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Charismatic & Transformational Leadership

Charismatic and Transformational leadership (TL for short) originated in
an interest in learning more about how leaders get followers to make selfsacrifices and put the needs of their organization above their own material
self-interests. This chapter describes the major theories of charismatic and
TL, provides an evaluation of these theories, and then offers guidelines
for TL.
TWO EARLY THEORIES
Charisma. Charisma is a Greek word that means ""divinely
inspired gift". A sociologist, Max Weber, used the term to describe a form
of influence based not on tradition or formal authority, but rather on
follower perceptions that the leader has exceptional qualities. According
to Weber, perceptions of a leader as charismatic usually occur when there
is a social crisis. A leader who is seen during such a crisis as providing a
"radical" vision, with a convincing and achievable solution to the crisis, is
seen as charismatic. A key aspect of this leadership influence is getting
followers to believe in, and passionately embrace, the vision. Newer
versions of this theory have developed. They are called "neocharismatic"
theories.
Transforming Leadership. This theory originated from a political
scientist, James McGregor Burns. As originally conceived, TL engages
the moral values of followers, raises their consciousness about ethical
issues, and mobilizes their energy and resources to change institutions.
Burns contrasted this TL with transacting leadership, which motivates
followers, not by appealing to a "higher" morale cause, but rather, by
appealing to their self-interests. For example, politicians promising to
lower corporate taxes if elected (seeking campaign donations and votes
from the corporate elites). Transactional leadership is of the form, "if you
do this, then I will give you this". Followers follow to obtain something
that benefits them directly and personally. (Notice, there is no selfsacrifice here for any higher, "moral cause"). Incidentally, transactional
leadership may involve values, such that the follower may be treated by
the leader with honesty and fairness, for doing good quality work (like in
LMX theory).

ATTRIBUTION THEORY OF CHARISMATIC LEADERSHIP

Attribution theory refers to theory that tries to explain how and
why people come to perceive their leader as charismatic. What
determines whether I see you as a charismatic leader? The attribution
theory of leadership suggests that whether we see another as a
charismatic leader is determined by the leader's behavior, skill, and
aspects of the situation, and the attributions we make regarding this
behavior (e.g. how we interpret this behavior).
Leader Traits and Behaviors. Whether we perceive another as
charismatic depends on their behaviors, but not all charismatic leaders are
seen to have all the same behaviors. The importance of any one behavior
in determining perceptions of charisma will depend to some extent on the
leadership situation.
First, leaders are most likely to be seen as charismatic if their
vision is quite different from the current way things are being done,
but is not too different (e.g. radical). Non-charismatic leaders,
however, typically support the "status quo" (the way things are
currently done), or advocate only small, incremental changes.
Second, leaders are more likely to be seen as charismatic if they act
in unconventional (new) ways to achieve their mission. Innovative
strategies are associated with charismatic leadership.
Thirdly, leaders are more likely to be seen as charismatic if they
make self-sacrifices and take personal risk to achieve their vision.
A leader who risks substantial personal loss in status, money,
leadership position or organizational membership in efforts to
achieve his/her mission is more likely to be viewed as charismatic.
Fourthly, leaders who appear confident about their vision are more
likely to be seen as charismatic, then are leaders who project a lack
of confidence and self-doubt. Followers who believe the leader
knows how to achieve the shared objective will work harder and
increase the probability of success.
Fifthly, leaders are more likely to be seen as charismatic if they use
"visioning" and persuasive appeals to motivate others, than if they
use authority or rely too much on consensus-seeking participative
decision processes.
Hong Kong Chief Executive Tung Chee-Hwa has been criticized
greatly in the media for lacking "charisma". Can you explain this media
perception of Tung, based on the categories above?

