Team and Tension
The major components of House's Path-Goal Theory are directive leaderships, supportive leadership, participative leadership, and achievement-oriented leadership. Each leadership style has its own unique attributes which correlate directly to an individual's personality traits. For instance, directive leaders tend to have a more authoritarian approach to leadership. They tend to establish working hierarchies of relationships and reporting structures. Directive leaders also tend to operate as a single leader with sole responsibility over a limited amount of resources. As such directive leaders are particularly effective in routine and repetitive environments that adhere to strict requirements. Manufacturing and retail management positions tend to be very effective positions for directive leaders. Directive leaders give subordinates instructions about their task, how it is to be performed, and the time frame in which it needs to be completed. There is often very little freedom in regards to how the task should be accomplished. Instead, there are often predetermined metrics and attributes which govern the particular job. For instance, in a fast food establishment, how long does it take for a drive through order to be completed? In many instances, the directive leader would set clear guidelines as to what constitutes an effective delivery time and what does not. In addition, a directive leader sets clear standards of performance and offers clarity on the rules and regulations. Supportive leaders are in many instances a direct opposite of a directive leader. They are friendly and approachable, attend to the well-being of subordinates, make work pleasant, and treat subordinates as equals. Supportive leaders are often present in industries which require large amounts of intellectual capital and are not routine in nature. Participative leaders invite subordinates to share decision-making, consult with them, obtain their ideas and opinions, and integrate their suggestions into the decision-making process. Achievement-oriented leaders challenge...
I tend to be relationship motivated as indicated by my high LPC score. According to the model I am also effective in moderately favorable situations. My Path-Goal Leadership style, I believe, is complimentary to Fiedler's LPC Measure result. According to the model, directive leadership behavior of subordinate characteristics is being dogmatic, authoritarian, and ambiguous. These concepts are direct fits with Fiedler's prescription of my personal leadership effectiveness. As such, I would thrive in work environments characterized by clear ideals of authority and responsibility. I would also be effective in environments which allow me to use my position power to elicit and direct action. Task will be clear, along with methods in which to achieve them.
Creative tension and emotional tension are often at odds with one another. Tension itself, is a needed element within the overall group dynamic. Tension however, when used inappropriately can often hinder group collaboration, synergy, and cohesion. As such, the clear delineation between creative tension and emotional tension is paramount to the overall vision of fosters a team vision. The group can first create creative tension when they clearly articulate their own vision and current reality. The group must then, in an honest fashion, make the gap between their vision current reality become clear and apparent. This appraisal is important as the group must clearly enumerate the differences between their objectives, and the group's current state of affairs. This method will ultimately create an emotional tension that seeks to be resolved. Fritz created this a tension-resolution system in the text. He even goes as far as to give the reader an example of stretching a rubber band. Fritz explains, as you stretch the rubber band,…
