Leader characteristics

What makes an effective leader?

Andy Weeger

Neu-Ulm University of Applied Sciences

March 24, 2025

Introduction

What was the most interesting finding
in reading Judge et al. (2002)?

Leadership depends on the personal qualities of the leader. Trait theory

Height?

Figure 1: Dilbert comic strip on leadership

The Big Five

Openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism.

Dicussion

What traits distinguish leaders from other people?

Relation to leadership

Figure 2: Regression of Leadership on Big Five Traits according to the meta study of Judge et al. (2002)

Dicussion

Which of the traits seems to be important for the digital era?

Dicussion

But, how do traits emerge?

Emergence of traits

Evolution

Leaders are born.

Really?

Traits have a genetic source and are the result of adaptive processes (Judge et al., 2009).

The statement, thus, oversimplifies a complex phenomenon that involves an interplay between genetic factors, developmental experiences, learning, and situational contexts.

The Leader Trait Emergence Effectiveness (LTEE) model

The Leader Trait Emergence Effectiveness (LTEE) model (Judge et al., 2009)

 

 

 

 

Dicussion

Could it be that personality traits lead to an advantage under certain conditions, while another situation they become a serious disadvantage?

Trait paradoxes

The bright and dark side of traits

Trait Bride Side Dark Side
Extraversion Greater leadership emergence; higher job and life satisfaction More impulsive (deviant) behaviors; more accidents
Agreeableness Higher subjective well-being; lower interpersonal conflict; lower turnover Lower career success; less capable of conflict; more lenient in giving ratings
Conscientiousness Stronger job performance; higher leadership effectiveness; lower deviance Reduced adaptability; lower learning in initial stages of skill acquisition
Emotional stability High job/life satisfaction; better job performance; effective leadership; retention Poorer ability to detect risks and danger; more risky behaviors
Openness Higher creativity; greater leadership effectiveness; greater adaptability More accidents and counterproductive; rebelliousness; lower commitment
Table 1: Trait paradoxes as identified by Judge et al. (2009) (more paradoxes in the paper)

Dicussion

Any new, surprising insights for you?

Emotional intelligence

Intelligence is the most “successful” trait in social and applied psychology (Judge et al., 2009).

Goleman (1998) argues that it is not IQ (intelligence, a trait), but emotional intelligence that sets apart great leaders.

Emotional intelligence is a group of five skills that enable the best leaders to maximize their own and their followers’ performance:

  • Self-awareness — knowing one’s strenghts, weaknesses, drives, values, and impact on others.
  • Self-regulation — controlling or redirecting disruptive impulses and moods.
  • Motivation — relishing achievements for its own sake.
  • Empathy — understanding other people’s emotional makeup and treating them accordingly.
  • Social skill — building rapport with others to move them in decired directions.

Group work

Emotional intelligence skills

Please read Goleman (1998) and

  • summarize the characteristics of one skill;
  • find an example, discuss its importance as well as pathways to strengthen it; and
  • discuss if the skill is gaining importance in the digital era and why (not).

Conclusion

It is fortunate, then, that emotional intelligence can be learned. Goleman (1998)

Q&A

Homework

Read Lavine (2014) and answer following questions:

  • What is ambidexterity, what is behavioral complexity?
  • Why does a complex world require behavioral complexity?
  • Which leadership paradoxes are identified by the CVF?
    Can you give specific examples for each?
  • How do the paradoxes relate to the specifics of the digital era?

Literature

DeNeve, K. M., & Cooper, H. (1998). The happy personality: A meta-analysis of 137 personality traits and subjective well-being. Psychological Bulletin, 124(2), 197.
Friedman, H. S., Tucker, J. S., Schwartz, J. E., Martin, L. R., Tomlinson-Keasey, C., Wingard, D. L., & Criqui, M. H. (1995). Childhood conscientiousness and longevity: Health behaviors and cause of death. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68(4), 696.
Goleman, D. (1998). What makes a leader? Harvard Business Review, 76(6), 93–103.
Hogan, R., Curphy, G. J., & Hogan, J. (1994). What we know about leadership: Effectiveness and personality. American Psychologist, 49(6), 493.
Judge, T. A., Bono, J. E., Ilies, R., & Gerhardt, M. W. (2002). Personality and leadership: A qualitative and quantitative review. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(4), 765.
Judge, T. A., Piccolo, R. F., & Kosalka, T. (2009). The bright and dark sides of leader traits: A review and theoretical extension of the leader trait paradigm. The Leadership Quarterly, 20(6), 855–875.
Lavine, M. (2014). Paradoxical leadership and the competing values framework. The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 50(2), 189–205.
Olson, J. M., Vernon, P. A., Harris, J. A., & Jang, K. L. (2001). The heritability of attitudes: A study of twins. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 80(6), 845.
Stogdill, R. M. (1950). Leadership, membership and organization. Psychological Bulletin, 47(1), 1.