Taylor stood in awe as she gazed upon the towering Dawn Redwood and China Fur trees

in the Taihang Mountains in Northeastern China. The sweet smell of the forest filled her nostrils

as she embraced the invigoration and excitement that flowed through her. After residing in a

boisterous city for the last 9 months, Taylor was elated to be in the mountains preparing for her

first of four weeks at Camp Hope, a camp that hosts approximately 250 orphan children ranging

from 5 to 14 years old, as a first time camp director. As director, Taylor interviewed, hired, and

trained all 60 staff members whom ranged in age from 20 years old to 40 years old, organized

each week’s activities, developed each week’s meal plans, managed the camp’s finances and

worked with her staff to ensure that every child would have a safe and memorable experience.

As Taylor’s bus pulled into camp, Taylor was greeted by Gina, the camp’s manager who hired

her. Taylor remembered working with Gina when she began as a translator, then as a staff

member, and now as a camp director after only two years. She was ready to nurture and love not

only the orphan children, but also the 60 staff members coming to the camp in a few short hours.

Before everyone arrived, Taylor worked with Gina to ensure everything was ready for the

bonding activities ahead.

To Taylor’s excitement, the majority of the staff arrived at camp on the Friday evening

before the campers arrived and everyone spent the weekend bonding over their childhood camp

experiences, their goals for the week ahead, and the kind of difference they wanted to make in

the campers’ lives. Also, throughout the weekend, Taylor spoke with the staff members and

conveyed that their role was to provide campers with emotional support, stability, and most

importantly, a fun time at camp. Late Sunday evening though, Lisa and Yolanda, two Chinese

staff members in their mid-twenties, arrived at camp after being delayed a couple of days due to

their harrowing journey together that entailed a broken down bus and missing their connecting
train the day before. After Lisa and Yolanda grabbed their belongings off of the bus, they

trudged into the community room complaining loudly about their travel follies. Upon entering

the room though, they suddenly realized 120 pairs of eyes were staring at them. Taylor quickly

acknowledged and welcomed both ladies to camp and requested that they have a seat and join the

meeting. Lisa and Yolanda, both consumed with embarrassment, found seats three rows behind

everyone, crossed their arms, and glared at Taylor as she continued to brief everyone about the

upcoming week’s schedule.

Bright and early the next morning the first group of campers arrived with wide eyes and

high hopes for the week ahead. As the children began their activities and progressed through the

day, staff members quickly realized there were not enough pillows for all the campers. So, Gina,

called upon Lisa to venture out to purchase more pillows, as Lisa was in charge of purchasing

supplies for the camp. Having arrived two days late, Lisa did not have enough time to inventory

the pillows, and no other staff members mentioned the shortage. Being a skilled bargain shopper,

Lisa felt confident she could purchase the necessary number of decent pillows without going

over budget. However, her confidence was decimated upon her return to camp.

“What kind of pillows are these?” snarled Gina. “Are these for animals or humans?!” Lisa

meakly muttered, “Well…these are the best pillows I could find within our budget.” Gina rolled

her eyes so hard they could have rolled out of her ears. “You’re crazy if you think these things

are good enough. The kids cannot sleep on these. Go back to town, return this garbage, and come

back with some higher quality pillows.” Upon hearing Gina’s commands coupled with thinking

about the 25 mile trek down the mountains and back to town, Lisa’s blood boiled with rage.

Before she could stop herself, Lisa kicked the pillows as hard as she could down the staff

dormitory hallway in front of everyone. “If you want better pillows, go get them yourself, and do
not ask me to help with any more purchases!” screamed Lisa as she stormed off to her room to

vent to Yolanda. While leading an activity with the children and some other staff members,

Taylor slightly overheard Lisa and Gina’s altercation, and decided she would approach them

later to figure out what happened. However, when Taylor approached Lisa in the common room,

and Gina outside of the kitchen, as if they had somehow rehearsed it, they both refused to

provide any explanations, and shut Taylor out.

