Attribution Of Charisma Research Articles

The Backdrop of Leadership: How Environmental Awe Influences Charisma Attributions

ABSTRACTCharisma is often attributed to leaders based on how they look, talk, and behave. Yet very little is known about the role of the physical environment in influencing attributions of leader charisma. The role of the physical environment is crucial because leaders inevitably occupy physical spaces that vary across contexts. In this research, we find that the grandeur of the physical environment, specifically in its ability to induce awe, enhances attributions of charisma for leaders who are not already known to be charismatic. First, in a field experiment, we show that a real business leader is attributed with more charisma when delivering a speech in an awe‐inducing (vs. an ordinary) environment. In three follow‐up experiments, we find that awe‐inducing physical environments amplify charisma attributions and that this effect was diminished or absent for individuals already known for their charisma. Together, our findings contribute to the leadership literature by demonstrating the importance of the physical environment in influencing whether followers consider their leaders to be charismatic.

Romancing leadership: temporality and the myths of Vlad Dracula

ABSTRACT Leadership studies focus on processes of leader romanticization to explain the attribution of charisma and account for leaders’ personal power. Such research focuses on antecedents to leadership, stressing factors such as personal projections of dispositions, the specificity of context and situation or the leaders’ capacity for image management. These processes, important as they are, do not fully identify and articulate the inner workings of the processes whereby leaders and leadership are romanticized. We offer a view of leader romanticization as a complex and dynamic historical process in which active followers, according to their current identity projects, agendas and goals, continuously use embedded contextual cues to make sense of leaders while giving sense to leaders and other followers in historical cycles of sensemaking and sensegiving that unfold through temporal processes. Historically, this is how ‘great leaders’ are produced as lionized national exemplars able to be romanticized, demonized and fictionalized, sometimes simultaneously. We answer the question of ‘how leaders become romanticized as historical points of reference’? We do so through a historical analysis of how Vlad Dracula, the historical voivode, metamorphosed into the famous fictional vampire and a bulwark of a communist regime.

A follower-centric approach to the 2016 US presidential election: Candidate rhetoric and follower attributions of charisma and effectiveness

The 2016 US Presidential Campaign was followed worldwide due to the dynamic nature of the candidates and the controversy surrounding them. This study takes a unique look at the candidacy of Donald Trump through the eyes of his followers. Using both qualitative data collected from campaign speeches and quantitative data collected from followers, our study examines (1) the positive/negative valence of the rhetoric used by both presidential candidates and (2) the relationship between follower characteristics, perceived threat of social groups, and attributions of charisma and effectiveness to Donald Trump. The results of this study suggest that Trump’s rhetoric was significantly more negative, hostile, and aggressive than Clinton’s. In addition, quantitative analyses show a direct relationship between followers’ attitudes toward gender and attributions of charisma and effectiveness to Trump. Finally, followers’ perceived threat of social groups mediated relationships between follower self-esteem, romance of leadership, gender attitudes, and attributions of charisma and effectiveness to Trump. Our results shed further light on the important role that follower characteristics and perceptions play in predicting social constructions of leadership and attributions of charisma. Implications for both organizations and scholars of leadership are discussed.

Authentic Moral Leadership, Attributed Charisma, and Cynicism about Change in the Context of a Presidential Election: Understanding the Moderating Role of Crisis Perceptions

The current study examines authentic moral leadership in the setting of a U.S. presidential election, with the Democratic incumbent and Republican challenger in 2012. Pre and post-election data were collected yielding 432 matched responses. Perceptions of authentic moral leadership were positively related to attributions of charisma, with crisis perceptions having a moderating effect. Pre-election perceptions of the incumbent’s authentic moral leadership had a negative effect on cynicism about change, and a negative indirect effect on post-election cynicism about change, through pre-election attributions of charisma. The implications of the research for understanding authentic moral leadership and attributed charisma are discussed.

