Values and its impact on leadership theory and practices Free Essay Example, 4000 words

This will help in critically analysing the impact of values on leadership in terms of theories and practices in the business environment. Avolio (2007) stated that in today’s time, leadership is not only focused on leaders but also on followers, societies and individuals having different mindsets and understanding of the society and leadership. However, one thing that drives leaders and followers is the authenticity in the approach while leading. Harter, et al (2002) stated that authentic leadership is a process that draws positive psychological impact resulting in self awareness and self regulated positive behaviours on the part of leaders and followers. On the other hand Cooper, et al (2005) contradicted the views and opinions of Avolio by stating that authentic leadership is dependent on balanced processing, internal moral perspective, relational transparency and high degree of self-awareness. Sparrowe (2005) believed that values are approaches to understanding of how, when and why people value things that can be related to human psychology and philosophy. Walumbwa, et al (2008) stated that previously, value s were mainly based on the understanding of good and bad often driven by ethics and the notion has changed drastically. We will write a custom essay sample on Values and its impact on leadership theory and practices or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now However, in today’s world values are mainly driven by psychology, sociology and economics. Avolio (2007) believed that values are mainly driven by moral principles forming certain degree of assumptions that often get strengthened with the notion of right and wrong. Sparrowe (2005) believed that the notion of right and wrong cannot be ascertained considering the fact that what may be right for some can be wrong for others and vice versa. In terms of leadership, it becomes important to discuss different theories and relating them with the perception of people in terms of values. Every leadership theory is different in terms of impact and acceptance and with different set of values, it is but obvious that values impact and influence leadership style in terms of theories and practices. The next part of the discussion presents a number of leadership theories along with relating them with the concepts of values to identify the relationship between values and leadership. An Overview of Leadership Theories Avolio, et al (2003) stated that values are based on personal understanding of phenomenon and societies that are often driven and affected by situations. In the context of leadership, it was assumed that leadership is based on personal attributes and characteristics differentiating between the leaders and followers.