Taylor’s anger and confusion at how she was treated caused her chest to tighten and a

hard lump to form in her throat. As she stood in her room with tears streaming down her face,

Taylor’s head swam with scenarios on how to handle both ladies. Scream at them? Fire them?

Ignore them? After her tears quit falling and Taylor’s temper subsided, her compassion surfaced,

and she decided it would be best to allot some grace and attempt to work with them again before

the first week of camp concluded.

At the following evening’s staff meeting, Taylor noticed Lisa and Yolanda perched in the

back of the common room with furrowed brows, crossed arms, and hunched shoulders. Taylor

took a deep breath, squared her shoulders, and walked back to Lisa and Yolanda. “Would you

ladies please join us this evening for debriefing activities?” Taylor asked her calmest voice. Lisa

and Yolanda looked at each other for a moment, turned back to Taylor, and said, “No, we’re

exhausted and have nothing to contribute. We’ll just sit back here and listen.” The words were

said so kindly but each syllable contained a sharp point that cut Taylor’s heart. Taylor’s eyes

flashed with anger, but before she uttered regretful words, she spun around on her heals and

returned to the front of the room. As she said goodnight to everyone after the meeting’s close,

Taylor realized the first week of camp was over and how emotionally and mentally exhausted
she was. However, she knew she had to prepare herself and everyone else for the second group

of campers to arrive the following morning.

7:00am arrived too soon for Taylor, but she pulled her hair back into a pony tail,

mustered her best attitude, and walked toward the unloading area to welcome the next 75

campers. Horns honking, children laughing and screaming, and counselors hollering filled

Taylor’s ears. It was utter chaos. As if by magic, Gina appeared next to Taylor. “Go to the

cafeteria to help set-up games,” Gina demanded. “I’m on it,” agreed Taylor. While Gina ordered

staff members around, Yolanda, coordinator of transportation, helped campers off the bus,

assisted kids with finding their bags, and ushered them away from the bus. Feeling a bit

overwhelmed, Yolanda called out to Gina, “I need help please! I cannot take care of this many

children on my own!” Gina roared, “Nobody is able to help you! We are all busy and that is your

job, so deal with it yourself.” Yolanda’s eyes burned with tears of frustration and embarrassment

as she continued to help campers. A few hours later in the dining hall, Taylor heard Lisa and

Yolanda heatedly bickering about Gina and how horrible the camp is. Taylor’s compassion

overruled her annoyance once again as she walked over to them. “Is there something wrong

ladies?” “No,” they answered sweetly and turned their backs on Taylor.

After that interaction, Taylor decided she was fed up with their behavior. That evening,

when all of the staff members gathered, Taylor instructed everyone to sit close to the front of the

room, but Lisa and Yolanda defied her instructions and sat in the back. Recognizing their

insubordination, Taylor exclaimed, “Alright! Everyone to the back of the room so we can sit

with Lisa and Yolanda.” Everyone hesitantly inched toward the back and found their places

around Lisa and Yolanda. With everyone finally together, Taylor asked, “Up to this point, by

either a thumbs up or a thumbs down, how great as camp been for you?” Everyone’s thumbs shot
up except for Lisa and Yolanda’s thumbs, which were pointed down. Taylor looked at them both

quizzically. “Why are your thumbs down ladies?” Yolanda launched out of her seat screeched,

“Do you really want to know why?” “Do you really think we’re that close that we’d actually

share our thoughts?” “Huh! I’m sorry,” Yolanda continued sarcastically, “I don’t remember

being welcomed at this camp when we arrived!” Lisa chimed in, “You, Taylor, are ridiculous!

You have never treated us like you care, and now you expect us to willingly interact?” As

tempers rose, the rest of the staff members’ mouths dropped open, and with eyes as wide as

saucers, they watched Taylor for her reaction. “Well, okay,” Taylor said breathlessly. “Let’s

adjourn this meeting, and we all see other in the morning.” And with that, everyone dispersed,

and Taylor trudged back to her room in silence.

