Draft—not to be cited A couple of decades ago, Bass (1990) said compellingly that people are “charisma-hungry ” when it comes to leadership. Invoking charisma and other components of transformational leadership (Burns, 1978; Conger & Kanungo, 1988) has rejuvenated leadership theory and research. To complete the picture, though, we should consider that people also are performance-hungry. Leadership theory and research emphasize leader style, interpersonal relationships, and followers ‟ reactions, and typically (with rare exception) do not include the problem-solving processes that yield desired results attributable at least in part to the leader‟s efforts. Discussing charisma, Madsen and Snow (1991; quoted in Bligh, Kohles, & Meindl, 2004) noted an additional, complementary causal sequence: followers ‟ belief in the leader “surely must be inspired by at least some hint of a real ability to deal with the followers ‟ problems. ” It is this possibility that constitutes the domain of interest in this manuscript. I describe a leadership model invoking the essential elements of: 1) leader performance, 2) leader behavior in the form of problem-solving activities that achieve

This study focuses on culturally-endorsed implicit theories of leadership (CLTs) Although cross-cultural research emphasizes that different cultural groups likely have different conceptions of what leadership should entail, a controversial position is argued here, namely that attributes associated with charismatic/transformational leadership will be universally endorsed as contributing to outstanding leadership. This hypothesis was tested in 60 cultures as part of the Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness (GLOBE) Research Program. Universally endorsed leader attributes, as well as attributes that are universally seen as impediments to outstanding leadership and culturally-contingent attributes are presented here. The results support the hypothesis that specific aspects of charismatic/transformational leadership are strongly and universally endorsed across cultures.

The morality of transformational leadership has been sharply questioned, particularly by libertarians, "grass roots " theorists, and organizational development consultants. This paper argues that to be truly transformational leadership, it must be grounded in moral foundations. The four components of authentic transformational leadership (idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration) are constrasted with their counterfeits in the dissembling pseudotransformational leadership on the basis of 1) the moral character of the leaders and their concerns for self and others; 2) the ethical values embedded in the leaders ’ vision, articulation, and program, which followers can embrace or reject; and 3) the morality of the processes of social ethical choices and action in which the leaders and followers engage and collectively pursue. The literature on transformational leadership is linked to the long-standing literature on virtue and moral character, as exemplified by Socratic and Confucian typologies. It is linked, as well, to the major themes of the modern Western ethical agenda: liberty, utility and distributive justice Deception, sophistry, and pretense are examined alongside issues of transendence, agency, trust, striving for the congruence of the values, cooperative action, power, persuasion, and corporate governance to establish the strategic and moral foundations of authentic transformational leadership.

Two studies examined the relationship between the rated charisma of US presidents and their frequency of use of metaphors in inaugural addresses. In the first study, the incidence of metaphors was recorded from the first-term inaugural addresses of 36 presidents (17 high charisma; 19 low charisma). Charismatic presidents used nearly twice as many metaphors (adjusted for speech length) than non-charismatic presidents. In the second study, judges rated the passages from the speeches that they found most inspirational. Results suggested that metaphors are important for inspiring audience members. This work increases our understanding of the process by which charismatic leaders inspire and motivate followers. D 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Information Processing and Leadership: A Review and Implications for Application In the current paper, contemporary research that has examined the role of information processing in the context of leadership is reviewed and the implications of this research for application are discussed. Although the vast majority of the leadership literature has focused on external and observable outcomes, such as a leader’s behaviors, the current paper takes an alternative perspective, reviewing literature that has examined leadership from an information processing vantage point. In contemplating the utility of this perspective, consider for a moment the following questions: How does a subordinate decide whether his/her supervisor is a leader? Why does an organizational supervisor punish one subordinate for poor performance but not another? Why does a supervisor utilize a particular behavioral style? As the literature reviewed throughout this paper shall indicate, the answer to each of these questions lies in developing a better understanding of how leaders and subordinates process information. To provide an organizational framework, the present paper is divided into three main sections. In the first portion of this paper, a working definition of leadership and information processing are provided. Next, relevant literature dealing with a leader’s information processing is reviewed, and finally, relevant literature dealing with follower information processing is discussed. Defining Leadership and Information Processing As a starting point, leadership is conceptualized as a social process, one involving both a

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