Contingency Theories of Leadership

Contingency Theories of Leadership

Nelson Mandela, Margaret Thatcher, Martin Luther King and Mother Teresa are just few of the names that come to mind whenever we think of great leaders. They have a vision of what they want and have the ability to communicate their vision in order to gain the support and cooperation of their followers. Often we find it easy to identify great leaders yet it is difficult to explain the qualities that make them great. In comparison, Nelson Mandela and Margaret Thatcher reinforce the fact that leaders have very different qualities and that leadership success is more complex than just identifying few traits or preferable behaviors. People who were studying the leadership phenomena then turned to the idea that effective leadership was dependent on a mix of factors. The Contingency Theories of leadership was developed to shed light on the leadership phenomenon.

Fred Fiedler developed the first comprehensive contingency model for leadership. The Fiedler Contingency model proposes that effective group performance depends upon the proper match between the leader’s style and the degree to which the situation gives control to the leader. In applying Fiedler’s model, one should seek to match leaders and situations. Former Philippine president Joseph Ejercito Estrada is a perfect fit