The next morning while sitting at breakfast in the cafeteria, anxiety, dread, and yet a

sense of calm filled Taylor as she waited to confront Lisa and Yolanda. After talking with some

campers and various staff members, Taylor noticed that both ladies were getting ready to exit the

cafeteria. Now was her chance. “Lisa! Yolanda!” called out Taylor. Both ladies reluctantly

stopped and waited for Taylor to catch up. “Will you both please join me in the common room?

We need to discuss what happened yesterday evening.” Lisa and Yolanda huffed, but agreed, and

all three ladies ventured to the meeting place. For authority sake, Taylor requested that Gina

attend the meeting as well, to help facilitate discussions and resolutions. “Now that we’re all

here, let’s discuss what has been bothering you both, and let’s figure out how to move in a

positive direction,” said Taylor. Yolanda calmly offered, “Lisa and I have felt disconnected,

unimportant, and severely disrespected since we arrived at camp.” “Lisa was yelled at for

pillows, I was denied help with unloading campers the other day…we just feel insignificant.”

Taylor glanced knowingly at Gina but said nothing. Taylor, dumbfounded, responded, “Oh my
goodness ladies, I had no idea you were feeling that way. I am so sorry!” Yolanda and Lisa

glossed over Taylor’s apology like epoxy on wood. “With everything now out in the open, here

is what we are going to do to effectively and positively move forward.” Taylor laid out a plan

that involved Lisa, Yolanda, and herself meeting at least once a day to talk about the day’s

happenings. Taylor also broke down each of their jobs, duty by duty, so that each person had

more clarity regarding their responsibilities. Finally, Taylor made a conscious effort to invite and

include both Lisa and Yolanda in activities and conversations, both with the staff and campers.

After airing and discussing Lisa and Yolanda’s feelings as well as laying out the plan and

guidelines going forward, Taylor immediately started to see an improvement with both of them

and the staff as a whole. Either Taylor or Gina met with both ladies each morning about the

upcoming day, if they have any questions or concerns, and how they are feeling overall. During

the third week of camp, Taylor was able to witness her staff members working together as a

cohesive team to set up and run an activity with the children which gave her a sense of

satisfaction knowing there was no resentment between team members. Lisa and Yolanda started

engaging more with other staff members, especially during their nightly meetings. The last week

of camp, staff members reminisced in their short time remaining together and worked to make

the best week of camp possible. After all the children left the last camp, staff members looked

forward to an evening of fun and games following their final debrief. That night, sitting at a

camp fire surrounded by the Dawn Redwood and China Fur trees, Taylor looked around and felt

proud of how she had been able to overcome the obstacles of her staff members feelings to

created a united team.

 1. Using your knowledge of leadership theories, what would you have done if you were in

Taylor’s shoes? Based on your knowledge of Behavioral Theory, which power and

influence tactics would you have utilized?

2. Using Leader Member Exchange theory, Lisa and Yolanda would most likely be

considered part of the out-group. How could Taylor have used Leader Member Exchange

to help them become a part of the in-group?

3. Describe Taylor’s leadership style based on Trait theories and concepts you’ve

encountered so far in class. Specifically regarding the Big 5 traits, which do you think

Taylor ranks high in?

4. Based on Global Leadership and the GLOBE Project, with the link provided, compare

and contrast China’s and another country’s leadership practices and values.

5. After researching the differences in country’s practices and values, based on Implicit

Leadership Theory, how could Taylor have handled the conflict differently?

1. Objectives of Case

Case Description

Taylor, a first time camp director, struggles to identify her leadership strengths and style while
being confronted with differing perceptions of leadership.

Type of Case

This descriptive case should be analyzed by students who are learning various leadership
theories, and who are prepared to analyze the theories when applied in a real life situation.
Students are encouraged to share their opinions regarding the leadership theories and their
content, directly relating to their own cultural and implicit perceptions of leader-follower
relationships.

