DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Instructions

Read Case 4.1 A Drill Sergeant at First (Chapter 4, Behavioral Approach, page 97), then answer the following questions. Make sure to copy the questions and provide your answers below the questions in your post. 

  • Q1: From the behavioral perspective, how would you describe Mark’s behavior
  • Q2: How did his behavior change over time?
  • Q3: In general, is Mark more task-oriented or more relationship-oriented?
  • Q4: What score do you think he would get on Blake and Mouton’s grid?

State your responses with the question numbers Q1, Q2 Q3, and Q4.

 

“Case 4.1 A Drill Sergeant at First

Mark is the head of the painting department in a large hospital; 20 union employees report to him. Before coming on board at the hospital, he had worked as an independent contractor. At the hospital, he took a position that was newly created because the hospital believed change was needed in how painting services were provided.

Upon beginning his job, Mark did a four-month analysis of the direct and indirect costs of painting services. His findings supported the perceptions of his administrators that painting services were inefficient and costly. As a result, Mark completely reorganized the department, designed a new scheduling procedure, and redefined the expected standards of performance.

Mark says that when he started out in his new job, he was “all task,” like a drill sergeant who didn’t seek any input from his soldiers. From Mark’s point of view, the hospital environment did not leave much room for errors, so he needed to be strict about getting painters to do a good job within the constraints of the hospital environment.

As time went along, Mark relaxed his style and was less demanding. He delegated some responsibilities to two crew leaders who reported to him, but he always stayed in close touch with each of the employees. On a weekly basis, Mark was known to take small groups of workers to the local sports bar for burgers on the house. He loved to banter with the employees and could take it as well as dish it out.

Mark is very proud of his department. He says he always wanted to be a coach, and that’s how he feels about running his department. He enjoys working with people; in particular, he says he likes to see the glint in their eyes when they realize that they’ve done a good job and they have done it on their own.

Because of Mark’s leadership, the painting department has improved substantially and is now seen by workers in other departments as the most productive department in hospital maintenance. Painting services received a customer rating of 92%, which is the highest of any service in the hospital.”

 

Chapter 4 Behavioral Approach

Description

The behavioral approach emphasizes the behavior of the leader. This distinguishes it from the trait approach (Chapter 2), which emphasizes the personality characteristics of the leader, and the skills approach (Chapter 3), which emphasizes the leader’s capabilities. The behavioral approach focuses exclusively on what leaders do and how they act. In shifting the study of leadership to leader behaviors, the behavioral approach expanded the research of leadership to include the actions of leaders toward followers in various contexts.

Researchers studying the behavioral approach determined that leadership is composed of two general kinds of behaviors: task behaviors and relationship behaviors. Task behaviors facilitate goal accomplishment: They help group members to achieve their objectives. Relationship behaviors help followers feel comfortable with themselves, with each other, and with the situation in which they find themselves. The central purpose of the behavioral approach is to explain how leaders combine these two kinds of behaviors to influence followers in their efforts to reach a goal.

Many studies have been conducted to investigate the behavioral approach. Some of the first studies to be done were conducted at The Ohio State University in the late 1940s, based on the findings of Stogdill’s (1948) work, which pointed to the importance of considering more than leaders’ traits in leadership research. At about the same time, another group of researchers at the University of Michigan was conducting a series of studies that explored how leadership functioned in small groups. A third line of research was begun by Blake and Mouton in the early 1960s; it explored how managers used task and relationship behaviors in the organizational setting.

Although many research studies could be categorized under the heading of the behavioral approach, the Ohio State studies, the Michigan studies, and the studies by Blake and Mouton (1964, 1978, 1985) are strongly representative of the ideas in this approach. By looking closely at each of these groups of studies, we can draw a clearer picture of the underpinnings and implications of the behavioral approach.

Task and Relationship Behaviors

The essence of leadership behavior has two dimensions—task behaviors and relationship behaviors. There are leadership situations and challenges that call for strong task behavior, while others demand strong relationship behavior, but some degree of each is required in every situation. At the same time, because of personality and life experiences, leaders bring to every situation their own unique tendencies to be either more task oriented or more relationship oriented, or some unique blend of the two. On the surface, this may seem incidental or ho-hum, but in regard to leader effectiveness, the utilization of both of these behaviors is absolutely pivotal to success or failure.

Task Orientation

Simply put, task-oriented people are doers, and task leadership behaviors facilitate goal accomplishment. Researchers have labeled these behaviors differently, but they are always about task accomplishment. Task leadership considers the elements involved in task accomplishment from organizing work and defining roles to determining policies and procedures to facilitate production.”

“Relationship Orientation

Relationship-oriented people differ from task-oriented people in that they are not as goal directed in their leadership behavior; they are more interested in connecting with others. Relationship-oriented leadership behaviors focus on the well-being of followers, how they relate to each other, and the atmosphere in which they work. Relationship leadership explores the human aspects of leadership from building camaraderie, respect, trust, and regard between leaders and followers to valuing followers’ uniqueness and attending to their personal needs.

Task and relationship leadership behaviors are inextricably tied together, and the behavioral approach looks at how leaders engage in both of these behaviors and the extent to which situational factors affect these behaviors.”