Assessing Leadership Style: Trait Analysis

Profiling the Operational Codes of Political Leaders

reach that level are assigned higher or lower descriptors of utility.
Although this index can vary between o.o and i.o, it is relatively
unlikely with six categories that the upper boundary will be reached,
and so .32 is denned as the descriptor in the following scale for a
Very High proportion—twice the expected proportion when each
category is equally useful. The interpretation of the utility of means
scores can take two forms. They can be analyzed proportionately or
simply by their descriptors.
So, for example, a leader with percentage scores of Reward (.20) +
Promise (.17) + Appeal/Support (.34) + Oppose/Resist (.16) +
Threat (.06) + Punish (.07) = i.o believes the following about the
utility of means in his or her political universe. Appeals and expressions
of support (.34) are about twice as useful as statements of opposition/resis-
tance (.16) or promises (. i j), which are over twice as useful as threats (.06)
or punishments (.oj), and, finally, rewards (.20) are approximately three
times as useful as threats (.06) or punishments (.07). It is also possible to
make inferences from the descriptors rather than from the scores. A
leader with these scores believes that the comparative utility of appeal/support
statements is very high, the comparative utility of rewards is high, the com-
parative utility of promises and expressions of opposition/resistance is medium,
and the comparative utility of threats and punishments is low.
There are four indices that take into account the dispersion of verbs
across the six categories for the exercise of political power. Two are
the predictability of the political future and risk orientation. Both of
them employ a measure of dispersion, the Index of Qualitative Vari-
ation (IQV), which assesses the variation in the distribution of obser-

1-5- Utility of Means (very low/very high)

A. Cooperative Means Appeal/Support, Promise, Reward

UTILITY

Very Low

o.o

Low

.08

Medium

.16

B. Conflict Means Oppose/Resist,

UTILITY

Very Low

0.0

Low

.08

Medium

.16

High

•24

Threaten,

High

.24

UTILITY

Very High

.32

Punish

UTILITY

Very High

•32