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Leader
Part 2: Focus on the Leader
Chapter 6: Leadership Attributes
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Chapter 6 Outline
Leadership Attributes
Introduction
Personality Traits and Leadership
What is Personality?
The Five Factor or OCEAN Model of Personality
Implications of the Five Factor or OCEAN Model
Intelligence and Leadership
What is Intelligence?
The Triarchic Theory of Intelligence
Implications of the Triarchic Theory of Intelligence
Intelligence and Stress: Cognitive Resources Theory
Summary
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Key Learning Points
Introduction
Leadership researchers have spent considerable time and effort trying to determine if leaders are
fundamentally different than followers. The Great Man theory, which can be traced back to the
early 1900s, maintained that leaders and followers were fundamentally different. However, later
Personality Traits and Leadership
Personality traits refer to a person’s persistent, day–to-day behavioral patterns. In other words,
they are often used to describe a person’s public reputation. There are thousands of different
Personality Types and Leadership
Traits are not the only way to describe stereotypical behaviors. An alternative framework to
describe the differences in people’s day–to-day behavioral patterns is through types, or in terms
of a personality typology. Psychological typologies are often expressed in terms of polar
Intelligence and Leadership
Sternberg’s Triarchic Theory of Intelligence provides a useful framework for categorizing and
understanding the role different mental abilities play in leadership success. Analytic intelligence
is a person’s general problem solving ability and can be assessed using standard measures of
intelligence. Practical intelligence is a person’s domain specific knowledge or “street smarts;”
leaders with relevant street smarts are very good at adapting to, shaping, or selecting new
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Emotional Intelligence and Leadership
Researchers began to examine the role of emotions in leadership only in the past 20 years. The
term emotional intelligence (EQ) can be attributed to Salovey and Mayer, who defined EQ as a
group of mental abilities that help people to recognize their own feelings and those of others.
Since then, other researchers have expanded the original definition, and now there are four
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Brief Definitions of the Key Terms for Chapter 6
Great Man Theory: An early leadership theory that said leaders possessed fundamentally
different qualities than followers.
Personality: One’s public reputation or the unseen processes driving one’s behavior.
Conscientiousness: An OCEAN category that concerns how one approaches work.
Extraversion: An OCEAN category that concerns the need for influencing or controlling others.
Agreeableness: An OCEAN category that concerns the need for approval.
Neuroticism: An OCEAN category that concerns how one reacts under stress.
Public reputation: Judgments or evaluations about the personalities of others that can help
predict future behaviors.
Types: Fundamentally and qualitatively different categories of people.
theoretical.
Thinking-feeling: The MBTI personality dimension that refers to the decision-making
function—those with a preference for making decisions with the people, context, and emotion in
mind versus those who can be more detached and logical.
Judging-perceiving: The MBTI personality dimension that describes the amount of information
a leader needs before feeling comfortable making a decision.
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Triarchic Theory of Intelligence: A framework for categorizing different mental abilities.
Analytic intelligence: The triarchic component concerned with general problem-solving ability.
Practical intelligence: The triarchic component concerned with relevant knowledge or
experience.
Convergent thinking: The ability to follow some set of logical steps to arrive at the one correct
answer. Tests of convergent thinking generally have one best correct answer.
Creeping elegance: The tendency of leaders without a clear vision to expand a project’s scope
beyond the needs of customers.
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Overview of the Learning Resources for Chapter 6
Exercise 6-1: Leader Traits. This 25-minute exercise is designed to help students see the links between
the qualities of good leaders and the Five Factor Model of personality and the Triarchic Theory of
Intelligence.
Exercise 6-2: What Does Your Daytimer Say About Your Personality? In this 25-minute exercise,
Exercise 6-3a: The IPIP Big 5 Assessment. This exercise provides information and a website students can
Exercise 6-4: Estimating Psychological Preferences. This 35-minute exercise consists of a brief self-
assessment of the 16 MBTI types and a method for discussing psychological types.