Did charisma “Trump” narcissism in 2016? Leader narcissism, attributed charisma, value congruence and voter choice

Grandiose narcissism has been associated with negative outcomes and research suggests its potential to predict positive and negative leadership behaviors. We examined perceived leader narcissism, attributed charisma, and voter choice in the context of the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Narcissism was found to be negatively related to attributions of charisma and voter choice, and had an indirect effect on voter choice through attributed charisma. Value congruence moderated the relationship between attributed charisma and voter choice. Our findings contribute to a better understanding of the mixed results in earlier research regarding the relationship between perceived leader narcissism and attributed charisma, and highlights attributed charisma as an intervening factor in understanding leader selection.

Feeling Vulnerable? Disclosure of Vulnerability in the Charismatic Leadership Relationship

The current conceptual paper explores the role of vulnerability in the charismatic leadership relationship. “Sharing vulnerability” is defined as communicating an experience to followers, in which the leader was hurt emotionally, physically, or spiritually. We argue that sharing vulnerability may be an important mechanism through which leaders develop relationships with their followers and increase attributions of charisma. We also note several likely preconditions for sharing vulnerability, including humility, self‐awareness, and the courage to acknowledge imperfections. Further, we highlight that when leaders disclose emotions, it creates opportunities for followers to connect with leaders at an emotional level. Followers, in turn, may perceive increased psychological safety, be more willing to trust the leader, and be more motivated to engage in building a more egalitarian leader–follower relationship. Therefore, we propose sharing vulnerability as a potential avenue for building more compassionate and caring leader–follower relationships.

The Leader-in-Social-Network Schema: Perceptions of Network Structure Affect Gendered Attributions of Charisma

Charisma is crucially important for a range of leadership outcomes. Charisma is also in the eye of the beholder—an attribute perceived by followers. Traditional leadership theory has tended to assume charismatic attributions flow to men rather than women. We challenge this assumption of an inevitable charismatic bias toward men leaders. We propose that gender-biased attributions about the charismatic leadership of men and women are facilitated by the operation of a leader-in-social-network schema. Attributions of charismatic leadership depend on the match between the gender of the leader and the perceived structure of the network. In three studies encompassing both experimental and survey data, we show that when team advice networks are perceived to be centralized around one or a few individuals, women leaders are seen as less charismatic than men leaders. However, when networks are perceived to be cohesive (many connections among individuals), it is men who suffer a charismatic leadership disadvantage relative to women. Perceptions of leadership depend not only on whether the leader is a man or a woman but also on the social network context in which the leader is embedded.

Leader and Follower PO Value Congruence and Charismatic Leadership

Drawing on the self-concept based motivational theory of charisma, we propose that leaders’ person-organization (PO) value congruence affects the attribution of charisma to these leaders and, in turn, leader charisma enhances follower value congruence. In two multi-source studies, we find that unit leaders higher on perceived PO value congruence were rated higher on charisma by their subordinates. In turn, these subordinates also show higher PO value congruence themselves. In addition, as expected the relationship of perceived charismatic leadership with follower organizational commitment was mediated by follower perceptions of PO value congruence. Finally, in line with theory emphasizing leadership as a sense-making process, charismatic leadership related positively with follower perceptions of PO value congruence even when actual PO value congruence was controlled for.

Audience perceptions of charismatic and non-charismatic oratory: The case of management gurus

The purpose of the paper is to investigate whether people consider someone a charismatic speaker because they are deploying the generic features commonly identified as being associated with charismatic oratory in the literature, or whether the attribution of charisma is informed by factors which vary across different settings. Video-taped extracts from speeches given by seven people widely regarded as influential thought leaders – Kenneth Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Daniel Goleman, Gary Hamel, Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Tom Peters and Peter Senge – were shown to different audiences. After viewing each extract they rated the extent to which they found the speaker charismatic or non-charismatic and why. In addition, the whole speeches and focal messages were content analysed for the presence a number of factors – delivery, rhetorical techniques, abstraction and inclusion – identified in the previous literature as underpinning charismatic oratory. When the speeches are taken as a whole the speakers rated as charismatic differed significantly from their non-charismatic counterparts only in terms of delivery. For focal sentences delivery remains significant but in addition the speakers rated as charismatic use a higher proportion of rhetorical techniques. This has important implications for theory and practice that are elaborated.