Learning Objectives

Students will:
 1. Learn to recognize Behavioral Theory regarding power and influence tactics
2. Understand how personality traits, specifically the Big 5, relate to effective leadership
3. Identify in-groups and out-groups and how leaders can use Leader Member Exchange
Theory to close that gap
4. Develop an understanding of Global Leadership
5. Reflect on how cultures impact the implicit perceptions of leaders

Author Objective

The authors chose to write this particular case because there are several challenges and
uncertainties when starting out as a leader that can have a significant impact on people. This case
is meant to help young leaders identify and acknowledge their behaviors, traits, relationships and
opinions regarding leadership. Also, the authors wanted to help students learn from others’
previous experiences.

2. Course Information

Intended Course

This case is appropriate for courses that incorporate in-depth theory analysis and/or team
dynamics.

Course Level

As a study, this case would be most pertinent to students in a middle to upper-level course,
around a 400 level undergraduate class.

Position in Course

This case should be presented during the latter half of the class after students have had the
opportunity to examine and discuss various theories such as: Behavioral, Trait, Leader Member
Exchange, Global Leadership and Implicit Leadership. If Global Leadership has not been
examined by the time of this case, it may be used as a resource to begin the conversation. The
GLOBE Project link provided is an intriguing reference to explore different cultures, practices
and values.

Prerequisite

A prerequisite for this course would be an upper division course oriented around advanced
leadership theories and behaviors.

Timeframe
This case should be presented and discussed over a class period of 75 minutes which allows the
instructor 10 minutes of flexibility in the schedule.

0-3 Introduction

3-15 Read the case and questions

15-25 First discussion question

25-30 Second discussion question

30-35 Third discussion question

35-45 Fourth discussion question

45-55 Fifth discussion question

55-65 Final wrap up

Proposed Session Plan

3. Case Summary –

Taylor is a first time camp director at Camp Hope in the mountains of China. Having worked at
the camp previously, Taylor is excited to possess a leadership position and help run the camp in a
memorable and inspirational manner. As camp staff arrived, everyone met and began building
relationships. However, due to arriving late to camp, Lisa and Yolanda did not feel welcomed,
missed out on bonding with other camp staff and therefore secluded themselves. Taylor
attempted multiple times to connect with Lisa and Yolanda to determine their reasons for
separating from the other staff members but kept encountering conflict. Finally, at the start of a
staff meeting, Taylor forced Lisa and Yolanda to open up about their feelings. After discovering
the root of the problem Taylor worked with them to overcome challenges in the proceeding
weeks of camp. This case revolves around behaviors, traits, and relationships.

4. Key Issues (list of topics that should be discussed)

● Use of initiating and consideration structure

● Traits that help with leader success
● Emergence of in-groups and out-groups
● Global leadership and its implications
● How followers view effective leaders
5. Key Theories (list of relevant theories)

● Behavioral Leadership Theory

● Trait Theory
● Leader-Member Exchange Theory
● Global Leadership
● Implicit Leadership Theory

6. Theoretical Links (literature review)

Issue 1: As a first time camp director, much less a first time top leader, Taylor eagerly
anticipated for camp to start not knowing what to expect. Right off the bat, her authority was
challenged when Lisa and Yolanda arrived late and treated her and the other camp staff with
indifference. Throughout the weeks, Taylor was consistently challenged with aggressive
behaviors by Lisa, Yolanda, and even Gina, but Taylor did not know necessarily how to respond,
as she was not familiar with power tactics or proactive tactics.
-Behavioral Theory
Fisher et al., (1988) A person’s behavior is extremely important in leadership, because a
person’s actions and methods can either spell success or failure for themselves and/or for their
group. There are different facets of Behavioral Theory, and they range from a leader’s chosen
method to the types of power and tactics they choose to utilize.

Consideration structure: this structure is used by a leader who is concerned with

peoples’ feelings, maintains a relationship of mutual trust, and considers their team’s overall
well-being.

Initiating structure: this structure may be more familiar, as it entails a leader who instills
high and strong levels of structure, and they are more focused on goal attainment than others’
feelings and thoughts.

