What type of leadership behaviors are functional in teams? A meta-analysis

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Abstract

Despite the increased work on leadership in teams, there is a lack of integration concerning the relationship between leader behaviors and team performance outcomes. A framework depicting the relationship between leadership functions, specific leadership behaviors, and conditions which enable team performance was created. Using this framework, a meta-analysis was conducted to examine the relationship between leadership behavior in teams and behaviorally-based team performance outcomes. Results suggest the use of task-focused behaviors is moderately related to perceived team effectiveness and team productivity (.333, .203). Person-focused behaviors were related to perceived team effectiveness (.360), team productivity (.284), and team learning (.560). Sub-group analyses indicated that the specific leadership behaviors investigated were generally related to team performance outcomes. Most notably, empowerment behaviors accounted for nearly 30% of the variance in team learning. Finally, moderator analyses investigating the level of task interdependence were conducted. Study limitations, practical implications, and directions for research are also outlined.

Section snippets

Team leadership

Many of the researchers who are investigating leadership in teams do so from a functional approach where “[the leader's] main job is to do, or get done, whatever is not being adequately handled for group needs” (McGrath, 1962, as cited in Hackman & Walton, 1986, p. 5). Within this approach the leader is effective to the degree that he/she ensures that all functions critical to task and team maintenance are completed. While it is not necessary that the leadership functions be accomplished by a

Leadership behavior in teams

Leadership research from the behavioral perspective has flourished. In fact, one review identified 65 classification systems of leader behavior proposed between 1940 and 1986 (Fleishman et al., 1991). Fleishman and colleagues noted that a common theme within nearly every identified classification system was a trend for behaviors to be broken into one of two categories: those dealing with task accomplishment [i.e., task-focused] and behaviors which facilitate team interaction and/or development

Identification and selection of studies

A number of approaches were used to identify studies for inclusion in this meta-analysis. First, electronic searches of computerized databases were conducted using the key words team leadership, group leadership, team leaders, and group leaders. The electronic databases ScienceDirect, EBSCOhost, Academic Search Premier, Business Source Premier, PsycARTICLES, and PsycINFO were searched for studies published between 1900 and August of 2004. Second, back-tracing was conducted through the

Main analyses

Table 3 contains a summary of the results of all the main analyses (i.e., effect sizes, upper and lower 95% confidence interval limits, and total sample size), which estimate the validity of task- and person-focused leadership behaviors on perceptions of team effectiveness, team productivity, and team learning. The first set of analyses investigated the relationship between task-focused leadership behaviors and the following team performance outcomes: perceived team effectiveness, team

Discussion

The primary agenda driving this effort was to determine the relationship between leadership behaviors and behaviorally-based team performance outcomes. The meta-analytic results from this initiative suggest that both task- and person-focused leadership behaviors explain a significant amount of variance in team performance outcomes. Specifically, task-focused leadership behaviors within teams was found to explain 11% of the variance in perceived team effectiveness and 4% of the variance in team

Conclusion

This meta-analysis began with a single question, ‘Does leadership behavior in teams matter?’ Although simple, this sublime question has far reaching implications for the articulation of leadership theory and the application of leadership in organizations. The sum of the evidence presented herein suggests a resounding yes; leadership in teams does matter when seeking to achieve team performance outcomes. Moreover, results suggest both task- and person-focused leadership are correlates of team

Acknowledgement

The views, opinions, and findings contained in this paper are those of the authors and should not be construed as an official Department of the Army position, policy, or decision. This work was supported by funding from the U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences (Contract #W74V8H-04-C-0025). We would also like to thank Robert G. Lord for his insightful comments on an earlier version of this work. Portions of this paper were presented at the 20th Annual Conference of

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    References marked with an asterisk indicate studies included in the meta-analysis.

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