Leadership and Path Goal Theory

Running Head: Situational Approach and Path-Goal Theory

Situational Approach and Path-Goal Theory 4

What is a situational approach to leadership?

The situational approach, which Blanchard and Hersey developed, has the primary premise that varied situations require different leadership styles. According to Blanchard and Hersey, a situation refers to attitudes and values from which a group of people or individuals has to deal with the occurrences, planned occurrences, and the results embraced; That a tangible activity is the solution to a situation. However, situations are complex and have five elements (Thompson & Glasø 2018). The elements include:

· The features of a group

· Structure of the interpersonal links within the group.

· Physical challenges on the group

· The features of a group’s environment where members originate.

· The perceived representation among the group members and the group itself of values and attitudes engendered by them.

Therefore, the situational influences inhibit a leader who has to implement his leadership style to the situation at hand. According to Northouse, situational leadership contains both supportive and directive dynamics. For instance, a situationally motivated leader would realize that the motivation and skills of any member of the group are not static. A mix of leader’s directive and supportive activities must also change with the situation. An example of situational approaches is in a sports team that regularly changes because team members come and go; thus, the weaknesses and strengths of the whole team change too (Thompson & Glasø 2018).

What is a path-goal theory?

On the other hand, the Path-Goal theory is a model based on identifying a leader’s behavior or style that best suits a particular work environment or the employees to meet a specific target. The path-goal theory can be best illustrated as to how leaders choose particular behaviors that fit the employees’ work environment and their needs appropriately to guide the employees in their journey towards achieving their daily work targets (Bans-Akutey, 2021). This model aims to improve employees’ satisfaction, motivation, and empowerment to enable them to be more productive in the organization. The employee’s satisfaction is tagged on the leader’s performance as both the coach and the facilitator, rewarding the employees’ good performance. The path-goal theory model has four leadership behaviors: supportive, achievement-orient, participative, and directive. An example of a Path-Goal leader can be found in various levels of management like Steve Jobs has always been referred to as one of the Path-Goal leaders (Bans-Akutey, 2021).

Define, describe, and discuss three differences between the situational approach to leadership and the Path-Goal theory

Whereas situational leadership involves the attitudes or capabilities of the employees as well as the situation, the path-goal theory has four styles which have to do with the variances in the willingness of the employees, and the leadership style to be used in a specific situation has to rely on the follower’s maturity and readiness. Also, the path-goal theory’s primary focus is motivation and what is necessary for the followers to achieve their target goals (Bans-Akutey, 2021). At the same time, situational leadership is based on the maturity or readiness of the followers, that is, their potential. Moreover, according to situational leadership, leaders are influenced by factors such as employees’ confidence in their managers, influence and authority, and the nature of the work. In contrast, according to the path-goal theory, good leaders have to set goals and prepare a proper mechanism for the employees to meet such target goals. Subsequently, it is the responsibility of the leaders to avail incentives and support to the employees to meet target goals (Thompson & Glasø 2018).

Define, describe, and discuss three similarities between the situational approach to leadership and the Path-Goal theory.

Situational leadership views leadership as a dynamic role that has to adapt to the subordinate development stage. In the situational approach, flexible leadership styles include; supporting, directing, delegating, and coaching (Bans-Akutey, 2021). Equally, on the Path-Goal theory, a leader also has the responsibility to evaluate every individual situation and be adequately flexible in action to either be supportive, directive, or participative oriented in his/her leadership style relying on the primary requirements of their subordinates. Also, Both the situational and Path-Goal theories have direct and directive leadership approaches, respectively. Both approaches view those styles as a role where the leader has given a lot of direction, but with little emotional support given to the subordinate (Thompson & Glasø 2018). For example, in jobs like military and construction, one needs to observe directions and not as critical for the subordinate to receive emotional support. Another similarity in both approaches is the supportive leadership style. In supportive leadership, the leader is flexible and emotionally supportive about their directive conducts (Bans-Akutey, 2021). It establishes a more friendly environment where there is more interaction between the subordinate and the leader. The leaders under this style have a lot of respect for their subordinates and promote more feedback. For instance, at Google, leaders are many; however, the subordinates are trusted to take care of themselves and complete the tasks (Thompson & Glasø 2018).