High levels of both of these structures result in higher levels of leadership effectiveness
according to researchers. In conjunction with these structures, according to Gary Yukl, there are
different power tactics and proactive influence tactics that leaders may use to help them be
successful.

Yukl (2013) asserts that influence is the ultimate force in leadership, because influence is
necessary to propel people to carry out requests, support proposals, and implement decisions.
With that being said, influence is often accompanied by power and authority, which have their
own characteristics. Power is essentially the level of influence someone has and authority
involves a leader’s rights, prerogatives, and obligations associated with a particular position. In
other words, power is more so controlled by influence and is earned, whereas authority is granted
and some power goes along with it. This may be an interesting point for students to consider and
discuss. There are several different types of power that were determined by researchers French
and Raven in 1959 (Yukl, p. 188).

Legitimate Power- Power that stems from formal authority

Reward Power-Perception of a subordinate that the leader controls valuable resources that can
be granted to the subordinate
Coercive Power- Leader’s authority over punishment
Referent Power- The desire of others to please a leader for whom they admire and respect
Expert Power- A leader’s task relevant knowledge and skill about unique and specific processes
Information Power- A leader’s control over all information
Ecological Power- A leader’s control over how an organization is set-up and maintained
Position Power- This pertains to legitimate authority, control over resources and rewards,
control over punishments, control over information and control over physical work environment.
Personal Power- Based on potential influence through task expertise and friendly and loyal
relationships.

In addition to types of power there are 11 different types of influence tactics that accompany
power and leadership success. Types of influence tactics include:

Rational Persuasion- a person uses logical arguments and factual statements for a proposal.
Apprising-someone explains how the other person will benefit from carrying out a request.
Inspirational Appeals- someone makes an appeal to another’s values and ideals or seeks to
arouse their emotions.
Consultation- someone suggests another person to make improvements in a proposal.
Collaboration- someone offers to provide relevant resources and assistance if the target is
willing to carry out a task.
Ingratiation- someone uses praise and flattery to get what they want.
Personal Appeals- when someone asks for someone else’s support based on friendship or for a
personal favor.
Exchange- someone offers an incentive or suggests an exchange of favors with another person in
order to complete a task.
Coalition Tactics- someone seeks the aid of others to persuade another person to do something.
Legitimating Tactics- someone seeks to establish the legitimacy of a request or to verify
authority.
Pressure- when someone uses demands, threats, or frequent checking on someone in order to
complete a task.

Bringing all of this back to Taylor and the case, Taylor has authoritative power because she was
hired for the position. However, she did not start out with personal power, as she did not have the
trust of Lisa, Yolanda, and an argument could be made for Gina. Lisa and Yolanda arrived and
immediately discounted Taylor as their leader, because they did not trust that she truly cared
about their feelings or well-being. With Taylor’s position though, she did possess expert power
as she knew the camp’s internal processes, and she held information power as she was in charge
of the camp’s schedule, money, and resources. Personal power eluded Taylor until she was able
to talk with Lisa and Yolanda, consult with them about how to work through their discontent,
and collaborate with both ladies on how to proceed in moving forward. Students should discuss
other types of power present and Taylor’s use of consideration structure and initiating structure.

Issue 2: Because Lisa and Yolanda arrived at camp a few days later than the rest of the staff they
missed out on integral team bonding and understanding of everyone’s positions. They both felt
part of the out-group among the camp staff. Both Lisa and Yolanda observed the interactions
between other staff members and envied the level of comfort they had around each other. This
feeling of not being a part of the staff created a divide between Lisa and Yolanda and everyone
else working at camp.
- Leader Member Exchange Theory
Schriesheim et al. (1999) Leader Member Exchange was created in the 1970’s and has
been researched increasingly in hopes of improving subordinate satisfaction and performance.
Leader Member Exchange emerged from the Vertical Dyad Linkage model.

Leader Member Exchange focuses on the relationships between leaders and followers
and the quality of exchanges they experience together. These exchanges allow individuals to
place themselves in one of two groups based on how they viewed their leader and the way in
which they performed their job.