Exercise 6-6: Nails. This 15-minute experiential exercise is designed to demonstrate creative intelligence.
Exercise 6-7: The Egg Drop. This highly interactive, 75-minute experiential exercise demonstrates a
Exercise 6-8: Emotional Intelligence Scale. This self-assessment exercise uses the Wong and Law
Emotional Intelligence Scale to provide students with insight about their personal levels of emotional
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Sample Lesson Plans for Chapter 6
Lesson 1: 60 minutes
Pre-work: Exercise 6-4b, The Hogan Personality Inventory. Students complete the HPI prior to class.
Lesson Plan:
• Describe the two perspectives of personality (5 minutes).
• Describe the trait approach and Five Factor Model of personality (10 minutes).
Lesson 2: 100 minutes
Pre-work: None. However, instructors will need to assemble the materials for Exercise 6-9, The Egg
Drop.
Lesson Plan:
• Have students get into small groups and then explain the rules, resources, and deliverables of The
Egg Drop exercise (5 minutes).
A 60 minute alternative is to explain the rules, resources and deliverables of The Egg Drop exercise, pass
out the resources, and make the assembly of the transportation device and the TV commercials a
homework assignment. Instructors can then take the first 30 minutes of class to tape the commercials,
drop the eggs, and administer the awards and the last 30 minutes going over how what happened relates to
the FFM and Triarchic Theory of Intelligence.
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Minicase, “Lessons on Leadership from Ann Fudge,” Sample Answers
Question 1: How would Ann Fudge fall into the each of the OCEAN Model categories?
Extraversion: What are her patterns of behavior concerned with getting ahead in life? She
would score high on this factor. She is self-confident, competitive, likes being around people
Openness to Experience: How does she approach problems, learn new information, and
react to new experiences? She would be high on this factor. She willingly took two years off
Question 2: Ann Fudge decided to take a sabbatical to focus more on her personal life.
Based on her experience, what are some of the benefits to such a break? What might be
some of the drawbacks?
Benefits: It allowed her to gain new and broader experiences and perhaps even increase her
commitment to diverse ideas as a way to stimulate thinking and business. She was also true to
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Drawbacks: Leaving the industry for two years could result in losing contact with the industry
Chapter 06 – Leadership Attributes
Chapter 6 Exercises & Instructions
Exercise 6-1
Exercise Title: Leader Traits
Purpose: To identify the traits frequently associated with leadership effectiveness or emergence and
discuss advantages and disadvantages associated with trait approaches to leadership.
Summary: Divide the class into small groups. Each group should select a specific leader and identify
what qualities were important to his/her success. Once the qualities are listed, have the groups try to
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Exercise 6-2
Title: What Does Your Daytimer Say About Your Personality?
Purpose: To show how a person tracks their time can be used to determine where they stand on the
personality dimension of conscientiousness.
Summary: Instructors should ask students what method they use to keep track of classes, appointments,
when papers are due, etc. Usually this is a calendar, a PDA, or some kind of scheduling program on a
computer). Students should then review the contents of their method and look at the level of detail,
completeness, how far out appointments or projects are scheduled, etc. Students with highly detailed and
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Exercise 6-3a
Purpose: To provide students with feedback on their personal standing for each of the five traits
identified by the Five Factor Model of personality.
Summary: The International Personality Item Pool is a 120- or 300-item, on-line survey that provides
normative feedback on the five personality traits of the Five Factor Model of personality described in
Students can be asked to complete the assessment and print their reports as a homework assignment. With
their reports in hand, students can discuss their scores in a small group setting or in a classroom setting.
Some potential questions to have students consider include:
• What were the biggest surprises (both positive and negative)?