Leader Affective Displays and Attributions of Charisma: The Role of Arousal

Research suggests that leader displays of positive affect are conducive to attributions of charisma. We qualify and extend this conclusion by arguing that this mainly holds for displays of positive affect that are associated with high levels of arousal. Results of a scenario experiment and a survey support this hypothesis, and show that besides the transfer of positive feelings per se, it is the transfer of arousal that mediates the relationship between leader affective displays and attributions of charisma.

Relational ties that bind: Leader–follower relationship dimensions and charismatic attribution

Recent research on charismatic leadership has focused on the relationship between the leader and follower. Thus far though, researchers have simply assumed the existence of the relationship or distinguished between strong and weak relationships between the leader and the followers. What have been overlooked are the underlying dimensions of the relationship that may influence a charismatic attribution. The current study identifies two relational qualities and tests the relationship of these dimensions with the perception of charisma in a sample of Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) and their top management team (TMT) members. Results indicate that a constructive relationship is positively related to the attribution of charisma, while a competitive relationship has a negative relationship with the charismatic attribution. Implications and future directions for the study of charismatic leadership from a relational perspective are discussed.

Psychopathologies and the Attribution of Charisma: A Critical Introduction to the Psychology of Charisma and the Explanation of Violence in New Religious Movements

ABSTRACT: Charismatic authority is widely held to be a defining mark of new religious movements (NRMs). It is also thought to play a crucial role in the onset of violence in some NRMs. We have begun to understand both the psychological and the social structural dynamices of this mode of leadership and how, under specific social conditions, it contributes to a dangerous cycle of deviance amplification. This paper presents a synthetic and critical analysis of several different theories of the charismatic bond. The central concern is why people attribute charisma to some leaders, and hence grant them special authority over their lives. The theories examined help to explain why charismatic relationships form, but they do not allow us to differentiate sufficiently between benign and potentially dangerous types of charismatic bonds, let alone how one may become the other. Scholars of NRMs need to take a closer look at the observable social psychological processes that prompt the attribution of charisma to a leader. A better grasp of these processes, it is argued, would help us understand how the mismanagement of charismatic authority has led some religious groups to see violence as an appropriate response to their concerns.

A special gift we bestow on you for being representative of us: Considering leader charisma from a self‐categorization perspective

Two experiments tested hypotheses, derived from social identity and self-categorization theories, regarding the attribution of charisma to leaders. In Experiment 1 (N=203), in-group prototypical leaders were attributed greater levels of charisma and were perceived to be more persuasive than in-group non-prototypical leaders. In Experiment 2 (N=220), leaders described with in-group stereotypical characteristics were attributed relatively high levels of charisma regardless of their group-oriented versus exchange rhetoric. Leaders described with out-group stereotypical characteristics, however, had to employ group-oriented rhetoric to be attributed relatively high levels of charisma. We conclude that leadership emerges from being representative of 'us'; charisma may, indeed, be a special gift, but it is one bestowed on group members by group members for being representative of, rather than distinct from, the group itself.

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-face interaction. The second exception concerns attributions of charisma: For leaders who present themselves skilfully and strategically in CMC, followers' impressions are hypothesised to become accentuated or ‘hypercharismatic’. The above effects are all hypothesised to occur under conditions of high salience of the personal identities of both leader and follower. If, however, the leader and follower belong to the same salient and positively evaluated group, the effects of CMC are hypothesised to be positive. These effects are a direct result of integrating the SIDE-theory of computer-mediated communication and Hogg's social identity theory of leadership.