In-Groups - Also known as “high-quality exchanges,” are followers who trust their
leader and have a high respect for how they lead. This translates to growth beyond their job
description and increased levels of productivity and support for the leader.

Out-Groups - Also known as “low-quality exchanges,” is the opposite of in-groups.

These followers react to their leader with low levels of trust and respect leading to lower feelings
of obligation to their position. Here, followers only do what is required of them, and they do not
try to go above and beyond.

As more research is done on this area, there is more emphasis on the one-on-one
relationship between leaders and followers instead of the emphasis on in and out groups. Even as
this theory evolves as more research is done, it overall shows the importance of building and
nurturing relationships among leaders and followers.
Bringing this information back to the case, Taylor could have used knowledge of Leader
Member Exchange in order to create more meaningful relationships with Lisa and Yolanda.
Once the trust and respect had been established they may have felt more comfortable coming to
Taylor with issues or helping outside of their specific job duties. Lisa and Yolanda also could
have worked to create relationships with Taylor or other staff members in an attempt to move
from the out-group to the in-group. Both Taylor, Lisa and Yolanda had the ability to start
building productive relationships with each other, but without Taylor initiating it Lisa and
Yolanda assumed she did not want to build trust with them.

Issue 3: At the time of camp, Taylor was exceptionally naive as to who she was as a leader. As
camp began and progressed, she was surrounded by campers, various camp staff, conflict and
afflicted with inexperience on how to handle it all. Taylor exhibited different personality traits
throughout the case which allowed her to gain insight into who she was and how she operated.

-Trait Theory
Judge et al. (2002)Trait theory was first derived in the Victorian Era when Thomas
Carlyle made the comment that the history of the world was the biography of great men.
According to Judge and his fellow researchers, the “great man” hypothesis, which means that
history was shaped by great leadership, influenced the rise of Trait Theory.
Essentially, this theory claims that certain personality types coincide with leadership
more so than any other traits. The traits, otherwise known as the Big 5, include:
Neuroticism, Extraversion, Openness to Experience, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness. All
of these personality traits are correlated with leadership based on various studies, and some
allegedly are more effective than others.
-Neuroticism is defined as someone who has lower levels of emotional stability and
adjustment. They tend to display high levels of anxiety, insecurity, and hostility according to
researchers. This trait is believed to show lower levels of leader emergence and effectiveness.
-Extraversion is defined as someone who is active, vocal, and displays zealous and
positive outgoing behavior. This trait has been linked to higher levels of leadership emergence
and medium levels of effectiveness.
-Openness to Experience is a trait possessed by someone who has a propensity to be
creative, imaginative and unconventional. These people tend to look forward to the future and
are more apt to embrace ambiguity. This trait is highly related to leadership emergence and
effectiveness.
-Agreeableness is someone who tends to be trusting, caring, gentle, and a more “go with
the flow” kind of person. This trait does not have a clear negative or positive relationship with
leadership emergence or effectiveness, meaning that the trait’s link is unclear.
-Conscientiousness is a trait that belongs to someone who is detail oriented and who
values high achievement and job performance. If someone is concerned with high quality
outcomes and believes in quality work, it is believed that they will be more effective leaders.
Although Trait Theory has fallen from grace somewhat with leadership scholars, the authors
assert that the Big 5 Traits are certainly present with Taylor and her staff. Taylor, first off
exhibits Agreeableness and Extraversion, because she is caring, intuitive, and does her best to
keep the peace. On the other hand, Taylor approaches conflict, visits with her staff and other
campers and organizes various activities, so one could argue that she displays extroverted
behaviors, and an argument could even be made for conscientiousness.

Another interesting person to analyze is Gina, the camp’s manager. She seems to exert high
levels of neuroticism, because she barks orders and does not display warmth to those around her.
In addition though, an argument for conscientiousness could be made, because she seems to
value order and consistency, regardless of her demeanor. With those points being made, although
Trait Theory is not valued by some researchers, the authors agree with Cowley, a researcher,
who stated that, “the approach to the study of leadership has usually been and perhaps must
always be through the study of traits” (Judge et al., p. 765).