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IPIP-NEO Narrative Report
NOTE: The report sent to your computer screen upon the completion of the IPIP-NEO is only a
temporary web page. When you exit your web browser you will not be able to return to this URL to
re-access your report. No copies of the report are sent to anyone. IF YOU WANT A PERMANENT
COPY OF THE REPORT, YOU MUST SAVE THE WEB PAGE TO YOUR HARD DRIVE OR A
USB DRIVE, AND/OR PRINT THE REPORT WHILE YOU ARE STILL VIEWING IT IN
choose to print the report, selecting landscape orientation for your paper will display the graphs
properly. Using portrait orientation (normally the default for printers) will cause the graphs to
wrap around and render them unreadable.
This report compares Samuel Adams from the country USA to other men between 21 and 40 years of age.
A note on terminology.
Personality traits describe, relative to other people, the frequency or intensity of a person’s feelings,
thoughts, or behaviors. Possession of a trait is therefore a matter of degree. We might describe two
Please keep in mind that “low,” “average,” and “high” scores on a personality test are neither absolutely
good nor bad. A particular level on any trait will probably be neutral or irrelevant for a great many
activities, be helpful for accomplishing some things, and detrimental for accomplishing other things. As
John A. Johnson wrote descriptions of the five domains and thirty subdomains. These descriptions are
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Extraversion
Extraversion is marked by pronounced engagement with the external world. Extraverts enjoy being with
people, are full of energy, and often experience positive emotions. They tend to be enthusiastic, action–
oriented, individuals who are likely to say “Yes!” or “Let’s go!” to opportunities for excitement. In groups
they like to talk, assert themselves, and draw attention to themselves.
Domain/Facet……….. Score 0——–10——–20—–—30—–—40—–—50—–—60—–—70——–80——–90——–99
EXTRAVERSION…….……..84 ************************************************************************************
..Friendliness………….56 ********************************************************
..Gregariousness………..72 ************************************************************************
..Assertiveness………...94 **********************************************************************************************
Extraversion Facets
• Friendliness. Friendly people genuinely like other people and openly demonstrate positive
feelings toward others. They make friends quickly and it is easy for them to form close, intimate
relationships. Low scorers on Friendliness are not necessarily cold and hostile, but they do not
reach out to others and are perceived as distant and reserved. Your level of friendliness is
average.
• Gregariousness. Gregarious people find the company of others pleasantly stimulating and
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energetically, and vigorously, and they are involved in many activities. People who score low on
this scale follow a slower and more leisurely, relaxed pace. Your activity level is high.
• Excitement-Seeking. High scorers on this scale are easily bored without high levels of stimulation.
Agreeableness
Agreeableness reflects individual differences in concern with cooperation and social harmony. Agreeable
individuals value getting along with others. They are therefore considerate, friendly, generous, helpful,
and willing to compromise their interests with others’. Agreeable people also have an optimistic view of
Domain/Facet……….. Score 0——–10——–20—–—30—–—40—–—50—–—60—–—70——–80——–90——–99
AGREEABLENESS….……….23 ***********************
..Trust…….………….51 ***************************************************
Your score on Agreeableness is low, indicating less concern with others’ needs than with your own.
People see you as tough, critical, and uncompromising.
Agreeableness Facets
• Trust. A person with high trust assumes that most people are fair, honest, and have good
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deception in social relationships is necessary. People find it relatively easy to relate to the
straightforward high-scorers on this scale. They generally find it more difficult to relate to the
unstraightforward low-scorers on this scale. It should be made clear that low scorers are not
unprincipled or immoral; they are simply more guarded and less willing to openly reveal the
whole truth. Your level of morality is average.
• Modesty. High scorers on this scale do not like to claim that they are better than other people. In
some cases this attitude may derive from low self-confidence or self-esteem. Nonetheless, some
people with high self-esteem find immodesty unseemly. Those who are willing to describe
themselves as superior tend to be seen as disagreeably arrogant by other people. Your level of
modesty is low.
