors. Furthermore, Christian leaders have access to biblical scripture which provides a roadmap for leaders and followers in the mastery of adapting and not resisting during change management. Biblical scriptures also provide examples of practices that solve …

Book Review: Building A God, Carl Lee Tolbert

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

No abstract provided.

A Culture Of Accountability Through Ethical Leadership Drives Citizenship Behavior In Ghana’S Traditional System Of Leadership, Eric Yeboah-Asiamah

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

This study seeks to investigate the influence of accountability on the community citizenship behavior of followers in Ghana's traditional system of leadership with the mediating role of ethical leadership behavior. A cross-sectional survey design was used to obtain quantitative data from 319 Ghanaians through questionnaires. Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with SmartPLS 4.1.0.3 was utilized to test the study’s hypotheses. The results showed that accountability (ACC) was a significant predictor of ethical leadership behavior but had no direct effect on community citizenship behavior (CCB). Additionally, the relationship between ACC and CCB was partially mediated by ethical leadership behavior. …

Crafting Ethical Problem-Solving Cultures: A Leader’S Role In Complex Adaptive Systems, Elizabeth A. Luckman

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

In today’s complex and interconnected world, leaders play a critical role in fostering ethical problem-solving cultures within organizations. To enable leaders to succeed in this evolving landscape, this paper advocates for a necessary paradigm shift: a transition in mental models about how organizations function. Historically, organizations have been viewed as mechanistic systems, but there is a substantial opportunity to improve our work by viewing organizations as complex adaptive systems. This shift alters fundamental assumptions about organizational operations and redefines leadership as the creation of conditions for effective and ethical problem-solving. In this paper, I examine the changing mental models that …

The Association Of Leadership Styles With Psychosocial Safety Climate: The Case Of Authentic Leadership, Eugene Laloo, Robyn Coman, Natalia K. Hanley

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

Psychosocial safety climate (PSC) is an organisation-level construct that measures an organisation’s commitment to the prevention of psychological harm in the workplace and has been identified as a lead indicator for psychological hazards. A key factor in PSC is senior leaders’ involvement through the establishment of policies, procedures, and practices for the prevention of psychological harm in the workplace. While leadership has been identified as an antecedent for a favourable PSC, the impact of different leadership styles on PSC has not been extensively studied.

This article reports a multivariate study of five contemporary leadership styles and their impact on PSC. …

The Leadership Identity Presented On Linkedin, Carl L. Tolbert

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

LinkedIn has evolved in a way similar to other social media platforms but is unique in that it focuses on professional networking and careers. Many professionals seek to showcase their leadership skills and philosophies as part of a publicly showcased online persona. This paper aimed to examine the posts specific to leadership and thematically investigate presentation strategies, motivation, and purposes behind the posts. The paper begins with a historical review from the inception of LinkedIn through pivotal milestones in the history of the company. Key concepts from the literature are then reviewed specific to social media use and motivations behind …

Remote Work: How Leaders Impact Employee Wellbeing, Russ Carfagno, Jonas Strömbäck, Cheryl Joyner, Gilbert Franco

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

Leaders face many challenges in motivating team members including maintaining remote workers' sense of organizational inclusion. Remote work and flexible working arrangements (FWA) have increased the complexity. Flexible working arrangements (FWA) provide value to employees and may help with work-life balance yet FWA can create employee loneliness and contribute to higher turnover. This quantitative study looked at whether leadership behavior affected remote workers’ loneliness, and the intention to quit. An online survey was conducted through LinkedIn sampling 92 adults who worked remotely at least 20 hours per week in the United States. The study found that the leader-member relationship does …

Three Conditions For Vertical Leadership Development: Impact Of Personal Experiences, Kevin Coopersmith

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

Vertical leadership development, an emerging body of leadership research based around expanding an individual’s capacity to think, make decisions, and understand themselves and the world around them, stands as a unique solution to address the leadership skills gap at a time of global complexity and change. Petrie’s (2015) model of the three conditions for vertical leadership development to take place was analyzed through the lived experiences of eight leaders who had successfully completed personal development plans and shared their experiences through a narrative-based qualitative study. Of the eight participants, three participants filled all three conditions and demonstrated a higher level …

How Values And Value Clarity Still Matter: An Extended Study Of Global Managers, Barry Posner, Joongoo Han

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

The importance of values has been continuously studied, and the consensus is that values matter. However, the issue of just how much they matter remains open to various interpretations, including the importance of value clarity and congruency. This study examined the impact of personal and organizational values clarity on commitment, performance, and motivation. An online survey involving 8,442 managers was collected in the same way as previous studies on value clarity and consistency (Posner & Schmidt, 1993; Posner, 2010), but unlike previous studies, managers outside the United States were included. Both personal values congruency and organizational values clarity significantly impacted …

