Northouse, Leadership 8e
SAGE Publications, 2019
Case 5.1: Marathon Runners at Different
Levels
Case Synopsis and Analysis
Three different groups of runners, with varying skills, knowledge, and motivation, are
training for a marathon. Halfway through training, the coach, David, finds that each group is
struggling for a variety of reasons. The case study asks students to assess how David should
best lead each of these groups.
One team, new to marathon running, is yearning for structure. Another team has some
experience but a lot of questions about the effectiveness of their training. Finally, a third
team has high expectations and a great deal of experience but lacks motivation.
Due to the nature of the case, there is some room for discussion and disagreement about
followers’ developmental levels. However, the case does provide a nice format to engage in
that deliberation and discuss the intricacies of the situational approach.
Learning objectives:
• Students should be able to determine the developmental level of three different
groups of followers under the SLII model.
• Students should be able to determine the appropriate style for a leader using the
SLII model.
• Students should recognize some of the complexities and limitations of situational
approach.
Answers to questions in the text:
1. Based on the principles of the SLII model, how would you describe the runners in
Group 1? What kind of leadership do they want from David and what kind of
leadership does David seem prepared to give them?
The first group of runners is largely new to marathon training and concerned about
how to train for and complete the race. They ask basic questions and seem unclear
about the task of training. They are at level D1 because they are new to the process,
Northouse, Leadership 8e
SAGE Publications, 2019
2. How would you describe the fit between the runners in Group 2 and David’s coaching
style? Discuss.
The second group of runners is a bit more experienced and has a training program in
place. They want to know if changes or tweaks to their plans will help them because
they want to improve their performance. This group will likely fall at the D2 level, as
3. The experienced runners in Group 3 appear to be a challenge to David. Using SLII,
explain why David appears ineffective with this group.
The last group of marathon runners is skilled and has excelled in previous races. The
group knows what to do but lacks excitement about running and feels flat overall.
4. If you were helping David with his coaching, how would you describe his strengths
and weaknesses? What suggestions would you make to him about how to improve?
David is often supportive and has knowledge about how to train. However, he does
Northouse, Leadership 8e
SAGE Publications, 2019
Potential teaching approaches:
Below is a way to structure a class based on the situational approach and Case Study 5.1:
• Hold a lecture on the situational approach.
• Ask students to read Case 5.1.
• Students then brainstorm ways to motivate/lead each of the three groups without
relying on the situational approach
• Discuss Questions 1–4 in the case study as a class.
• Finally, the professor may choose to conduct in-class exercises listed below.
Exercises for this case study:
1) Create an action plan for David based on the situational approach. What exactly
2) In small groups, students should discuss a story of inspiring leadership that they
experienced. Then they should determine what their developmental level was at the
3) The situational approach starts to outline the complexities of leadership. In a brief
paper (200–250 words) students should discuss how this model makes leading others