Leadership and Psychology - Essay Example

Leadership and Psychology Many people believe that psychology is not important to leadership. In the past, these two areas were separated because in many situations, it was thought that psychology applied only to education and leadership applied only to business. In the last several years, the lines between psychology and leadership have become blurred because research has been done to show that cognitive psychology, social psychology, personality traits and other aspects of psychology have been shown to have a positive effect on leadership. Psychology has become the other side of leadership when it starts talking about people and how to work more effectively with them. In the past, the idea of "top-down leadership, in which the leader told others what do, was an effective way to lead. Today, there is less "top-down" leadership and more building relationships with employees in order to build effective teams inside organizations so that employees will work more effectively. Traditionally, psychology has been the study of human behavior and though while leadership was the study of leading people. As leaders found that business was changing from the "hard sell" to building relationships with customers, psychology was touted by experts as a way to explore and understand customer need. Major Models Of Psychology Traditionally, psychology has been the study of human behavior and thought and this study has been based on various theories. Most of the concepts of psychology are talked about within these theories and they lay the groundwork for the models that came from them. Behavioral Theories Behavioral psychology was begun by B.F. Skinner and is based on conditioning. It was Skinner's belief that all behavior was conditioned by stimuli in an environment. He found that by using certain directed stimuli anyone could create a behavior, change it or modify it in anyway. Usually behaviorists would start out with a specific behavior that they wanted to change and create a system of rewards and punishments. Eventually, the behavior began to happen as the rewards were given infrequently. These techniques have been used education to help children with disabilities learn certain tasks that were in other ways difficult. Within behavior psychology, many people are familiar with the experiments done by Ivan Pavlov who found that once he set up the stimulus of "food" the dogs eventually started to salivate before the food came to them within a certain amount of time (Grossman, 2000). Behavior theory can easily be applied to leadership when looking at the system of rewards and punishments that are apparent in any organization. When an individual performs well within an organization, they may be rewarded with bonuses or stipends, special recognition or trips. In each situation a leader is expecting a certain behavior from their employees which in many cases will inspire the employee to perform at their best. In this model, an external stimulus is used to improve performance. Cognitive Theories In contrast, cognitive theories use internal rather than external stimuli to measure performance. Within this method, descriptions of motivation, self-direction, decision making, problem solving, and learning to think in more positive frameworks, can be found. A good example of a cognitive theory is Gardner's 7 Intelligences. Gardner laid another level of groundwork in the area of learning styles. Gardner presented the following intelligences to show that people learned differently: 1. Linguistic intelligence ("word smart"): 2. Logical-mathematical intelligence ("number/reasoning smart") 3. Spatial intelligence ("picture smart") 4. Bodily-Kinesthetic intelligence ("body smart") 5. Musical intelligence ("music smart") 6. Interpersonal intelligence ("people smart") 7. Intrapersonal intelligence ("self smart") 8. Naturalist intelligence ("nature smart") (Armstrong, 2000). Intelligence can also be a product of learning new programs at work or new information; any training must take into consideration that employees learn in different ways and provide training materials through different avenues. The importance of the 7 Intelligences to leadership is that they give the leader valuable information about how to work well with their employees. They can use this information to give their presentations in a variety of formats. As an example, they could have small groups (interpersonal), give handouts (linguistic), have music that includes jingles (musical), and have people getting up and talking to each other (bodily-kinesthetic, interpersonal, and linguistic). In each situation, the leader can present several ways for their leaders to learn the same material. Personality Models Sigmund Freud brought together one of the first theories of personality. Freud believed that all humanity was governed by several "urges" and that these urges served the individual in many different ways. The Id was the part of the personality that was all encompassing and was the part that wanted immediate gratification. When working from the Id an individual could be compulsive, would seek out pleasure and would live their life totally doing whatever they wanted if left unchecked. The Ego was the balance to the Id because it was able to see the rational side of what an individual wanted. The Superego kept a gentle balance between the Id and the Ego by helping the individual see both sides of any situation and allowing them to make decisions about what they would do in any situation (Van Wagner, 2009, p. 1). Today, personality theories translate themselves into testing on personality and many people have taken the Myers Briggs Type Indicator or the 360 degree Assessment in order to understand their management style and the learning/work styles of their employees. Personality theories are involved with the various behaviors that create the uniqueness in each employee. Freud also looked towards groups and saw that they also need excellent leadership skills. Freud studied the difference between leaders and followers and found that some groups showed blind obedience to their leaders while others showed minimal obedience for some leaders. In his study he found that in order for someone to blindly obey a leader they needed: 1) "an instinct to submit to authority" and 2) the leader had to be strong enough to "assume the position of master of authority" (Goethals, p. 99). When an individual had this strength and had similar personality characteristics to the group they were able to gain prestige with the group. Freud also found that an individual could establish this through his demeanor and actions (Goethals, p. 97). In essence Freud found four major elements in his model: 1. Human beings will react emotionally to leaders with envy, love, fear or obedience when they appear as dominant or as part of a "dangerous primal horde leader." 