When coming up with new vision, and new ways to achieving that
vision, leaders take risks. To minimize risks, leaders must make realistic
assessments of environmental constraints and opportunities before
implementing their strategies. Timing is very important, as the same
strategy may succeed at one time, but fail if implemented at another time.
Leaders need to be sensitive to the needs and values of followers as well
as to the environment, in order to come up with a vision that is
innovative, relevant, timely and appealing.
Influence Processes. Why do followers of charismatic leaders
become so strongly committed to the task and the mission? We have
come to learn that the primary reason is that followers personally identify
with the leader. That is to say, followers desire to please and to imitate
(model/copy) the leader. Charismatic leaders seem so special, due to their
strategic insight, strong convictions/beliefs, self-confidence,
unconventional behavior and dynamic energy, that subordinates idolize
(praise and respect) these leaders and want to become like them.
Receiving "approval" from the leader, followers sense of "self-worth" is
increased. Leader approval is usually expressed as praise and recognition
of subordinate behavior and accomplishments, which builds selfconfidence and a deeper sense of obligation to meet their leader's
expectation of them. Leader approval becomes a prime motivation for
followers to make extraordinary contributions to achieving organizational
goals. Also, subordinates are motivated by fear of disappointing the
leader and being rejected by him/her.
The influence of a charismatic leader is also due to internalization
of new values and beliefs by followers. It is more important for followers
to adopt the leader' attitudes and beliefs about the work they do than
merely to imitate superficial aspects of the leader, such as in mannerisms,
gestures and speech. To internalize values, attitudes and beliefs of the
leader means to accept them as your own. A charismatic leader who can
inspire others to accept his/her vision as their own, provides much
intrinsic motivation among followers to work toward achieving
organizational objectives.
Facilitating Conditions. Leaders are most likely to be perceived
as charismatic under certain conditions: (a) when there is a crisis.
Sometimes leaders will create a crisis in order to provide for themselves
more favorable conditions for being seen as charismatic. They can do this
by increasing subordinate dissatisfaction with current conditions, and
presenting convincing arguments why embracing change is mutually

beneficial. The change the leader advocates, however, must be tied to a

vision that appeals to followers. For example, leaders in Hong Kong who
argue strongly for a merger between HKUST and Chinese U. seek to win
support for the idea by emphasizing what they consider to be weaknesses
and inefficiencies in keeping the two institutions separate. They argue
that it is critical for the two institutions to come together for Hong Kong
to have a university that can seriously compete internationally.
SELF CONCEPT THEORY OF CHARISMATIC LEADERSHIP.
Charismatic leadership influences subordinates to work hard
toward achieving organizational objectives by appealing to their selfconcept. Charismatic leadership is working when the sense of self-worth
of subordinates is increased by behaving in ways that contribute to the
leader's mission and objectives.
Indicators of Charisma. We know that charisma is working when
followers perceive the leader's beliefs are correct, they are willing to obey
the leader, they feel affection for the leader, are emotionally involved in
the mission of the group or organization, they have high performance
goals, and they believe that they can contribute to the success of the
mission.
Key Traits and Behaviors. Firstly, lets deal with traits.
Charismatic leaders are likely to have a strong need for power, high selfconfidence, and hold strong beliefs and ideals. Now, with regard to
behaviors . Charismatic leaders do the following. They.
Articulate an appealing vision
Use strong, expressive forms of communication when
communicating the vision
Take personal risks and make self-sacrifices to attain the
mission
Communicate high expectations
Express confidence in followers
Model behaviors consistent with the vision
Manage follower impressions of the leader
Build identification with the group or organization
Influence Process. Since we know that leaders who get their
followers to

