Psychology of Leadership

First, we argue that leaders must be seen as “one of us.” That is, they have to be perceived by followers as representing the position that best distinguishes our in-group from other out-groups. Stated more formally, we suggest that, in order to be effective, a leader needs to be seen as an in-group prototype.

Second, we argue that leaders must be seen to “do it for us.” Their actions must advance the interests of the in-group. It is fatal for leaders to be seen to be feathering their own nests or, even worse, the nests of out-groups. For it is only where leaders are seen to promote the interests of the in-group that potential followers prove willing to throw their energies into the task of turning the leader’s vision into reality.

Third, we argue that leaders must “craft a sense of us.” What this means is that they don’t simply work within the constraints of the pre-existing identities that are handed down to them by others. Rather, they are actively involved in shaping the shared understanding of “who we are.” Much of their success lies in being able to represent themselves in terms that match the members’ understanding of their in-group. It lies in representing their projects and proposals as reflecting the norms, values, and priorities of the group. Good leaders need to be skilled entrepreneurs of identity.

Fourth, we argue that leaders must “make us matter.” The point of leadership is not simply to express what the group thinks. It is to take the ideas and values and priorities of the group and embed them in reality. What counts as success, then, will depend on how the group believes that reality should be constituted. But however its goals are defined, an effective leader will help the group realize those goals and thereby help create a world in which the group’s values are lived out and in which its potential is fulfilled.

In the book’s final chapter, we draw these various principles together to address a number of over-riding issues for the practice and theory of leadership. Most importantly perhaps, we clarify what a leader actually needs to do in order to be successful. Some readers—particularly practitioners and those at the more applied end of the leadership field—might ask why we take so long to get to what might be seen as the heart of the matter. Our response is that we feel that it is critical to provide a secure foundation before we set out to tell people what to do. We want to persuade the reader of the credibility and coherence of an “identity leadership” approach before we set out what “identity leadership” means in practice.


Contents
1 The old psychology of leadership: Great men and the cult of personality 1
Leadership in history: The “great man” and his charisma 2
The political decline of the “great man” approach: The impact of the “great dictators” 5
The standardization of leadership: Personality models and their failings 7
The biographical approach: Looking for the roots of greatness in personal histories 10
The theoretical deficiency of individualistic models 12
The political deficiency of individualistic models 14
The faulty definition of leadership 16
Conclusion: Five criteria for a useful psychology of leadership 17
2 The current psychology of leadership: Issues of context and contingency, transaction and transformation 21
The importance of context and contingency 22
The importance of followers 28
The importance of that “special something” 38
Conclusion: The need for a new psychology of leadership 42
3 Foundations for the new psychology of leadership: Social identity and self-categorization 45
Social identity and group behavior 46
Social identity and collective power 60
Defining social identities 64
Conclusion: Setting the agenda for a new psychology of leadership 73
4 Being one of us: Leaders as in-group prototypes 77
The importance of standing for the group 78
Prototypicality and leadership effectiveness 82