Publication Type
Journal Article
Version
acceptedVersion
Publication Date
2-2023
Abstract
Despite the significant amount of existing research examining the relationship of follower-related factors with leadership outcomes, there is no systematic, critical review that integrates and helps leadership scholars make sense of this rapidly growing body of research. To address this gap in the literature, we first briefly discuss the leading perspectives explaining the role of followers in leadership. Next, we identify and discuss the most frequently studied theoretical narratives explaining the relationship between follower-related predictors and leadership outcomes. Because theoretical arguments generally make causal claims, we identify and examine how methodological concerns including power analysis, multicollinearity, and endogeneity might prevent researchers from supporting those claims. We further explore how these concerns, when relevant and unaddressed, might affect the reported effect sizes. We provide recommendations to help meaningfully structure the field and seed conversations for theoretical and methodological advancements in research on the role of followers in leadership.
Keywords
Endogeneity, Followers, Review, Validity Threats
Discipline
Leadership Studies | Organizational Behavior and Theory
Research Areas
Organisational Behaviour and Human Resources
Publication
Leadership Quarterly
Volume
34
Issue
1
First Page
1
Last Page
20
ISSN
1048-9843
Identifier
10.1016/j.leaqua.2022.101674
Publisher
Elsevier
Citation
OC, Burak; CHINTAKANANDA, Kraivin; BASHSHUR, Michael R.; and DAY, David V..
The study of followers in leadership research: A systematic and critical review. (2023). Leadership Quarterly. 34, (1), 1-20.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/lkcsb_research/7165
Copyright Owner and License
Authors
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Additional URL
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2022.101674