Cross-cultural variations in leadership perceptions and attribution of charisma to the leader

Leadership perception is based on (a) a recognition-based process that involves categorization of leaders’ characteristics into relevant stereotypes; and (b) an inference-based process that involves making attributions for leaders’ characteristics based on outcomes of salient events ( Lord & Maher, 1993). The present study examined the interactive effects of these two alternative processes of leadership perceptions on attributions of charisma cross-culturally. Groups of participants from either a collectivistic culture (Turkey) or an individualistic culture (United States) read a vignette about a prototypical or antiprototypical leader (manipulation of recognition-based process) whose company produced a slight or significant increase in sales (manipulation of inference-based process). The results showed that the co-occurrence of these two processes produced optimal attribution of charisma to the leader. In addition, the leaders’ prototypical characteristics were more effective in forming a leadership impression in an individualistic culture, whereas collectivistic people made attributions based on the company performance outcome.

Magic, Meaning and Leadership: Weber’s Model and the Empirical Literature

Weber’s (1946) model of charismatic leadership offers a framework within which more recent theories and findings can be shown to have a place. The process he described begins as a challenge to an existing status quo and paves the way for another. The charismatic leader elicits a willing response from followers, who begin in the faith that they are pursuing purposes greater than their own but lay the foundations of a new status quo when they seek to legitimate their positions of power. Empirical theories and findings elucidate the stages of this process. The initial status quo, leader dependence upon the support of followers, attributions of charisma and the importance of follower feelings have been described under the headings of substitutes for leadership, leader traits and behavior, implicit leadership and transformational leadership. Leader-member exchange (LMX) and strategic contingencies theory describes the appearance of an administrative staff and tendencies toward a new status quo. Descriptions of organizational development bear similarities to Weber’s model and suggest opportunities for empirical research.

Facundo and Chacho in Songs and Stories: Oral Culture and the Representations of Caudillos in the Nineteenth-Century Argentine Interior

Facundo and Chacho in Songs and Stories: Oral Culture and the Representations of Caudillos in the Nineteenth-Century Argentine Interior

Culture and Charisma: Outline of a Theory

From the work of Weber onwards charisma has been primarily explained in terms of its relationship to underlying social structural and psychological environments. The paper redresses this imbalance and examines the cultural structures that operate as preconditions for the attribution of charisma to political and religious leaders. Drawing on Weberian, Durkheimian and semiotic theory the paper argues that charisma arises in conjunction with salvation narratives. The internal structure of these narratives requires binary oppositions contrasting good and evil. The model is exemplified with reference to case studies of Hitter, Churchill and Martin Luther King.

Charismatic leadership and organizational hierarchy: Attribution of charisma to close and distant leaders

This study examined the attribution of charisma to socially close and distant leaders. Respondents were 554 Israeli combat soldiers who completed five questionnaires describing their perceptions of either their platoon commander or their battalion commander. The results showed that the attribution of charisma to socially close leaders is related to the ascription of extraordinary traits to the leader and to the perception both of the leader as a behavioral model and of his confidence in the individual. The attribution of charisma to distant leaders was related to a willingness to accept the leader's ideas, the perceived confidence of the leader in the group, the ascription of extraordinary traits to the leader, and a general positive impression of the leader. The results are discussed with regard to the influence of situational variables on the attribution of leadership qualities.

The charismatic appeal of a transformational leader: An empirical case study of a small, high-technology contractor

The association among transformational and transactional leadership behaviors, generalized beliefs about leadership, and self-reports of extra effort were examined in a corporation that experienced a turnaround in financial performance under a new general manager. Generalized beliefs about leadership and charisma were each significantly related to many transactional behaviors measured in the Leader Behavior Description Questionnaire—Form XII. Nevertheless, charisma was significantly related to self-reports of extra effort, after controlling for its association to these other transactional measures of leadership. These results imply that transactional behaviors may contribute to the emergence of charisma in smaller organizations where employees have more direct interactions with their top manager. Moreover, our evidence further reinforces that an attribution of charisma, as opposed to transactional behaviors, may be needed to sustain expenditures of extra effort.