Matching Items (6)
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- All Subjects: Leadership
- Creators: Department of Management
Description
After decades of dormancy, character is re-emerging as an important research topic among organizational leadership researchers in response to the need to better explain the source of certain exemplary and ethical leader performance (Hannah & Avolio, 2011; Leonard, 1997; Thompson & Riggio, 2010; Wright & Goodstein, 2007). However, efforts to operationalize character are criticized for their abstract and idealistic trait-based conceptualizations that fail to capture the reality of leadership and situational dynamics (Conger & Hollenbeck, 2010). The purpose of this study is to develop a more robust theoretical approach to character that is empirically grounded in the real life complexities of leadership. Combat provides the context for this study because the adversity of such an extreme context tends to make character a more salient and readily observable phenomenon than in more conventional organizational contexts (Wright & Quick, 2011; Hannah, Uhl-Bien, Avolio, & Cavarretta, 2009). I employed an ethnographic grounded theory design to gain a unique insider's perspective absent in many studies of leader character (Charmaz, 2009; Parry & Meindl, 2002). Data collection involved (1) physically embedding for six months with U.S. Army small unit infantry leaders operating in combat in Afghanistan; (2) participant observation in the full range of combat activities engaged in by these leaders; and (3) in-depth semi-structured interviews with key informants. An important contribution of this study is that the emergent concept of leader character is fully situated in the leader's social and environmental context represented by the leader's inner struggle to resist the adversity of combat and uphold the standards of leadership. In this dialectical framework, certain agentic resources important to resolving this inner struggle emerge as the locus of leader character. This agency-based concept of character is rooted in the internalization of the standards of leadership through identity-conferring normative commitments and entails particular motivational and volitional capacities. These produce a distinct mode of functioning--a strong form of personal moral agency--characterized by the leader's willingness to sacrifice in upholding standards in the face of adversity. This primacy of leader agency over adversity is the hallmark of leader character--what I call the character to lead.
ContributorsJennings, Peter L. (Author) / Corley, Kevin (Thesis advisor) / Waldman, David (Thesis advisor) / Hannah, Sean T (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
This dissertation sought to understand how leaders in a public-private strategic alliance collaboratively address complex community problems. The study responded to the gap in academic research of leadership and public relations in alliances to solve complex social issues, as well as the scant scholarly attention to alliance leaders' communications with stakeholders. Its findings corresponded to framing theory, stakeholder theory, SWOT (strengths/weaknesses/opportunities/threats) theory, complexity theory, and the subtopic of complex leadership -- all through the lens of public relations. This investigation culminated in the introduction of the C.A.L.L. to Action Model of Community Engagement, which demonstrates the confluence of factors that were integral to the alliance's success in eliminating chronic homelessness among veterans in Maricopa County, Arizona -- Communication, Alliance, Leadership, and Leverage. This qualitative case study used the method of elite or in-depth interviews and grounded theory to investigate the factors present in a community engagement that achieved its purpose. It served as a foundation for future inquiry and contributions to the base of knowledge, including 1) additional qualitative case studies of homeless alliances in other communities or of other social issues addressed by a similar public-private alliance; 2) quantitative methods, such as a survey of the participants in this alliance to provide triangulation of the results and establish a platform for generalization of the results to a larger population.
ContributorsSweeter, Janice Martha (Author) / Matera, Frances (Thesis advisor) / Godfrey, Donald G. (Committee member) / Gilpin, Dawn (Committee member) / Shockley, Gordon (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Description
Social entrepreneurship has received a great deal of attention in recent years. Scholars constantly debate of the meaning of the term and the direction of the field. This paper explores literature written between the years 2010 \u2014 2015 in an effort to understand the current state of social entrepreneurship and gain insight as to the direction it is headed. This paper looks at definitions, characteristics, geographical differences, legal designations, and major themes such as social enterprise, social innovation, & social value as well as the implications for performance measures in an attempt to understand the broad concept that is social entrepreneurship.