personally identify with them can increase their influence over followers,
it is important to know how leaders can get their employees to personally
identify with them. They can do things that make them appear very
attractive, heroic and exceptional (articulate an appealing vision, display
self-confidence, make self-sacrifices, demonstrate courage and
conviction). However, unlike the attribution theory of leadership, which
emphasizes identification with the leader (personal identification) as the
key motivating force for followers, self-concept theory emphasizes social
identification, internalization, and enhancing individual and collective
"self-efficacy" (sense of competence). When there is a strong social
identification, people take pride in being part of a larger group and
mission. They see how their efforts and work roles are related to a larger
cause or purpose, making their work more meaningful and important.
They put the needs of their work group above individual needs and make
self-sacrifices to advance the interests of the group of which they are a
part. Social identification of this nature strengthens shared values, beliefs
and behavior norms among members of the group. Charismatic leaders
increase social identification by relating a follower's self-concept to
shared values and role identities associated with the group. Social
identification can also be increased by use of slogans ("we're number 1"),
symbols (flags, uniforms) rituals (singing, saluting), and ceremonies
(initiation of new members), telling stories about past successes etc..
Internalization occurs when attainment of tasks objectives becomes
a way for followers to express their values and social identities.
Charismatic leaders communicate a vision that appeals to follower values,
and links these values to task objectives. By emphasizing the symbolic
and ideological aspects of the work, the leader makes it more meaningful.
Internalization is in full-force when followers come to view their work
role as closely tied to their self-concept and sense of self-worth.
Motivation to perform tasks to achieve objectives also depends on
individual and collective self-efficacy. Self-efficacy refers to the belief
that you are competent and capable of achieving difficult task objectives.
People with high self-efficacy are willing to put our more effort and
persist longer to overcome obstacles to achieving these objectives.
Collective self-efficacy refers to the perception of group members that
they can accomplish exceptional things by working together. A
charismatic leader can increase the self-efficacy of followers by showing
confidence in them and celebrating follower accomplishments.
Facilitating Conditions. Charismatic leaders will be more
effective when their vision is consistent with the values and identities of

their followers. Therefore, they need to understand the values and needs
of their followers. They should be able to define task roles in ideological
("moral") terms that appeal to followers. This is more difficult to do for
some tasks than for others (your book provides for very good examples
here, pg. 245, bottom paragraph). Also, while self-concept theory does
not say that a crisis is a necessary condition for charismatic leadership to
emerge, it does say that charismatic leadership is more likely to occur
when an organization is in serious trouble, there is ambiguity about what
should be done to resolve the crisis, and there is anxiety and panic among
followers. Such conditions favor the emergence of a leader who is able to
interpret the crisis and offer credible strategies for coping with it. The
current situation in Hong Kong with regard to SARS present ideal
facilitating conditions for the emergence of charismatic leadership, but
which of the political leaders has embraced this opportunity to emerge as
a charismatic leader in the eyes of the public? Can you think of a leader
in the recent past who has emerged as a charismatic leader during a time
of crisis? What were the conditions? What did this leader do?
Interestingly, the charismatic effects of a leader will be temporary unless
their vision continues to be relevant after the immediate crisis. Have
perceptions of George Bush as charismatic leader changed since just after
the 9-11 crisis?
OTHER CONCEPTIONS OF CHARISMA
There are other explanations of how charismatic influence works.
Above we said that charisma influences others through (a) favorable
attributions people make of leader traits and behaviors, and the personal
identification we develop with the leader based on these attributions; (b)
linking the self-concept and sense of self-worth of followers to
accomplishing the mission and objectives of the organization. The first
refers to attribution theory of charismatic leadership, and the second
refers to the self-concept theory of leadership. In this section, we discuss
other processes by which charisma influences followers: (a)
psychodynamic processes; (b) social contagion.
Psychodynamic Processes. Whether leaders are perceived as
charismatic is most related to psychological characteristics and states of
the followers. These psychological states may be brought on by
prevailing social and economic circumstances. I will not devote attention
to this, as the focus here is on psychological vulnerabilities of followers,
than make them search out a charismatic leader for purposes of
assuaging (improving upon) their negative psychological states. You are
referred to pg. 246-247 if you are interested in learning more on this.

