Zeitschrift für Personalforschung

Advanced Research in the Field of Transformational Leadership**

The model of transformational leadership, proposed by Bass (1985), has been widely used in the United States in applied research as well as in practice for more than twenty years. In Germany, as well, this approach has received increasing attention since the late nineties. This article aims to offer a rough introduction to the model proposed by Bass and to provide a general survey on recent German research dealing with this paradigm. First of all, the transferability of the concept to Germany...

Computer-Mediated Leadership: Deficits, Hypercharisma, and the Hidden Power of Social Identity**

This paper sketches a theory of computer-mediated leadership, drawing on research on computer-mediated communication (CMC) and leadership. The forecast it makes for computer-mediated forms of leadership is mixed. Leadership interactions that focus on the personal and dyadic level are predicted to be deficient under conditions of CMC as compared with face-to-face interaction. Two notable exceptions are identified. If message or task equivocality is low, CMC can be more efficient than face-to-f...

Methodological Challenges and Solutions for Leadership Researchers**

Leadership scholars are faced with pressing methodological issues that challenge our current scholarship. In this paper, methodological concerns such as multi-level hypothesis testing, construct validity of group-level scales, sampling countries in cross-cultural research, self-report measurement are discussed - issues that are endemic to organisational leadership research. This paper points out the methodological challenges facing modern leadership researchers, and points to possible solutio...

New Perspectives On Leadership Research**

Nonverbal Elements of Leadership Behaviour**

This paper investigates the importance of nonverbal behaviour in the context of leadership. Research on the decoding of social interactions has shown that the quality or type of relationship as well as relationally relevant emotional states are transmitted nonverbally. With this in mind, we review the existing literature on nonverbal leadership behaviour, such as research on Pygmalion leadership or political leadership. The nonverbal behaviours examined in these research areas show remarkable...

Leadership by Customers? New Roles of Service Companies' Customers**

This paper brings together two worlds that are usually strictly separated in research: leadership and customers. Until now leadership research has concentrated particularly on internal organizational processes, whereas customers were analyzed preferably in the context of marketing and service management. Research shows that the range of roles and functions of customers as key company stakeholders has changed dramatically in the last few years. Especially in service companies, customers (and c...

The Future of Leadership Research: Challenges and Opportunities**

For over a half century, leadership researchers have attempted to identify the aspects of leadership that improve organizational performance, yet the answer is still elusive. This commentary discusses several reasons for the slow progress. There is a lack of collaborative effort between academics and practitioners, and the leadership theory and research has lacked adequate emphasis on strategic issues, explanatory processes, and the moderating effects of the situation. These shortcomings and ...