ContributorsTalarico, Anthony (Author) / Shockley, Gordon (Thesis director) / Hayter, Christopher (Committee member) / Department of Management (Contributor) / School of Public Affairs (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05
Description
This thesis will focus on the organizational structures and leadership challenges within private law firms. It begins by explaining the different roles within the organizational structure. It will then discuss various other duties that are carried out by lawyers in addition to legal work. Through the use of qualitative methodology, including a review of scholarly literature and semi-formal interviews with private firm partners, this research mainly focuses on the challenges that exist in private law firms. The study concludes with possible solutions to address the discussed challenges in private law firms.
ContributorsKrikorian, Dikranouhi (Author) / Trujillo, Rhett (Thesis director) / Waldman, David (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / W. P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Department of Management (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
A new honors class created at Arizona State University utilizes a new "thinking" paradigm. The new paradigm is a problem solution using deductive logic and natural laws to replace the traditional acquisition and usage of detailed knowledge. When utilizing deductive logic, less time is required for students to learn, and students are able to resolve unique issues with minimal amounts of information. Students use their logic and processing skills to replace the traditional need of collecting large amounts of detailed information. The concepts taught in the class have come from the industry success of the Best Value (BV) approach developed by a leading research group at Arizona State University over the last 17 years. The research group identified the source of the industry's problem is due to the traditional business approach of management, direction and control (MDC). With over 1500 tests conducted, delivering $5.7B of services, with results showing: 30% decrease in cost, 30% increase in value, and customer satisfaction improvement by up to 140%, the Best Value (BV) approach has been identified as more efficient and can deliver better quality services than the traditional MDC approach. Through the research group's implementation of the new paradigm in higher education, the author identified a windfall effect that was able to give students understanding and an increased ability to cope with stressful situations, disease and extraordinary complications. It also exposed students to potentially harmful practices in their lives and has helped them to change. The study tested in K-12 proved potential value in exposing the paradigm to K-12 students, and what impact it may have on future professionals. The author's results include satisfaction rating of 9.5 (out of 10), increased career alignment by up to 113%, increased understanding of self by up to 70%, and a reduction of stress by up to 71%. The author's K-12 case studies aligned with the successful results shown in the industry and college classes run by the leading research group. The pattern of the new paradigm shows as resistance to it decreases, productivity, efficiency, processing speed, understanding, and effectiveness all increase.
ContributorsRivera, Alfredo (Author) / Kashiwagi, Dean (Thesis director) / Collofello, James (Committee member) / Nelson, Margaret (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Management (Contributor) / Del E. Webb Construction (Contributor)
Created2013-12
Description
Accountability has been commonly referred to in the literature as a person’s expectation about others’ evaluations. However, in this study, I develop an alternative perspective of leader accountability by defining it as an individual’s degree of ownership regarding good or poor performance and acceptance of associated rewards or disciplinary actions. Based on attribution theory, leaders can have internal and external ownership regarding good and poor performance. I propose that accountability can be categorized into two correlated but distinct aspects: self-benefitting and other-benefitting. Leader self-benefitting accountability refers to leaders’ attributions towards their own benefits (i.e., internal attribution of good performance and external attribution of poor performance). Leader other-benefitting accountability reflects leaders’ attributions towards others’ interests (i.e., internal attribution of poor performance and external attribution of good performance). Using multiple samples, I develop and validate a leader accountability scale, and then test a theoretical model with a focus on leader accountability and collective accountability (i.e., a group of individuals’ degree of ownership) by collecting data from 57 leaders and 162 followers in three Chinese companies. The findings show that leader humility is positively related to leader other-benefitting accountability. Both leader self-benefitting and other-benefitting accountability are associated with collective self-benefitting and other-benefitting accountability, respectively. Moreover, the relationship between leader self-benefitting and collective self-benefitting accountability is enhanced when the leader has high organization prototypicality. Furthermore, collective self-benefitting accountability decreases leader effectiveness and team effectiveness, while collective other-benefitting accountability increases leader effectiveness.
ContributorsWang, Danni (Author) / Waldman, David (Thesis advisor) / Zhang, Zhen (Thesis advisor) / Balthazard, Pierre (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016