2. The leader brings this type of obedience when they have a "strong and opposing will" and have characteristics that are similar to the group. 3. When the leader has a strong faith in ideas the followers will automatically awake their faith in the project. (Goethals, p. 102). Developmental Models Another important concept in psychology evolved from developmental theories. These discuss how the experiences that an individual has in their early years will determine how they react later in life. Attachment theory is very important to these theories and two people who were very important to the development of this area were John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth. Bowlby formulated the theory and Ainsworth took it a step forward. The basic premise of this theory is that people react to their environment based upon their attachment to their primary care giver. If this attachment was secure the individual would form secure attachments for the rest of their life. If this attachment was insecure, the individual would have difficulty with attachments throughout their life (Bretherton, 2000).. Some of the leadership literature has looked at how employees and managers work together in terms of attachment. Humanist Models Humanist theories look at the needs of the individual, how the individual perceives the world and how the world reacts to them. Central to this category is Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs: (Source: Google Images, BK ONE, http://www.bkone.co.in/clubBK/ MaslowsHierarchyofNeeds.asp). Maslow suggested that the lower level needs must be satisfied before they were able to strive towards the higher levels of needs. As an example, an individual must satisfy the biological and physiological needs before they went towards the need for safety. Before an individual could care about self-actualization, they would have to move up the pyramid and experience the other levels that came before self-actualization. Motivation Models Maslow took his hierarchy a step further and created a model of employee motivation. The five areas that are used in this model are as follows: 1. Basic/Physiological needs -- basic needs in training are for food and water during the process of training. In the workplace this means providing lunch or rest breaks and providing a good salary so people can pay for their essential needs. 2. Safety and security -- business should address the training needs of their employees and encourage them towards career advancement inside the company. It is also necessary to create an environment that is safe physically, emotionally and mentally. Within that environment diversity should also be encouraged and supported. For security in the workplace strong retirement plans and job security are important. 3. Social needs -- within a training situation this model encourages the trainer to include time for socializing during the training and participants should be encouraged to bring their ideas to the group. In the workplace, this need is met when the company creates projects for their teams to do and social events throughout the year. 4. Esteem needs -- in a training situation it helps to encourage participation from and to build in aspects where everyone is recognized for their efforts. In the general workplace this calls for employee recognition and giving making sure that job titles support the jobs that the employees actually do. 5. Self-actualization -- in training it is important to know where leaders want to go in the training and help them to get there. Mentoring and coaching will be important after the training. For the workplace this means that leaders must give their employees challenges and opportunities to move ahead I their career. (Lucas, 2009 and NetMBA, 2007). Maslow suggested that "human beings are motivated by unsatisfied needs" (Abraham Maslow: Father of Modern Management, 2009) and that their lower needs must be met before their higher needs can be addressed. If these needs were not met an individual would not be able to act in an unselfish way because they would be working to fulfill those "deficiency needs" first. The reason this is important to leadership is because leaders must understand what motivations are working for their individual employee motivation in order to have "adequate workplace motivation" (Abraham Maslow: Father of Modern Management). Frederick Herzberg created a motivation model based on his Two Factor Theory. This is considered a "content" theory because he analyzed job habits. He did research to understand what factors satisfied employees and then looked for reasons why they were dissatisfied. He found that the factors between the two were different and he developed the Motivation Hygiene Model: (Source: Riley and Riley, People and organizations, Tutor2u). With this model Herzberg saw that motivation should be examined through two different approaches. The hygiene factors considered the issue that businesses should strive not to have conflict within the workplace. Factors such as wages, monetary compensation, and quality of leadership, quality of work place and feelings of job security would create satisfaction in the workplace. If any of these are lacking it would create dissatisfaction with workers. The second approach is to look at leadership through "motivator factors". This are based on an individual employee's need to move forward in the business; in other words, their growth