Northouse, Leadership 9e
SAGE Publishing, 2022
Class Activities
Chapter 7: Leader–Member Exchange Theory
Activities
These activities may be used in either small-group or large-group settings, depending on class size and
Warm-Up Exercise
At the beginning of class, go around the room and ask every student to complete one or more of the
following sentences:
“I hate it when my manager . . .”
“I respect my manager when . . .”
LMX 7 Questionnaire
Have students complete the LMX 7 Questionnaire individually and share their results in small groups. As
each group reports its results in a large-group discussion, compile a master list showing what ranges of
Case Analysis
Assign each case to one or more small groups for in-class analysis and discussion. Each small group
should then report back to the entire class about the results of its group work.
Northouse, Leadership 9e
SAGE Publishing, 2022
In or Out Discussion
In small groups, or full-class discussion, ask students to share examples of when they were in an in-
group or out-group at work or school How was their status decided: By their role responsibilities?
Demographic (dis)similarity to other workers or students? Part-time schedule? What were the benefits
Leadership Talk
In phase two of the leadership-making process, either the leader or subordinate makes an offer for
improved career-oriented social exchanges. Ask students to write specific scripts for what a leader could
say to initiate such an exchange and what a subordinate could say to initiate such an exchange. How
would they share more resources or work-related information? What new challenges could a leader
provide? Have students bring a 1-page paper to class with their suggestions.
Create a Skit
Divide the class into small groups. Assign each group to develop one of the following skits: (a) the three
phases in leadership making; (b) the in-group experience; (c) the out-group experience. Debrief: What
settings were depicted in the skits? Does LMX theory apply well to all organizations? What exchanges
did the leaders offer to the subordinates in the skits? What exchanges did the subordinates offer? How
Building Trust and Openness
Begin class by brainstorming how a leader or supervisor can promote trust and openness with his or her
colleagues and followers. Examples could include: Asking for input, explaining decisions that have been
Northouse, Leadership 9e
SAGE Publishing, 2022
Building Trust and Openness #2
Ask students to bring in examples of emails, texts, and other electronic communication from the
workplace that they think is effective and improves relationship quality between leaders and followers,
OR is ineffective and undermines relationship quality between leaders and followers. Be sure to black
out any identifying information such as email addresses, company names, and individual’s names before
Best Practices
What are some of the best practices your students have engaged in or experienced in developing a
positive workplace climate? Were they initiated by the supervisor or a follower? Does it matter?
Office Gossip
The informal conversations that occur in a workplace outside of official communication channels can
serve several positive social functions: Helping new workers acclimate to an office culture, creating
Organizational Citizenship
The textbook uses this definition of organizational citizenship: “Citizenship behaviors are discretionary
behaviors that go beyond the prescribed role, job description, or reward system” (Katz, 11964; Organ,
1988). Have the class discuss when and how college students demonstrate citizenship behaviors. Do
Writing Assignments
Contemporary Leadership
Have students write a 2–3-page reaction paper about a contemporary leadership situation with which
they are familiar. Their analyses should address what they would guess to be the leader–member
Northouse, Leadership 9e
SAGE Publishing, 2022
LMX 7 Questionnaire
Have students write a 2–3-page reaction paper that explains where their scores fall on the range of
leader–member exchanges, both as a leader and as a subordinate. Their paper should describe their
Annotated Bibliography
Select a few key terms from the chapter for students to research on their college databases (e.g.,
empowerment, trust, leader–member exchange, organizational citizenship behavior, distributive
justice). Assign students to work in small groups, each one researching a different term. Groups should
locate and read at least three academic articles pertaining to their key term and write an annotated
bibliography for each article.
One-Minute Paper Topics
As a leader, who would you have a hard time inviting into the in-group?
As a leader, how could you respond to out-group members?
Internet Activities
Internet #1: Class Blog
In your class blog or chat room, write about some of the discussion questions provided in this chapter.
Some additional questions are suggested here:
• Why do some people want to be in the out-group at work?
• How important is distributive justice (fair distribution of work, resources, and rewards) in
creating trust in the workplace?
Northouse, Leadership 9e
SAGE Publishing, 2022
Internet #2: Web Search
Internet #3: Citizenship Behavior (A, I)