Dominant Leadership Themes In The Pauline Epistles, Jaime V. Cortez

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

Abstract

Paul’s writings in the Bible, although primarily intended to serve spiritual ends, were found to also contain practical leadership wisdom long before these concepts were developed and formalized in secular leadership literature. Seven leadership themes emerged out of this conceptual study, namely: concepts of authority, responsibility, and accountability; the need for personal integrity among leaders, the need to build ethical organizations, situational leadership, fostering unity in diversity, the teaching role of leaders, and ensuring organizational continuity and organizational growth. This paper will benefit leadership theory along the line of increasing confidence in the use of the Bible as a …

Positional Authority And Influence In Servant Leadership: A Conceptual Model, Kevin J. Hurt, Elliott Long

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

This conceptual research paper reviews how positional authority affects the servant leadership-organizational performance relationship and provides insight on how servant leadership can be implemented and effective in the absence of positional authority, i.e. through the cultivation and leveraging of influence. A review of servant leadership literature is used to propose that servant leadership is positively associated with increased organizational performance. Through the lens of upper echelon theory as well as research on the performance of organizations whose executive team practices servant leadership, we develop a model and make a case that positional authority is an important moderator of the relationship …

The Mediating Influence Of Confidence, Autonomy, And Identification On The Relationship Between Servant Leadership And Harmonious Passion, Angelica Tabares, Lise Malherbe, Kevin J. Hurt

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

The current paper explores the relationship between servant leadership and harmonious passion. Harmonious passion refers to a strong desire to freely engage in an activity and is a result of an autonomous internalization of the activity into one's identity. While passion and leadership have been generally linked, the specific relationship between servant leadership and harmonious passion is underdeveloped within the field of servant leadership research. Our paper presents a conceptual model and propositions linking servant leadership and harmonious passion through the mediating mechanisms of follower confidence, autonomy, and identification. Implications and future research are discussed.

Subtle Leadership: When Referent Power Is Subtly Powerful, Luz E. Quiñones-González

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

The following research presents the construct of “subtle leadership” in a conceptual discussion as a new way of perceiving and studying leaders of the twenty-first century. Its core objective points toward the conceptualization of “subtle leadership,” sharing a basic definition to provoke discussion and emerging theoretical framework in order to better understand the current organizational reality. Some leadership styles such as servant leadership, shared leadership, and authentic leadership are discussed to compare and contrast them with “subtle leadership,” emphasizing that leadership is viewed as a process and not only as styles or personal traits. Subtle leadership is primarily based on …

Personal Development Planning And Vertical Leadership Development In A Vuca World, Kevin Coopersmith

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

To explore how personal development can be utilized as a tool for leaders to adapt to our VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous) world, a qualitative study was conducted on the narrative experiences of eight leaders who had successfully completed personal development plans. The emerging field of vertical leadership development, recognized as a unique developmental approach towards overcoming complexity and uncertainty, was connected to the key themes of personal development planning. Vertical leadership development and personal development planning were united across five conceptual themes: development and application of skills, self-awareness, self-efficacy, self-exploration, and continuous improvement. The experiences of the participants …

Do Community Citizenship Behaviors By Leaders Enhance Team Performance? Evidence From The "Field", Daniel J. Slater

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

Due to minimal available findings, Rodell (2016) put out a call for more research on the performance outcomes of community focused behaviors such as volunteering while acknowledging the challenge of connecting “social movements to hard data” (p.79). This study answers that call by evaluating the community citizenship behaviors (CCBs) of leaders and the potential influence on team performance. Based on existing theory and findings, this study argues that leaders who engage in CCB are likely to enhance their leadership skills, inspire their followers and produce prosocial contagion and as a result we hypothesize they will increase their team performance. Using …

Conclusion: Female Leaders Using Coercive Power Motivate Subordinates, Mary Kovach

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

This manuscript advances prior research (Blau, 1964; Elangovan & Xie, 1999; French & Raven, 1959; Goodstadt & Hjelle, 1973; Hegtvedt, 1988; Randolph & Kemery, 2011; Zigarmi, Peyton Roberts, & Randolph, 2015) and capitalizes on supervisory skills using power dynamics within the workplace, by investigating employee effort resulting from gender dissimilar supervisor-employee dyads and employee locus of control. To offer a more focused approach, this is an evaluation specifically on reward and coercive power derived from French and Raven’s (1959) five power bases. This manuscript proposes that the motivation levels of employees change, based on their locus of control and gender. …

Leader Influence: A Research Review Of French & Raven’S (1959) Power Dynamics, Mary Kovach