Issue 4: Taylor’s camp was located in China, and worked with various types of people. Every
person working at the camp was familiar with Chinese societal norms but differed in their
expectations of their leaders and peers. This helped Taylor understand where Lisa and Yolanda
were coming from once they expressed the reason behind their angst. However, if Taylor had
been from another part of the world she may have struggled more to understand the reasons
behind Lisa and Yolanda’s discontent.
-Global Leadership
House and Javidan (2004) Global leadership is essentially the study of how different
cultures influence leadership and organizational processes. House and Javidan, as well as other
researchers, pose great questions regarding global leadership, but one question that spoke to the
case study’s authors was: how do leadership styles vary according to culturally specific values
and norms? The answer is best shown through the GLOBE project and its current research.
The Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness (GLOBE) Project is a
research program made up of 3 phases.
Phase 1: Developing research instruments
Phase 2: Assessing nine core attributes
-Uncertainty Avoidance
-Power Distance
-Institutional Collectivism
-In-Group Collectivism
-Gender Egalitarianism
-Assertiveness
-Future Orientation
-Performance Orientation
-Humane Orientation
 Phase 3: Determining the impact and effectiveness of CEOs behaviors on subordinates’
attitudes and performance (p. 9).

Bringing Global Leadership back to the case, one of the case’s authors was from China and
expressed how this situation would have played out differently in China versus the United States
and other countries. This probed the authors to research various nations and compare the
leadership values and practices to China’s. With the rise of individuals working in foreign
countries, it can be assumed the camp would have a diverse staff that might struggle with
leadership culture shock.

Issue 5: Lisa and Yolanda both came to camp with ideas of how they expected their leaders to
act and lead. Those assumptions were based on their previous experiences with leaders and the
presumptions of their society. When Taylor did not act in accordance with how Lisa and Yolanda
were expecting, it led to them determining she was not an effective leader.

Implicit Leadership Theory

Offerman et al. (1994) Implicit Leadership Theory continues to be used in helping

understand the internal perceptions and assumptions we have about leaders. Our brains also
make distinctions between leaders and what we consider to be effective leadership. After
conducting research, there are eight primary dimensions used to frame the characteristics people
use when describing leaders.

Sensitivity - This category includes characteristics such as compassion, understanding and

sympathy. Leaders are seen as sincere and helpful and forgiving when mistakes are made.

Dedication - Leaders described as dedicated are goal-oriented and hard-working in order to meet
their goals. They are highly motivated and will do whatever it takes to accomplish their goal.

Tyranny - This category is not seen as one that leads to effective leadership. Leaders here are
described as being selfish or conceited. They have dominant personalities and manipulate their
followers in order to gain more power. These leaders also expect a lot from their followers.

Charisma - Charisma in leaders can be shown through their energy and enthusiasm for the
mission of the group. These leaders offer inspiration to their followers and are dynamic in
working with others.

Attractiveness - For this category the outward parts of a leader are taken into account.
Characteristics such as being well groomed, well dressed and attractive fit into this category.

Masculinity - The masculinity category encompasses men and manliness.

Intelligence - This category encompases characteristics including being educated and wise.
Having knowledge and being clever with how the knowledge is used.

Strength - Characteristics of this category include being strong or bold.

Of the eight categories listed above, there are four that are seen as characteristics that
embody effective leaders. These categories are dedication, charisma, intelligence and sensitivity.
This does not mean that the other categories don’t have merit when it comes to leaders, they are
just not considered overall to be positive characteristics.

We also have to consider that the perceptions and assumptions we have are framed
around our societal views of leaders. Globally, there are many different ideas about what makes
an effective leader and how leaders should act.

