Transformational Leadership Style in Nursing and Health Care - Research Paper Example

Transformational Leadership Style in Nursing and Health Care al Affiliation Transformational Leadership Style in Nursing and Health Care Leaders in contemporary work settings exhibit diverse leadership styles. Leadership theories have evolved through time and manifest discovery of new concepts that affect and influence disparities in application. In the health care setting, the role and responsibilities of leader face greater challenges in the light of changing demands of the health environment. As such, leaders apply different leadership styles to match the situation; as well as to address factors that affect the followers that they govern. The current discourse aims to select a leadership style, the application, and the use of that style in nursing and/or health care today. The following questions would like (Drenkard, 2013)wise be appropriately addressed: (1) is the style currently being used? (2) Has it been revised? (3) If it is being used, in what area is it used most often? The chosen leadership style would be expounded, as stated; and provide details if it was found to have a place in health care today. The Chosen Leadership Style: Transformational Leadership 1. Definition of Transformational Leadership The definition of transformational leadership was described by Johnson & Potts (2012) as an “action-based leadership style that recognizes the need for change, which is guided by admirable influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized attention” (p. 12). This was corroborated by Clavelle (2012) who described transformational leadership as “striving for open communication and fostering change in an environment of shared leadership and decision making” (p. 345). From these definitions, it could be deduced that as perceived from the word ‘tranform’, this style of leadership aims to change some facets of the work setting towards remarkable improvement, growth, and professional development. In fact, Leach (2005) emphasized that “transformational leadership is a suitable approach in organizations requiring change, development, initiative, and creativity in turbulent and uncertain environments” (p. 228). This statement therefore indicates that there are some conditions or situations that were deemed to be emergent prior to confirming that the tranformational leadership style is appropriate. The conditions include: (1) current status being in a turbulent or substandard scenarios; (2) there are opportunities seen that would significantly improve the current work environmen; and (3) proposed changes would bring the organization or its stakeholders to unprecedented heights of professional growth. 2. Historical Overview and Evolution of the Concept The concept of transformational leadership, reported to have been initiated in 1978, was attributed to “historian and political scientist James MacGregor Burns” (Johnson & Potts, 2012, p. 12). It was asserted that the conceptualization of this theory was primarily influenced and inspired from Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, to wit: “Burns theorized that transformational leadership theory encompasses Maslow’s higher levels of needs, which elevate self-esteem and promote self-actualization: (a) achievement, (b) confidence, (c) respect, (d) problem solving, (e) creativity, and (f) acceptance” (p. 12). On the other hand, Drenkard (2013) asserted that Burns was also infuenced by the Great Man theory of leadership. This theory was acknowledged to affirm that “leaders were born and only men with great intellect, persuasive powers, and keen decision-making ability could lead the masses” (p. 57). Thus, one could evaluate that the historical influence of past leadership theories in the transformational leadership concept were strongly validated. 3. Application in the Health Care Setting 3.1 Characteristics of Transformational Leaders There were common characteristics that were disclosed to be manifested by transformational leaders. According to Leach (2005), “transformational leaders convey the connection between the organization’s philosophy and shared values, and embed those values in organizational rules and actions. They communicate meaning and inspire followers” (p. 229). Likewise, Weberg (2010) added that transformational leaders are able to focus on the professional development and growth of their followers; communicating unified commitment to the organization’s mission, vision, and goals; as well as enjoining subordinates to go beyond self-interess and be committed towards cohesive participation and determination to assist members of the organization towards much needed improvements. In addition, Weber (2010) also emphasized that “the transformational leaders are inspiring and facilitate their employees to solve problems by helping them identify these issues and develop the resources needed to overcome their problems” (p. 246). The emphasis in tranformational leadership style is the ability of the leaders to exemplify commitment to the organization’s vision and be an instrumental influencer to others towards facilitating fulfillment of this unified goal (Robbins & Davidhizar, 2007). 3.2 Effects of Transformational Leadership Transformational leadership style was examined in terms of applicability in the health care setting (Robbins & Davidhizar, 2007; Weberg, 2010). Robbins & Davidhizar (2007) examined how leadership style has been known to directly influence and affect staff satisfaction and retention in the health care setting. It was revealed that “studies indicate that when leadership behaviors include support and consideration of staff, high visibility, and willingness to share leadership responsibilities, there is a positive influence on staff nurse retention” (p. 236). Likewise, the ability of managers to address high turnover rates or retention rates have also been found to have strong links to their capacities to satify the staff through motivation and provision of high morale. Overall, both staff satisfaction and retention affect patient care (Robbins & Davidhizar, 2007), to wit: “When nurses are satisfied, they stay in their positions. This impacts staff retention in a positive way by reducing turnover on each nursing unit. This enables nursing units to continue with experienced staff, which positively impacts patient care” (Robbins & Davidhizar, 2007, p. 238). The study by Weberg (2010) evaluated the link between transformational leadership style, staff retention, and burnout. It was revealed that “transformational leadership decreases exhaustion and burnout and increases wellbeing and job satisfaction” (Weberg, 2010, p. 254). Finally, transformation leadership was also found to assist in enhancing organizational commitment among nurses in the health care setting (Leach, 2005). 4. Responses to Questions 4.1 Is the style currently being used? From the article written by Drenkard (2013), the author noted that “in many Magnet organizations around the country, chief nurse executives (CNEs) have created cultures of transformational leadership. Excellent examples abound of formal shared governance structures and highly effective councils, committees, and congresses” (p. 57). The information therefore attests to the fact that the transformational leadership style is currently being used; and are known to be applied to health care organizations that have received Magnet Designation. Actually, it was disclosed that exemplifying a transformational leadership style was considered one of the standards in maintaining and sustaining a Magnet designation (Johnson & Potts, 2012). 4.2 Has it been revised? The theoretical framework for transformational leadership style is actually retained. As emphasized, “nurse administrators who more frequently demonstrated transformational behaviors compared with transactional behaviors increased staff nurse job satisfaction and reduced staff nurse turnover. Nursing staff retention is much higher when nursing management is led by transformational leaders” (Robbins & Davidhizar, 2007, p. 237). One strongly believes that rather than asserting that the theoretical framework for the transformational leadership style has been revised, one could contend that each health care institution caters it to the specific needs and demands of their respective work settings, the situation, as well as the factors affecting both the leaders and the followers. 4.3 If it is being used, in what area is it used most often? From the review of related literature, it could be deduced that transformational leadership style is most often used in health care settings that necessitate focusing on job satisfaction and retention of nurses in the nursing units. Likewise, it was found to be a standards for health organizations to consider and inculcate to chief nurse executives so that the organization could be assisted in gaining a Magnet Designation. The studies have validly supported that a transformational leadership style, when applied by nurse leaders, could contribute to higher job satisfaction, staff retention, as well as patient satisfaction in the long run. References Clavelle, J. (2012). Transformational Leadership. JONA, Volume 42, Number 7/8, 345-346. Drenkard, K. (2013). Transformational Leadership: Unleashing the Potential. JONA, Volume 43, Number 2, 57-58. Johnson, K., & Potts, C. (2012). Make an impact with transformational leadership and shared governance. Nursing Management, 12-17. Leach, L. (2005). Nurse Executive Transformational Leadership and Organizational Commitment. JONA, Volume 35, Number 5, 228-237. Robbins, B., & Davidhizar, R. (2007). Transformational Leadership in Health Care Today. The Health Care Manager, Volume 26, Number 3, 234–239. Weberg, D. (2010). Transformational Leadership and Staff Retention. Nurs Admin Q, Volume 34, Number 3, 246–258. Read More