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Let's think about successful leaders worldwide. Do you believe that they all share some traits in common? Are there specific traits that can determine one's capability of becoming a great leader? If your answer is "yes," the long-standing Trait Theory of Leadership can profoundly explain your choice!
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Sign up for freeAccording to Carlyle, extraordinary leaders were born, not made.
The Trait Theory of Leadership consists of theories that consider ____ qualities and ____ that differentiate leaders from non-leaders.
According to the Big Five Framework, what is the most predictive trait of effective leadership in one's personality?
Can the conscientiousness aspects predict one's ability to lead?
Does the Trait Theory of Leadership admit the fact that leaders are distinctive?
Does the Trait Theory of Leadership confirm that only inherent traits can make effective leaders?
[Fill in the Blank]The Trait Theory of Leadership has an ____ list of leadership characteristics.
The theory is weak in demonstrating the effects of leaders' traits on ____ outcomes within organizations.
Most characteristics of the Trait Theory of Leadership belong to ____ psychological structures
A prominent criticism of the Trait Theory of Leadership is that the theory can only predict the ____ of leaders.
Are extroverts always effective leaders?
According to Carlyle, extraordinary leaders were born, not made.
The Trait Theory of Leadership consists of theories that consider ____ qualities and ____ that differentiate leaders from non-leaders.
According to the Big Five Framework, what is the most predictive trait of effective leadership in one's personality?
Can the conscientiousness aspects predict one's ability to lead?
Does the Trait Theory of Leadership admit the fact that leaders are distinctive?
Does the Trait Theory of Leadership confirm that only inherent traits can make effective leaders?
[Fill in the Blank]The Trait Theory of Leadership has an ____ list of leadership characteristics.
The theory is weak in demonstrating the effects of leaders' traits on ____ outcomes within organizations.
Most characteristics of the Trait Theory of Leadership belong to ____ psychological structures
A prominent criticism of the Trait Theory of Leadership is that the theory can only predict the ____ of leaders.
Are extroverts always effective leaders?
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Team Trait Theory of Leadership Teachers
The trait theory of leadership builds from Thomas Carlyle's profound work, The Great Man Theory of Leadership, published in the 1800s.
Leaders are born with certain traits, making them great men destined for leadership.1
- The Great Man Theory
Accordingly, Carlyle hypothesized that extraordinary leaders were born, not made.1 Thus, the ability to lead, or leadership, is something an ordinary individual could hardly learn to master.
Since then, early leadership researchers have started to explore the relationship between individuals' inherent traits and these traits' impacts on individuals' leadership skills. Yet, contenders have argued that there are other factors beyond inheritable traits accountable to successful leadership. Altogether, they have joined under the big umbrella of the trait theory of leadership over the decades.
The trait theory of leadership explores unique qualities and characteristics that can differentiate leaders from non-leaders.
Researchers have long studied the typical characteristics of effective leaders that can most accurately predict an individual's leadership potential. Accordingly, there are eight main characteristics of individuals that, according to the current body of research regarding the trait theory of leadership, can most precisely indicate an individual's ability to lead effectively.
Extraverted personality - The Big Five framework has stated extraversion as the most predictive trait of effective leadership. Extraverts are often regarded as leaders, given their dominant sociable characteristics.
Conscientiousness and openness to experience - Effective leaders are open-minded and conscientious about new experiences and ideas. Based on Fortune 500 organizations, a study suggests that conscientious aspects, including achievement striving or dutifulness, can be attributed to potential leader effectiveness.4
High responsibility - Successful leaders are also autonomously responsible for their own decisions and the decisions of their followers without any excuse and at any cost.
Goal-oriented Thinking - Leaders always take actions with predetermined and clear goals. Generally, the objectives are long-term and beneficial for the entire group.
Task Competency and Efficiency - Leaders are expected to understand a wide range of specializations. Further, they constantly seek chances to maintain their competency at work as an example for their subordinates within the organizations.
Great Empathy - Effective leaders also possess high levels of empathy for their subordinates. They are willing to assist each member in growing as an individual, as they understand that individual growth is essential to long-term organizational growth.