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

After reviewing nearly 70 years of research, this manuscript seeks to compile study results to better understand leader influence by employing French and Raven’s (1959) power dynamics. Divided into two categories (i.e. formal and informal), these five power dynamics include referent, expert, legitimate, coercive, and reward power. Each power dynamic is categorized accordingly and dissected between scholarly research and applicable workplace settings between supervisors (i.e. leaders) and employees. Behavioral outcomes from a subordinate standpoint are discussed, and this manuscript concludes that the power dynamic that characterizes different workplace relationships between supervisors and employees has significant effects on work productivity and …

Organizational Intentions Versus Leadership Impact: The Flexible Work Experience, Susan R. Vroman

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

Working mothers with dependent aged children currently represent a significant portion of the workforce. In order to attract and retain this valuable demographic, employers are introducing and maintaining flexible work arrangements (FWA) to enable employees to manage their work and life commitments. However, having an FWA program and effectively supporting it are not synonymous, and this bears impact on employees. This article highlights opportunities and implications for FWA management based on findings from a recent New England healthcare organization case study which illustrates how working mothers experience enacted flexible work arrangement policies. This article identifies methods for organizations and managers …

The Impact Of #Metoo: A Review Of Leaders With Supervisor Power On Employee Motivation, Mary Kovach

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

This manuscript intends to advance existing research, specifically, in gender dissimilar supervisor-employee workplace dyads by integrating #MeToo with our existing knowledge concerning supervisor power and employee motivation. With the #MeToo movement re-energized in 2017, power in leadership positions was redefined. As a result, power held by a supervisor is likely to influence outcomes based on gender and the employees’ source of motivation. Supervisors who believed they were successful through influence were more likely to exhibit power to achieve success. However, employees’ source of the motivation was a moderating factor in those outcomes. Meaning, outcomes were dependent on the type of …

Leadership Behaviour And Worker Performance In The Nigerian Construction Industry, Abiodun Kolawole Oyetunji, John Adebiyi, Nathaniel Ayinde Olatunde

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

Leadership is a dynamic process in which an individual influence other to contribute to the achievement of an assigned task. This paper investigates leadership behaviour and its impact on construction workers’ performance in Lagos, Nigeria. Purposive sampling technique was adopted to select 50 site-supervisors and 250 construction-workers involved in simple construction works. An investigation was carried out using a questionnaire survey method. The leadership variables investigated were ranked, regressed and correlated to workers performance. From the primary data analysis, leadership behaviour exhibited by supervisors were found to influence the site workers commitment to achieving the goal of the construction projects. …

Unethical Leadership And Followers’ Deviance: The Mediating Role Of Perception Of Politics And Injustice, Zeleke Asnakew, Yibeltal Mekonnen

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

This paper posits that unethical leadership behavior increases followers’ deviance by increasing perception of injustice and politics in organizations. More specifically, perception of politics and injustice mediates the relationship between unethical leadership behavior and followers’ deviance. By using data from 262 employees of various public organizations in Ethiopia, we confirmed our hypothesis. Further, the result of multiple regression confirmed that the relationship between unethical leadership behavior and followers’ deviance would be stronger when followers develop a perception of politics in the workplace.

Leadership Styles And Effectiveness Among Sub-Saharan African Employees, Samuel Fadare

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

This study sought to determine whether a significant relationship exists between dimensions of transactional and transformational leadership styles and leadership effectiveness within sub-Saharan Africa. Dimensions of transactional and transformational leadership styles were moderated by dimensions of organizational commitment among Nigerian employees to produce effective leadership. The study confirmed that no significant relationship existed between dimensions of transactional and transformational leadership styles and effective leadership among Nigerian employees when moderated by dimensions of organizational commitment. Gender was also found to be the only control variable that had a significant relationship when predicting organizational commitment as well as effective leadership among Nigerian …

Leadership Ethos And Culturally Oriented Strategic Management: A Conceptual Framework And Research Propositions, Ken Kalala Ndalamba

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

This paper identifies the importance of Leadership Ethos (LE) as a backbone for Culturally Oriented Strategic Management (COSM). The paper begins by presenting the concept of LE, it then briefly discusses vision and values, two amongst the attributes of LE. This is followed by discussion of the relationship between LE and COSM. The discussion arrives at four testable propositions. The paper offers four action steps for the practice of LE aiming at establishing COSM before concluding with a summary of its contributions, calling for scholars and practitioners to invest in exploring the understanding and practice of LE. This is an …

What’S Broken? Not The Mold, Susan Vroman

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

Changing workforce demographics indicate that flexible work arrangements (FWA) are appreciated and valued by employees, yet employers still resist their support. While not explicit in their rationale, managerial mindsets may hold that deviations from historical ideal worker frameworks detract from performance potential. As this continues, mothers are especially stigmatized for using FWA as it differs from traditional, male hegemonic behaviors. Overlaying the case of a rising executive with a study of historical management theory, it may take until Generation Y is fully entrenched in leadership for a différance to break the mold in FWA acceptance.