Abstract
PurposeThis paper aims at examining the prospects and possibilities of autoethnography in trust research. The focus of this study is on trust-building in a management team from an esthetic leadership perspective. The empirical context of the study is the organization of higher education during a funding reform.Design/methodology/approachThis study adopted a qualitative research strategy with co-produced autoethnographic methods. The data comprised the researcher's diary, field notes and written texts from informants. Autoethnographic methods were applied in data gathering; more precisely, the data were collected by the moving observing method of shadowing and complemented with the management team's written texts reporting their feelings. The data were analyzed by constructing autoethnographic vignettes and a critical frame story.FindingsThe findings of the study contribute to the methodological discussion of autoethnographic research when studying a complex phenomenon such as trust-building. The findings suggest that the role of authenticity in trust-building may vary depending on the esthetic leadership style. Furthermore, the findings contribute to the esthetic leadership theory by a proposal of esthetic reassurance as intentional leader-embodied communication aiming to reinforce follower trust in a leader.Originality/valueCo-produced autoethnography is applied in studying trust-building. Furthermore, this paper provides an inside view of the meaning of esthetics in leader-follower relationships in higher education organizations.
Highlights
The purpose of this paper is to explore the use of the method of co-produced autoethnography in organizational trust research and further, examine leader-embodied trust-building within a management team during difficult financial times
To encapsulate our theoretical contribution to trust within leadership, trust-building is an essential skill for leaders and while the esthetic side of leadership is studied in the current paper, we focus on the esthetic, “sensory experience” of trust-building occurring in interaction within relationships
Formation of esthetic leadership As discussed in previous chapters trust is seen as an uneven and fluid process (Wright and Ehnert, 2010), impressionistic trust may appear even though relationships mature with the frequency and duration of the interaction. Adopting these definitions of trust, we suggest that studying trust building within the esthetics of leadership contributes to the deeper understanding of the formation of esthetic leadership as well as of the role of leader authenticity in trust-building through esthetic leadership
Summary
The purpose of this paper is to explore the use of the method of co-produced autoethnography in organizational trust research and further, examine leader-embodied trust-building within a management team during difficult financial times. When a person is likely to sense that their feeling of safety is somehow threatened, e.g. when the employing organization that they depend on is undergoing a crisis, they are likely to engage in controlling and defensive behavior (McAllister, 1995; Zand, 1972). The flow of both positive and negative emotions among the people involved in a trust relationship is fueled by organizational engagement practices If the untrusting nature and atmosphere of an organizational crisis appear as controlling and monitoring behavior on the part of the leader, it may engage the followers in
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