A Motivational Theory of Charismatic Leadership: Envisioning, Empathy, and Empowerment

Publication Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

2009

Abstract

The motivational effects of charismatic leadership are examined in greater detail. Charismatic leadership is assumed to have three core components: envisioning, empathy, and empowerment. A charismatic leader's envisioning behavior influences followers' need for achievement, and the leader's empathic behavior stimulates followers' need for affiliation. Followers' need for power is enhanced by a charismatic leader's empowerment practices. It is further suggested that the behaviors of a charismatic leader and the enhanced followers' needs promote clearer role perceptions, improved task performance, greater job satisfaction, stronger collective identity and group cohesiveness, more organizational citizenship behaviors, and stronger self-leadership among the followers. The contextual factors which may influence the motivational effects of charismatic leadership are also discussed

Discipline

Business

Research Areas

Organisational Behaviour and Human Resources

Publication

Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies

Volume

22

Issue

1

First Page

136

Last Page

150

ISSN

1548-0518

Identifier

10.1177/10717919070130010501

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