This area is one of the newer leadership research areas. It focuses on the genuinity and "real"ness of leadership. This first emerged when people began distrusting authority and resulted in fear and uncertainty. Initially, it was marked as a part of transformational leadership, but was never fully articulated. The key thing to note is trust.
Perspectives
There are multiple perspectives and viewpoints from which this can be seen
- Intrapersonal perspective - focuses on the leader and that goes on within the leader; emphasizes the leader's life experiences and what meaning is attached with those experienced
- Interpersonal perspective - outlines leadership as created by both leaders and followers together; the authenticity emerges from the interaction between the two
- Developmental perspective - a pattern of leader behavior that develops from the leader's psychological qualities and strong ethics; suggests that it comprises of four distinct components: self-awareness, internalized moral perspective, balanced process, and relational transparency
Approaches
Practical
The practical approach evolved from life examples and training and development literature. People want to know the “how to” steps to become an authentic leader and it has made this type of leadership very popular. Robert Terry's approach and Bill George's approach are both practical approaches to Authentic Leadership.
The practical approach evolved from life examples and training and development literature. People want to know the “how to” steps to become an authentic leader and it has made this type of leadership very popular. Robert Terry's approach and Bill George's approach are both practical approaches to Authentic Leadership.
Robert Terry’s Approach
This approach is practice oriented. It utilizes a formula for leadership with specific steps. It is also action centered. It focuses on the actions of the leader, leadership team, or organization in a particular situation. Leaders should strive to do what is right and the formula serves as a guide to these actions.
2 questions must be answered. What is really going on? What are we going to do about it? Authentic leadership involves knowing how to correctly answer those questions. It involves knowing and acting on what is true in yourself (authenticity), in your organization, and in the world. The challenge is to know what is authentic and inauthentic and to strive to act authentically. Unless leaders know what is truly going on their actions will be inappropriate and can have consequences.
He developed a wheel to diagnose and address problems in organizations. The wheel has six components: meaning, mission, power, structure, resources, existence, and fulfillment. First, you have to locate the problem on the wheel and then select an appropriate response to the problem. It encourages individuals to see things differently and more clearly.
This approach is practice oriented. It utilizes a formula for leadership with specific steps. It is also action centered. It focuses on the actions of the leader, leadership team, or organization in a particular situation. Leaders should strive to do what is right and the formula serves as a guide to these actions.
2 questions must be answered. What is really going on? What are we going to do about it? Authentic leadership involves knowing how to correctly answer those questions. It involves knowing and acting on what is true in yourself (authenticity), in your organization, and in the world. The challenge is to know what is authentic and inauthentic and to strive to act authentically. Unless leaders know what is truly going on their actions will be inappropriate and can have consequences.
He developed a wheel to diagnose and address problems in organizations. The wheel has six components: meaning, mission, power, structure, resources, existence, and fulfillment. First, you have to locate the problem on the wheel and then select an appropriate response to the problem. It encourages individuals to see things differently and more clearly.
Bill George’s Approach
This approach focuses on the characteristics of authentic leaders. It describes the essential qualities of authentic leadership and how individuals can develop these qualities if they want to become authentic leaders.
Through interviews from 125 successful leaders, George found that authentic leaders have a genuine desire to serve others, they know themselves, and they feel free to lead from their core values. Specifically they demonstrate understanding of their purpose, have strong values about the right thing to do, establish trusting relationships with others, demonstrate self-discipline and act on their values, and are passionate about their mission (act from the heart). They must also develop compassion, passion, behavior, connectedness, and consistency to become authentic leaders.
This approach focuses on the characteristics of authentic leaders. It describes the essential qualities of authentic leadership and how individuals can develop these qualities if they want to become authentic leaders.
Through interviews from 125 successful leaders, George found that authentic leaders have a genuine desire to serve others, they know themselves, and they feel free to lead from their core values. Specifically they demonstrate understanding of their purpose, have strong values about the right thing to do, establish trusting relationships with others, demonstrate self-discipline and act on their values, and are passionate about their mission (act from the heart). They must also develop compassion, passion, behavior, connectedness, and consistency to become authentic leaders.
Theoretical
The theoretical approach is based on findings from social science research. Walumba and associates (2008) conducted a study to determine what components constituted authentic leadership and to develop a valid measure of this construct. They identified four components: self awareness, internalized moral perspective, balanced processing, and relational transparency. Together, they form the foundation for the theory.
Components of the Theoretical Approach
- Self-awareness - refers to the personal insights of the leader. It's a process in which individuals understand themselves, including their strengths and weaknesses, and the impact they have on others. This includes reflecting on your core values, identity, emotions, motives, and goals, and coming to grips with who you are at the deepest level. When leaders know themselves and have a clear sense of who they are and what they stand for, they have a strong anchor for their decisions and actions.
- Internalized moral perspective - is a self-regulatory process whereby individuals use their internal moral standards and values to guide their behavior rather than allow outside pressure to control them. This makes them authentic because their actions are consistent with their expressed beliefs and morals. It is a self-regulatory process because people have control over the extent to which they allow others to influence them.
- Balanced processing – is an individual who has the ability to analyze information objectively and explore other people’s opinions before making a decision. They also avoid favoritism and are unbiased. They are seen as authentic because they are open with their own perspectives but are also objective in considering others’ perspectives. This avoids favoritism about certain issues and keeps things unbiased. One way to do this is by soliciting viewpoints from those who disagree with you and fully considering their positions before taking your own action.
- Relational transparency – involves being open and honest in presenting one’s true self to others. Here, individuals must be transparent with others. This occurs when individual share their core feelings, motives and inclinations with others in an appropriate manner. It Includes individuals showing both positive and negative aspects of themselves to others by communicating openly and being real in relationships with others.
Influencing Factors of the Theoretical Approach
- Positive Psychological Attributes - such as confidence, hope, optimism, and resilience; Altering any of these in a negative way can potentially decrease the authenticity of your leadership.
- Moral Reasoning - Deciding right vs. wrong and promoting justice are capacities that can affect authentic leadership. For example, going against your moral reasoning can affect how authentic of a leader you are. You can lose trust and your genuine leadership will not pull through.
- Critical Life Events - are significant because whether they are positive or negative effects, they can alter your leadership behaviors. For example, when people tell life stories, they gain clarity about who they are because of the effect that even had on their values and traits.
The trust you can gain through telling life events can definitely influence the behavior of a leader as well as how the follower reacts.