Conscientiousness
Conscientiousness concerns the way in which we control, regulate, and direct our impulses. Impulses are
not inherently bad; occasionally time constraints require a snap decision, and acting on our first impulse
can be an effective response. Also, in times of play rather than work, acting spontaneously and
impulsively can be fun. Impulsive individuals can be seen by others as colorful, fun-to-be-with, and zany.
Nonetheless, acting on impulse can lead to trouble in a number of ways. Some impulses are antisocial.
A hallmark of intelligence, what potentially separates human beings from earlier life forms, is the ability
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to think about future consequences before acting on an impulse. Intelligent activity involves
contemplation of long-range goals, organizing and planning routes to these goals, and persisting toward
one’s goals in the face of short-lived impulses to the contrary. The idea that intelligence involves impulse
control is nicely captured by the term prudence, an alternative label for the Conscientiousness domain.
Domain/Facet……….. Score 0——–10——–20—–—30—–—40—–—50—–—60—–—70——–80——–90——–99
CONSCIENTIOUSNESS……….95 ***********************************************************************************************
..Self-Efficacy…………97 *************************************************************************************************
Your score on Conscientiousness is high. This means you set clear goals and pursue them with
determination. People regard you as reliable and hard-working.
Conscientiousness Facets
• Self-Efficacy. Self-Efficacy describes confidence in one’s ability to accomplish things. High
scorers believe they have the intelligence (common sense), drive, and self-control necessary for
achieving success. Low scorers do not feel effective, and may have a sense that they are not in
control of their lives. Your level of self-efficacy is high.
• Orderliness. Persons with high scores on orderliness are well-organized. They like to live
according to routines and schedules. They keep lists and make plans. Low scorers tend to be
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able to overcome reluctance to begin tasks and stay on track despite distractions. Those with low
self-discipline procrastinate and show poor follow-through, often failing to complete tasks-even
Neuroticism
Freud originally used the term neurosis to describe a condition marked by mental distress, emotional
suffering, and an inability to cope effectively with the normal demands of life. He suggested that
everyone shows some signs of neurosis, but that we differ in our degree of suffering and our specific
symptoms of distress. Today neuroticism refers to the tendency to experience negative feelings. Those
At the other end of the scale, individuals who score low in neuroticism are less easily upset and are less
emotionally reactive. They tend to be calm, emotionally stable, and free from persistent negative feelings.
Freedom from negative feelings does not mean that low scorers experience a lot of positive feelings;
frequency of positive emotions is a component of the Extraversion domain.
Domain/Facet……….. Score 0——–10——–20—–—30—–—40—–—50—–—60—–—70——–80——–90——–99
NEUROTICISM…………….21 *********************
Your score on Neuroticism is low, indicating that you are exceptionally calm, composed and unflappable.
You do not react with intense emotions, even to situations that most people would describe as stressful.
Neuroticism Facets
• Anxiety. The “fight-or-flight” system of the brain of anxious individuals is too easily and too often
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is low.
• Anger. Persons who score high in Anger feel enraged when things do not go their way. They are
sensitive about being treated fairly and feel resentful and bitter when they feel they are being
Their concern about rejection and ridicule cause them to feel shy and uncomfortable abound
others. They are easily embarrassed and often feel ashamed. Their fears that others will criticize
or make fun of them are exaggerated and unrealistic, but their awkwardness and discomfort may
make these fears a self-fulfilling prophecy. Low scorers, in contrast, do not suffer from the
mistaken impression that everyone is watching and judging them. They do not feel nervous in
social situations. Your level or self-consciousness is low.
Openness to Experience
Openness to Experience describes a dimension of cognitive style that distinguishes imaginative, creative
people from down-to-earth, conventional people. Open people are intellectually curious, appreciative of
Another characteristic of the open cognitive style is a facility for thinking in symbols and abstractions far
removed from concrete experience. Depending on the individual’s specific intellectual abilities, this
symbolic cognition may take the form of mathematical, logical, or geometric thinking, artistic and