1. Leadership
Chapter 6 - Contingency Theory

2. Contingency Theory Approach Description
Perspective
Contingency theory is a leader-match theory (Fiedler & Chemers, 1974)
Tries to match leaders to appropriate situations
Leader’s effectiveness depends on how well the leader’s style fits the context
Fiedler’s generalizations about which styles of leadership are best and worst are based on empirically grounded generalizations

3. Contingency Theory Approach Description
Definition
Effective leadership is contingent on matching a leader’s style to the right setting
Assessment based on:
Leadership Styles
Situational Variables

4. Leadership Styles Leader Style Measurement Scale (Fiedler)
Leadership styles are described as:
Task-motivated (Low LPCs)
Leaders are concerned primarily with reaching a goal
Relationship-motivated (High LPCs)
Leaders are concerned with developing close interpersonal relationships
Leader Style Measurement Scale (Fiedler)
Least Preferred Co-Worker (LPC) Scale
High LPCs = Relationship-motivated
Low LPCs = Task-motivated

5. Situational Variables/3 Factors
1. Leader-Member Relations
- Refers to the group atmosphere and the degree of confidence, loyalty, and attraction of followers for leader
Group atmosphere –
Good – high degree of subordinate trust, liking, positive relationship
Poor – little or no subordinate trust, friction exists, unfriendly

6. Situational Variables/3 Factors
2. Task Structure
Concerns the degree to which requirements of a task are clear and spelled out
High Structure –
requirements/rules - are clearly stated/known
path to accomplish - has few alternatives
task completion - can be clearly demonstrated
limited number - correct solutions exist

7. Situational Variables/3 Factors
2. Task Structure, cont’d.
Concerns the degree to which requirements of a task are clear and spelled out
Low Structure –
requirements/rules - not clearly stated/known
path to accomplish - has many alternatives
task completion - cannot be clearly demonstrated/verified
unlimited number - correct solutions exist

8. Situational Variables/3 Factors
3. Position Power
Designates the amount of authority a leader has to reward or punish followers
Strong Power –
authority to hire or fire, give raises in rank or pay
Weak Power –
no authority to hire or fire, give raises in rank or pay

9. Situational Variables/3 Factors
3 Factors - determine the favorableness of various situations in organizations
Situations that are rated:
Most Favorable -
good leader-follower relations,
defined tasks (high structure), &
strong leader position power

10. Situational Variables/3 Factors
3 Factors - determine the favorableness of various situations in organizations
Situations that are rated:
Least Favorable -
Poor leader-follower relations,
unstructured tasks (low structure), &
Weak leader position power
Moderately Favorable –
Fall in between these extremes

11. Research Findings of Leader Style Effectiveness
Reasons for leader mismatch ineffectiveness:
Leader style doesn’t match a particular situation; stress and anxiety result
Under stress, leader reverts to less mature coping style learned in earlier development
Leader’s less mature coping style results in poor decision making and consequently negative work outcomes

12. How Does the Contingency Theory Approach Work?
Focus of Contingency Theory
Strengths
Criticisms
Application

13. Contingency Theory Approach
Focus
By assessing the 3 situational variables.
After the nature of a situation is determined, the fit between leader’s style and the situation can be evaluated
Overall Scope
By measuring Leader’s LPC score and the 3 situational variables, it is possible to predict whether a leader will be effective in a particular setting

14. Criticisms
Fails to fully explain why leaders with particular leadership styles are more effective in some situations than others
Criticism of LPC scale validity as it does not correlate well with other standard leadership measures
Cumbersome to use in real-world settings
Fails to adequately explain what should be done about a leader/situation mismatch in the workplace