potential. When an employee perceives that they receive status, opportunities to advance in their career, recognition for their achievements, increased responsibility, work that is challenging and rewarding and a sense of personal achievement, they will be more satisfied with their jobs and the employee will provide "above average" and put more effort into their work; when it is not present they will not do as great a job. (Riley and Riley, n.d.). Employees who are not motivated will show up as low producers, low service quality, may engage in strikes or other disputes with the company and communications will break down between employees and management. This will also be the group that will complain about working conditions and their pay. Employee satisfaction is important for a leader to know because it aids them in finding the tools and the skill that create an opportunity to grow with the company and take others with them in that growth. Social Psychology Models Social psychology deals with the study of relationships and social behavior. In leadership, social psychology examines group behavior, team work and how employees relate to one another on a variety of levels (Van Wagner, 2). Goethals, Sorenson, and Burns (2004) apply the model of Social Identity Theory. In this model, groups are taken into consideration to see how they work effectively together. Social Identity Theory has grown from looking only at self-concept as it applies to groups, to a "social identity model of leadership"(p. 1457). Goethals, Sorenson and Burns report that people have different ways that they see themselves and they see that their social identity is different from their personal identity: "personal identity is tied to the personal self whereas social identity is tied to the collective self" (p. 1457). People use these different categories in order to make sense of any situation. When these categories become real to individuals, it is responsible for how someone sees themselves, sees others and it will govern an individual's behavior, thinking and feeling about their situation. Humans are always looking for ways to enhance their circumstances and they are motivated by understanding how they stand in the relationship to the group (p. 1458). In the more current literature, the social psychology model emphasizes two specific processes: a) The individual cognitive model where there is individual social orientation and where group processes are not incorporated and the individual is not a consideration and b) The individual already has charismatic properties so that individual characteristics will attract other individuals and not include a group process (Hogg, 2001, p. 55-56). Social identity is the "basis of perception, attitudes, feelings, behavior and self-conception…"(Hogg, p. 56). This is the major point of the social identity model and it means that in group interaction when the leader is strong and the individuals being supervised have a strong feeling of belonging, these group members will be more outstanding and the will show this in their work. If they do not have a strong leader, they will tend to "depersonalize" the leader because they will see that the leader has the same characteristics as members of the group (Hogg, p. 73). I agree with the social identity model because in any organization, leaders have their own identity that they often show to their employees. Depending on the type of leadership the individual displays, their employees will react in some way. In each situation employees and leaders have decided upon a specific identity for the workplace and they work within these frameworks for the duration of their employment. They can modify their behaviors to meet different standards, but they will always go back to the way in which they see themselves. Psychology Models And Their Relationship To Leadership On a global level, organizations are studying psychology as they deal with different cultures and backgrounds. In today's workplace diversity can include multiple generational cohorts with very different values and attitudes often working side by side. These experiences can be emotional and various core attitudes can be formed during a person's coming of age in these situations (Meredith and Schewe, 2002). The role of psychology in this situation brings these groups together and helps them form a more cohesive unit which in turn helps them work more effectively. According to the study by the Hudson Institute, Workforce 2000 (Johnston & Packer, 1987), in the next 15 years, the corporate cultures of most organizations will have changed completely. This will add new complexity to the already difficult job of managing work forces. Barriers to performance that are created by racial, sexual, and/or cultural differences hinder effectiveness of an organization. In Megatrends 2000, Naisbitt and Aburdene (1990) related the importance of capitalizing on the benefits of diversity. They point out that the advantage for American businesses in the world market will be based upon their success in optimizing and utilizing a richly diverse work force. How well the diverse groups work together will have a direct impact on the productivity and the bottom line of all organizations that will be operating in the next century. My Personal Leadership Psychology After researching psychology as it applies to leadership, I am more prone to supervise through sing some of the educational models because I think that we as leaders are there to help our employees learn. I find myself applying the theory of Constructivism. In this theory, action is the most important aspect. According to John Dewey, an early Constructivist, it was important for learners to take meaning from their own ideas and experiences (Southwest Educational Development Laboratory, 1995, par. 3). He believed that each situation had to take place in a social context and children were allowed to create the learning together. Although others also saw Constructivism as it applied to children, Dewey's idea applies to leadership in this context. I believe it is important for people to construct their learning as they work through their team efforts. By doing so, they are more motivated and they care about the work. However, situations occur in learning where different education methodologies work better than others. Principles that I find helpful in the way that I see education and leadership are as follows: Individual centered-focusing on the unique experiences, capacities and insight of each person. I believe that this matches the social identity model because I want to make sure that employees have an understanding of who they are and where they want to go forward under my command. 