4 EVOLUTION OF LEADERSHIP THEORY
4.1 INTRODUCTION
A major problem in research and theory on effective leadership has been the lack of agreement about
which behavior categories are relevant (Yukl, 2002). Traditional leadership theory is characterized by
a highly reductionistic approach of cutting the leadership phenomenon into ever smaller and more
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result, there has been a bewildering proliferation of taxonomies on leader behavior (Bass, 1990a;
Yukl, 2002) and it is very difficult to compare and integrate results from studies that use different sets
of behavioral categories. This chapter reviews the evolution of leadership theory, starting with the
classic leadership theories (section 4.2), moving on to new leadership theories (section 4.3) and
concluding with contemporary leadership theories (section 4.4), to get a good grasp of the state of the
art in leadership research, which this dissertation aims to contribute to.
4.2 CLASSIC LEADERSHIP THEORIES
4.2.1 TRAIT THEORIES
Systematic leadership research started in the early 1930s with a focus on the search for individual
characteristics that universally differentiate leaders from non-leaders (House & Aditya, 1997).
Leaders were identified as managers in positions of authority. A large number of personal
characteristics were investigated, such as gender, height, physical energy and appearance as well as
psychological traits and motives such as authoritarianism, intelligence, need for achievement, and
need for power. The dominant part of this literature was published between 1930 and 1950 (House &
Aditya, 1997). Despite considerable efforts, no universal leader characteristics could be identified. It
appeared to researchers at the time that there were few, if any, universal traits associated with
effective leadership. ³Consequently, a near consensus developed among the community of leadership
researchers that the search for universal leadership traits was futile ́(House & Aditya, 1997, p.410).
4.2.2 BEHAVIORAL THEORIES
Following the disenchantment with traits, a period of almost thirty years ensued during which leaders
were studied either by observing their behavior in laboratory settings or by asking individuals in field
settings to describe the behavior of individuals in positions of authority. This stream of research
concentrated on the different dimensions of leader behavior. Which meaningful categories or factors
could be used to describe differences in leader behavior? Three influential groups of investigators
pursued the quest for leadership dimensions in this manner. These were Robert Bales and his