Social Contagion. How is it that some leaders are perceived as

charismatic among followers who do not directly and personally interact
with the leader? Followers sometimes work at great distances from the
leader. In the extreme, they might not even observe the leader at a
distance or on television. These conditions can prevail with religion, for
example. Sometimes people obtain perceptions of charismatic leadership,
not from leader traits or behaviors, but rather from observing how others
act toward, and speak about their leader. That is, followers influence the
perceptions and beliefs of each other, and this we call social contagion.
Here, followers seek social identification by adopting the views and
beliefs of others, who represent a cause they personally believe in. The
others with whom they identify with on this larger cause, usually have a
symbolic leader. The leadership influence is much more based on the
followers' worship of the leader, than on anything the leader actually says
or does. Accordingly, the leaders' role is likely to be "fleeting" (of short
duration), as they are only a leader symbolically. With social contagion,
the qualities attributed to a leader may become highly exaggerated as
rumors and stories spread among people who have had no direct contact
with the leader. By the way, this is where "contagion" comes from.
Contagious means to "spread". Again, I don't spend much time on this,
because the influence on followers comes less from the leader, and more
from other followers.
Close and Distant Charisma. Do the attributions individuals
make of a leader differ based on whether they are in close or distal
contact with them? Followers with minimal contact with their leaders
tend to describe their charismatic leaders in terms of their achievements,
and their impact on their political attitudes. Followers with more
extensive contact with their leaders tended to describe their charismatic
leaders in terms of their influence on follower motivation, task behavior,
and identification with the leader. This suggests that attributions of
charisma for distant leader are affected more by performance cues and
shared stereotypes, whereas attributions of charisma for close leaders are
affected more by leader behavior and personal skills. However, these
findings are tentative, and more research is required to determine what
impact close versus distant contact with a leader has on subordinate
perceptions and attributions.
Routinization of Charisma. How do you make the impact of
charismatic leadership last, when the leader is suddenly no longer with
the organization (e.g. dies, moves on to work for another employer).
What can the organization do to protect itself and ensure some degree of

continuity in leadership effects? There are a number of things that can be

done. (1) succession planning. Groom a leader as a replacement and have
this person ready to take over at a moment's notice; (2) build an
administrative structure (procedures) that will sustain the influence of
charismatic leadership when the leader is not present; (3) embed the
leader's vision in the culture of the organization by internalizing it among
followers. That is, to create a powerful and lasting culture (e.g. as Jack
Welch at G.E. did).
CONSEQUENCES OF CHARISMATIC LEADERSHIP
Charismatic leadership can have both positive and negative
outcomes.
Positive and Negative Charismatics. Negative charismatics have
a personalized power orientation. They emphasize personal identification
over internalization. That is, they emphasize personal devotion to self
more than devotion to ideals. They seek to dominate and subjugate others
by keeping them dependent. Authority for important decisions is
centralized in the leader, rewards and punishments are used to manipulate
and control followers, and information is restricted and used to maintain
an image of leader infallibility (flawlessness), or to exaggerate
perceptions of external threats to followers. Decisions of these leaders
reflect a greater concern for self-glorification and maintaining personal
power than for the welfare of followers (sound like Sudam Hussein?).
Positive charismatics, however, emphasize socialized power. They stress
internalization of social values over personal identification. They want
devotion to the ideology rather than devotion to themselves. Authority is
largely delegated, information is shared openly, participation in decisions
encouraged, and rewards given for behaviors that advance the collective
mission and objectives.
The Dark Side of Charisma. There are some potential negative
consequences to charismatic leadership. Charismatics tend to make more
risky decisions, exposing the organization to greater risk of failure. While
optimism is important for charisma, over-optimism makes it difficult for
the leader to recognize flaws in the vision. The leader may develop a
sense of infallibility, ignoring objective indications that their vision may
be flawed or require revision. See Table 9-2 (pg. 252) for other potential
negative consequences of charismatic leadership.
Effects of Positive Charismatics. Positive charismatics tend to
create many more favorable and lasting outcomes for an organization

than do negative charismatics. This is because they have been successful

in getting others to internalize the mission, and empowered them to
achieve it. However, there can be some drawbacks (negatives). People
who are energized, and highly committed to the organizational cause,
may simply overwork themselves, to the detriment of their own health,
and to their family. The constant stress of a high-achievement work
environment, with much social and self-pressure for organizational
success can cause health problems (physical and mental) and family
problems.
Practical Implications for Organizations. Charismatic leadership
is not always required. It is most suitable when radical change in strategy
and culture is called for. Such need of radical change is not always
present. Also, research has shown that transformational leadership
processes (institutionalized within the organization) can bring about
significant change in strategy and culture, without the need for a specific
charismatic leader as such. Also, sometimes transformational leadership
can come from groups of individuals rather than from a single
charismatic leader.
TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERSHIP
The most popular theory of transformational leadership is the one
espoused by Bernard Bass. He distinguishes transformational leadership
from transactional leadership. The transformational leader motivates
followers by (a) making them more aware of the importance of task
outcomes: (2) inducing them to transcend their own self-interest for the
sake of the organization or team; and (3) activating their higher-order
needs. In contrast, transactional leadership involves an exchange process
that may result in follower compliance with leader requests, but is not
likely to create enthusiasm and commitment to task objectives. According
to Bass, effective leaders are both transactional and transformational
(they use a combination of both).
Leader Behaviors.
Transformational leadership involves the following types of
behaviors:
idealized influence. Behavior that arouses strong follower
emotions and identification with the leader

