Psychodynamic leadership theory. The Psychodynamic Approach to Leadership 2022-12-24
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Psychodynamic leadership theory is a leadership approach that is based on the principles of psychoanalytic theory. This approach focuses on the psychological dynamics and unconscious processes that take place within the leader and the team they are leading. Psychoanalytic theory was developed by Sigmund Freud and suggests that much of our behavior is motivated by unconscious desires, conflicts, and memories.
According to psychodynamic leadership theory, leaders have a significant impact on the psychological functioning and behavior of their team members. This is because leaders play a central role in creating the emotional climate of the group, and their behavior and attitudes can either facilitate or hinder the psychological development of team members.
One of the key concepts in psychodynamic leadership theory is the idea of the leader's self-awareness. A self-aware leader is able to recognize and understand their own unconscious desires and conflicts, and how these may influence their leadership style and decision-making. They are also able to recognize and understand the unconscious desires and conflicts of team members, and use this insight to create a more positive and productive team environment.
Another key concept in psychodynamic leadership theory is the idea of transference. Transference refers to the process by which people project their unconscious feelings and conflicts onto others, often in the form of positive or negative reactions. For example, a team member may transfer their feelings of admiration or hostility onto the leader, depending on the leader's behavior and the team member's unconscious conflicts. A leader who is aware of transference can use this knowledge to better understand and manage the dynamics within the team.
Psychodynamic leadership theory also emphasizes the importance of the leader's own psychological development. A leader who is able to recognize and work through their own unconscious conflicts and desires is better able to create a positive and productive team environment. This is because they are able to provide a stable and consistent leadership style, and are less likely to be swayed by their own unconscious motivations.
Overall, psychodynamic leadership theory suggests that leaders play a significant role in the psychological functioning and behavior of their team members. By developing self-awareness, recognizing and managing transference, and focusing on their own psychological development, leaders can create a positive and productive team environment and facilitate the psychological development of their team members.
Psychodynamic approach to leadership
There is the problem of measuring traits also. Beyond identifying areas of strength and weakness, an organizational analysis can help your company find innovative solutions, like new ways to structure incentives so employees are more motivated and productive. This seems to be some justification regarding the followers as the most crucial factor in a leadership event. The Psychodynamic Approach focuses upon the role that internal processes and past experience have in shaping a persons personality. Driven by a philosophy that you can never give up on a child, Edith Robinson Christian Academy staff actively seeks out youth who have been thrown out of school, are unable to reach their full potential in a traditional school or are barred from other programs.
Henry Fayol divided these qualities into physical, mental, moral, educational and technical and experience Ordway Tead has given a list of ten qualities: i Physical and nervous energy; ii A sense of purpose and direction; iii Enthusiasm; iv Friendliness and affection; v Integrity; vi Technical mastery; vii Decisiveness; viii Intelligence; ix Teaching skill; and x Faith. There are many types of leaders in our working world today, and most leadership starts from the top, and trickles its way down. This approach makes no assumptions about personality characteristics or styles. The theory states that a leader has superior personal traits as compared to his followers. According to this theory the essence of leadership is followership and it is the willingness of people to follow that makes a person a leader.
As you note, the relationship between leader and follower is significant. Why are some people elected as managers and presidents while the rest remain followers? Leadership: Theory and practice 7th ed. Trait Theory: It attempts to discover the traits shared by all effective leaders. Organizational leaders can learn a lot by listening to issues or concerns before they become formal grievances or create internal conflict. Psychodynamic theory is also criticized for being unscientific and unfalsifiable—it is impossible to prove the theory to be false. It emphasizes what a person is in terms of personality traits.
Psychodynamic Approach to Leadership: How My Leader Could Benefit
Nevertheless, this approach to leadership offers some basis for developing leaders. This approach results in low absenteeism and labour turnover rate, high job satisfaction, high morale and high contribution to productivity. Decisiveness means that when others may be perplexed, a leader can calmly assess the situation and choose one action to unite everyone. If a leader is successful in leading his group, satisfying them and moving them; he will be assumed to be a good leader. Personality characteristics refer to intelligence, dominance, confidence etc. Situational or Contingency Theories: No common set of traits and behaviour can be identified with successful leadership. The theory believes that it is the situation which develops a leadership and from which a leader emerges.
He observed that a leader is good looking with physical disposition, less selfish, less emotional and more courageous. Therefore, the more leaders know about motivation, satisfaction, and performance, the more likely they will be successful… Theories Of Leadership Behavior As a result of early criticisms of the leadership trait approach, theorists started to research leadership as a set of behaviors. The children were given the job of mask making and other similar tasks. The ideal style of leadership, according to this approach is 9, 9 and training programmes should be conducted to help managers adopt this style of leadership. The one bit I remember reading about in prior coursework and in this class as well, but neglected to comment on myself, in my blog, is the element of family origin and how that can influence and shape a leader or follower. Organizational Leadership These styles are similar in that they both promote transparency in leadership, but Adaptive Leadership vs.
The specific path is commonly avoided by other leadership styles. But the trait theory has many shortcomings and has been generally criticized on the following grounds: i Various studies prove that the trait theory cannot hold good for all sets of circumstances. Under supportive leadership, the leader is friendly and approachable and shows concern for the followers. Robins, and Lawrence A. These leaders encourage participation and contributions from group members and help group members feel more relevant and committed to the decision-making process. Theories of Leadership — 5 Approaches Leadership is the process of influencing the behaviour and activities of an individual or group for achieving common goals.
By becoming more aware of their personality characteristics, they can then understand how they respond to the leader and to each other. Participative Theories Participative leadership theories suggest that the ideal leadership style is one that takes the input of others into account. The psychodynamic approach states that there should be a balance of social, psychological and emotional processes in an effective leader-follower relationship Northouse, 2016 and I fear those are not being considering by my current supervisor. The participative style is suitable only in following situations: a Subordinates are experienced and have full knowledge. Gouldner i Trait studies describe, but do not analyze, behaviour patterns.
Psychodynamic approach to leadership northouse Free Essays
If one set of traits or behaviour is suitable in one situation, another set of traits or behaviour may be suitable for another situation. Psychodynamic Theory: Approaches and Proponents. I can now put the frustrations of the longer-term employees into theoretical research terms and concepts and say that the value of the follower was not appreciated for having more knowledge than the leader. According to Northhouse, a good leader must be aware of their personality and accept their personality completely. Origins Between the late 1890s and the 1930s, The Interpretation of Dreams. The purpose of vision is to unite your organization and employees around a collective idea of the future.
Leadership and Applying the Psychodynamic Approach to Enhance the Leader/Follower Relationship
It emphasizes the relationship between leader and follower by focusing on the underlying drivers of each and what accounts for the type of relationship between them. According to this theory, there are certain personal qualities and traits which are essential to be a successful leader. The advocates of this theory are of the opinion that persons who are leaders are psychologically better adjusted to display better judgment and to engage themselves in social activities. The most systematic research studies in the direction were conducted in USA at Ohio State University and University of Michigan. As the subordinate maturity increases, leadership should be more relationship-motivated than task motivated. The Psychodynamic Approach Assumptions Our behaviour and feelings are powerfully affected by unconscious problems The causes of these emotional problems can usually be traced back to early childhood. What are fantasies, projections, and identifications, and how do they express themselves in organizational life? They are not very personable people and tend to be domineering when in a position of leadership.