Communication and Charm - Effective leaders can communicate plans and ideas to their subordinates. Plus, they are highly convincing in explaining complicated concepts in easy-to-understand words and in a charismatic manner.
Achievement Striving - Successful leaders also ambitiously thrive towards constant achievement and success. They highly desire both personal success and team success.
Are you curious to learn about real-life case analyses of the trait theory of leadership? In the next section, we will introduce some prominent leaders and their distinctive characteristics based on the trait theory of leadership.
I am your servant. I do not come to you as a leader, as one above others.2
- Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela, the famous political prisoner and the former President of South Africa, has inspired the world with his leadership journey. In Nelson Mandela, there is a clear presence of great empathy toward his people. He treats others with authentic leadership from his conscientiousness, compassion, and great emotional intelligence.
You have probably heard of Bill Gates, the legendary founder of Microsoft. According to subordinates who have attended Bill Gates's meetings, he tended to question and challenge assumptions.3 Further, he is constantly searching for creativity and innovation while encouraging his employees to thrive forward to the unknown. Thus, a strong openness to experience is clear in Bill Gates's characteristics. Besides, Bill Gates demonstrates an achievement-striving characteristic in which he continuously seeks self-improvement and empowers others to do so.
As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.3
- Bill Gates
Fig. 2 - Effective leaders inspire others
As a coin always has two sides, there are also advantages and disadvantages associated with the trait theory of leadership.
There are three meaningful ways in which the trait theory of leadership has contributed to leadership knowledge.
However, the trait theory of leadership also has some limitations, among which the following five disadvantages are the most significant.
The trait theory of leadership has an indefinite list of leadership characteristics subject to constant changes in sociocultural contexts.
While the trait theory of leadership can predict individuals' potential leadership excellence, the theory disregards the role of situations and contexts in predicting effective leaders.
Although the trait theory of leadership is logical in connecting individuals' traits and their leadership potential, it is weak in demonstrating the effects of leaders' traits on the groups' outcomes within organizations.
Most characteristics of the trait theory of leadership belong to fixed psychological structures. Therefore, when it comes to leadership training and teaching, an understanding of the characteristics of influential leaders still cannot help managers positively impact their individual psychology.
A prominent criticism of the trait theory of leadership is that the theory can only predict leaders' emergence, not leaders' effectiveness. For instance, even when an individual demonstrates a leadership trait and others consider that person a potential leader, this does not guarantee their effectiveness and efficiency. Critics urge for further answers to questions including 'Do different types of leader behaviors yield the same level of effectiveness?' or 'What have successful leaders done that proves their effectiveness?'.
Why are extroverts sometimes not the signal of effective leaders?
Looking back at the extraversion characteristic of the trait theory of leadership, extroverts are not always effective leaders in certain situations. For example, extroverts are chosen to be leaders in group work due to their dominant and bold characteristics. Yet, effective leaders are not always domineering in nature. Likewise, extroverts tend to lead well in teams of passive employees rather than proactive ones. Thus, the odds are that extroverts are selected as leaders only due to unique facets of specific characteristics and situations.
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What is trait theory in leadership examples?
The examples range widely through famous leaders such as Bill Gates, Nelson Mandela, Steve Jobs, etc.
What is the concept of trait theory?
The trait theory of leadership explores unique qualities and characteristics that can differentiate leaders from non-leaders.
Why is trait theory important?
It helps determine common traits of effective leaders and predict individuals' leadership success.
Who introduced trait theory of leadership?
The trait theory of leadership builds off from The Great Man Theory of Thomas Carlyle.
What are the strengths of trait theory?
The strengths of trait theory are as follows:
What are the 7 leadership traits?
There are eight main characteristics of the trait theory of leadership: extraversion personality, conscientiousness and openness to experience, high responsibility, goal-oriented thinking, task competency and efficiency, great empathy, communication and charm, and achievement striving.
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Gabriel Freitas is an AI Engineer with a solid experience in software development, machine learning algorithms, and generative AI, including large language models’ (LLMs) applications. Graduated in Electrical Engineering at the University of São Paulo, he is currently pursuing an MSc in Computer Engineering at the University of Campinas, specializing in machine learning topics. Gabriel has a strong background in software engineering and has worked on projects involving computer vision, embedded AI, and LLM applications.
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