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intellectual stimulation. Behavior that increases follower

awareness of problems and gets followers to see problems from a
new perspective
individualized consideration. Providing support, encouragement
and coaching
inspirational motivation. Communicating an appealing vision and
modeling appropriate behavior.
Transactional leadership involves the following types of behavior.
Contingent reward. Clarifying the work required to obtain
rewards and use of incentives and contingent rewards to
motivate
Active management by exception. Looking for mistakes and
enforcing rules to avoid mistakes
Passive management by exception. Use of contingent
punishment and other corrective action in response to poor
performance.
Influence Processes. It is assumed that the effectiveness of
transactional
leadership comes from instrumental compliance (people comply because
they receive valued rewards in exchange), and that the process explaining
transformational leadership is internalization (linking of task objectives to
values and goals of the leader).
Facilitating Conditions. Transformational leadership (TL) is
considered to be effective for any situation and for all cultures. However,
the effects of TL may be greater in some situations than in others (e.g.
unstable environments, organic/flexible organizational structures,
entrepreneurial cultures).
Research on the Theory. Generally, research supports the theory.
In particular transformational leadership appears more related to
leadership effectiveness than does transactional leadership. Of the
transformational leadership dimensions, the ones most related to
leadership effectiveness are: charisma, intellectual stimulation, and
individualized consideration. Contingent reward, a dimension of

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transactional leadership, is also related to leadership effectiveness.

However, the effects seem to be stronger when leadership effectiveness is
measured as followers self-reports of effort than when measured with
more objective measures. Support for Bass's transformational leadership
theory has come from survey research, laboratory experiments, field
experiments, comparative studies and case studies. Examples of the type
of support coming from each type of study is provided in your text on
pages 255-260.
TRANSFORMATIONAL VERSUS CHARISMATIC LEADERSHIP
The essence of charismatic leadership lies in being perceived as
extraordinary by followers who are dependent on the leader for guidance
and inspiration. However, the essence of transformational leadership is to
inspire, develop and empower followers (encouraging independence from
the leader). Transformational leaders delegate authority, develop follower
skills and self-confidence, create self-managed teams, provide direct
access to sensitive information, eliminate unnecessary controls, and build
a strong culture for self-initiative. Charismatic leaders do more to nourish
an image of themselves among followers: an image of extraordinary
competence. This often involves impression management, information
restriction, unconventional behavior and risk taking.
Bass argues that transformational leaders can be found in any
organization at any level, and that this type of leadership is universally
important for all types of situations. In contrast, charismatic leaders are
rare, and their emergence is more dependent on favorable (facilitating)
conditions. The reactions of people to charismatic leaders are usually
more extreme and divided than is the case for transformational leaders.
Bass proposed that charisma is a necessary component of
transformational leadership, but also noted that a leader can be
charismatic but not transformational. A great question emerges here!
Contrast and compare transformational leadership to charismatic
leadership, and provide examples to illustrate their similarities and
differences.
EVALUATION OF THEORIES
The theories in this chapter have emphasized the importance of
follower emotion in leadership effectiveness. Theories of leadership
covered in earlier chapters emphasized rational-calculative aspects of
leader-follower interactions. The neocharismatic and transformational

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leadership theories also underscore the importance of leaders making

tasks and events meaningful
GUIDELINES FOR TRANSFORMATIONL LEADERSHIP

Articulate a clear and appealing vision!

Explain how the vision can be obtained!
Act confidently and optimistically!
Express confidence in followers!
Use dramatic, symbolic actions to emphasize key values!
Lead by example!
Empower people to achieve the vision!