1. Whole person approach that includes mind, body, and spirit. I think that a leader must understand the entire person in order to help them stay motivated. In Maslow's Motivation Theory he presents the point that leaders must know where their employees are on the hierarchy in order to help them work more effectively. I agree with this statement because I have had the experience when employees are having challenges at home, they tend not to do work well. I do not see myself as one who is "a dangerous primal horde leader" but I do think that my employees relate to me as someone who has faith in their ideas and can help them move forward. 2. Clarify and connect who they are and what they know with their social environment. I understand that social identity is very important but I also feel that Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs is important to motivate employees. When they are happy and they feel that they are respected, It has been my experience that they are more productive. Herzberg's Motivation Hygiene Model is important because I want to make sure that my employees are mostly those who are motivated. However, I think that motivation has to come from within and I feel that Maslow's motivation theory encourages the individual to go within for motivation. I think that a personal leadership style must include building and maintaining relationships both inside and outside of an organization. An effective leader must respond to the training needs of their employees by creating training that is relevant to their needs. Attachment theory is also important because some employees may need to go to counseling in order to explore their attachment challenges so they can be more fully engaged in teamwork and projects. Personal Approach To Effective Leadership And Psychology My personal approach to effective leadership is that I believe in the inherent good of all people. I also know that people can become better if they are treated well. I have also seen what happens when people are not treated well; in this situation people feel threatened and they act out. Because of our current economic crisis people feel pressured to get money any way they can and in a way they make money their god. When people start to do this and make money the only thing that becomes valuable it is difficult for them to see the bigger picture. For me, the bigger picture is to be a "strong" leader. A strong leader has many characteristics that are important. According to Piccone (2007), a good leader must have character, they must know how to communicate well, the courage to do what needs to be done in any situation, and they must have vision that comes from their instincts and their experience and the intelligence to always put the correct action with their knowledge. I agree with these characteristics, but I would also add the ability to listen, problem solving and decision making skills. All of these characteristics will mean that I will need to understand the personalities of my workers and how they relate to the job. I will want to examine their needs and see where I can help them met those needs. One of the challenges with leadership today I think is that people are afraid for their jobs. Most will see that job security is a think of the past and their morale may go down with time. If an individual loses a job it is difficult for them to try again and open to what they might be able to do if they make a career change. I believe that leaders must also lead employees through diverse situations to help them work effectively together. They also must embrace change because every organization has a unique culture that influences change, and they need to bring different types of people together to get the job done. Today, organizations realize the importance of coaching executives in the reengineering and restructuring of their organization, but they often wait until the executive is in trouble. A better way in my opinion is to build a relationship with the executives so that we can easily see what they need to do to further career. Also, attachment theory will be important here because we will want executives to feel comfortable with what they are doing and how it works with the rest of the company. My personal approach would be to get to know my executives and find out their needs for coaching in order to become a stronger leader; we can only do that if we build the relationship first. Understanding a firm’s culture is critical to understanding how to work with a variety of differences including sexual orientation, disability, ethnicities and race. Although most companies know that diversity is important, most only think about race or ethnicity which may mean that there may be numerous obstacles that need to be understood and removed before the company can value all employees. I have been in situations where I saw leaders pass over good people because they were "different" than the individual felt their employees should be or when someone had a disability or other challenge. For me, I think that in order to understand how an individual will react in stressful situations, we must as leaders get to know them. Psychology is the study of people. In leadership it means that learning to build relationships inside and outside the company will help all employees develop their careers and it will lend itself towards keeping employees instead of sending them out of the organization. References Armstrong, H. (2000). Multiple Intelligences. Retrieved July 28, 2009 from http://www.thomasarmstrong.com/multiple_intelligences.htm. 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