Behavioural Theories of Leadership

3.1 The Ohio State Studies (1945–1948)

Researchers at Ohio State University (Hemphill, Fleishman) analysed hundreds of leader behaviour descriptions and reduced them to two independent dimensions:

Dimension	Description	High Scorer Behaviour
Initiating Structure	Degree to which the leader organises work, assigns tasks, establishes deadlines	Defines roles clearly; high output expectation
Consideration	Degree to which the leader shows concern for followers' feelings, mutual trust, and job satisfaction	Supportive; listens to followers; approachable

Both dimensions are independent — a leader can be high on both (ideal) or low on both.

3.2 University of Michigan Studies (Likert, 1947–1961)

Rensis Likert at Michigan identified two contrasting styles:

• Production-centred leadership: Focus on task completion, technical aspects, and close supervision
• Employee-centred leadership: Focus on relationships, employee development, and participative decision-making

Employee-centred style showed consistently higher productivity, satisfaction, and lower turnover in Michigan studies.

Likert's 4 Systems of Management (1961):

1. Exploitative-Authoritative: No trust; fear motivation; top-down
2. Benevolent-Authoritative: Some trust; paternalistic; limited participation
3. Consultative: Considerable trust; some participation; goals set jointly
4. Participative Group: Full trust; team-based; high performance (ideal)

3.3 Blake and Mouton's Managerial Grid (1964)

Robert Blake and Jane Mouton (1964, The Managerial Grid) created a 2-dimensional framework:

X-Axis: Concern for Production (1–9)
Y-Axis: Concern for People (1–9)

Grid Position	Style Name	Description
(1,1)	Impoverished Management	Minimum effort; poor performance and morale
(9,1)	Authority-Compliance	Maximum production focus; people ignored
(1,9)	Country Club Management	Maximum people focus; low production
(5,5)	Middle-of-the-Road	Adequate performance through compromise
(9,9)	Team Management	Ideal: High commitment to both people and production

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