Taking this information back to the case, Lisa and Yolanda categorized Taylor by some of these
categories or characteristics. Those implicit categorizations lead to lower levels of satisfaction
because Taylor was not exhibiting the characteristics they deemed as necessary to be an effective
leader. If they would have interacted in a different culture, then their assumptions about what
constitutes a good leader may have changed meaning they could have viewed Taylor as an
effective leader.

7. Discussion Questions

6. Using your knowledge of leadership theories, what would you have done if you were in
Taylor’s shoes? Based on your knowledge of Behavioral Theory, which power and
influence tactics would you have utilized?
7. Using Leader Member Exchange theory, Lisa and Yolanda would most likely be
considered part of the out-group. How could Taylor have used Leader Member Exchange
to help them become a part of the in-group?
8. Describe Taylor’s leadership style based on Trait theories and concepts you’ve
encountered so far in class. Specifically regarding the Big 5 traits, which do you think
Taylor ranks high in?
9. Based on Global Leadership and the GLOBE Project, with the link provided, compare
and contrast China’s and another country’s leadership practices and values.
10. After researching the differences in country’s practices and values, based on Implicit
Leadership Theory, how could Taylor have handled the conflict differently?

8. Responses to Questions

Question 1: Using your knowledge of leadership theories, what would you have done if you
were in Taylor’s shoes? Based on your knowledge of Behavioral Theory, which power and
influence tactics would you have utilized?
Relevant Theories: Behavioral Theory-Power and Influence

Note to Instructor: This question is made to be broad in order to start the conversation about the
case study and possible constructs that could be relevant. Starting the conversation with power
and influence allows students to examine one area of leadership that can be based on perception.
Leaders and followers base their power and influence tactics on the relationships they perceive to
have with others.

Possible Answers:

● Taylor was in an exceptionally difficult position being a young leader, as she was still
learning about herself, her leadership style, and she was unsure about how to make a
positive and lasting impact on her staff and campers. With that being said, position and
reward power would have been two strengths to enact early on. Position power would
have allowed camp staff to recognize legitimate authority and respect the control Taylor
had over resources and information. Initiating structure would have been complementary
because it would have allowed Taylor to establish rules and expectations regarding
conduct, communication and reporting issues right away. Also, reward power could have
instilled a positive recognition system between Taylor and her staff members which
would have helped build trust. Eventually though, Taylor could have used referent power
because of Lisa and Yolanda’s trust and respect for her in the end.
● Taylor should have used her legitimate power at the camp. According to Chinese culture,
hierarchy is the main cultural background of leaders. So, since she is in China, legitimate
power may have helped her in solving problems with older staff members. But
Yukl(2013) cautions against misusing legitimate power, because if used incorrectly, it
can do significant damage to relationships. And as long as Taylor uses legitimate power
effectively, then she can successfully delegate tasks to various people without push-back.
● Outside of power, the rational persuasion influence technique could have proven very
useful to Taylor. This type of influence uses logic and facts to show why the argument is
feasible and relevant. Taylor also could have used consultative or collaborative influence
where she may have received more feedback from Lisa and Yolanda about what was
wrong, and how they thought it should be fixed. Having the opinions of others helps in
making decisions, but it also helps them feel valued within the organization.

Question 2: Using Leader Member Exchange theory, Lisa and Yolanda would most likely be
considered part of the out-group. How could Taylor have used Leader Member Exchange to
help them become a part of the in-group?

Relevant Theories: Leader Member Exchange (LMX Theory)

Note to Instructor: Leader Member Exchange focuses on the dyadic relationship between a
leader and their followers. The difference in quality between exchanges, high and low, determine
if a follower is placed in the in or out group by the leader.

Possible Answers:

● Lisa and Yolanda most likely felt a part of the out-group due to arriving late and not
having built trust in their relationship with Taylor before campers arrived. The quality of
exchange between Lisa, Yolanda and Taylor would not have been as high as the other
staff members due to their late arrival and lack of intention. Taylor could have used this
theory by intentionally setting aside time early on for one on one meetings with Lisa and
Yolanda in order to start building trust and interacting in an intimate setting. Once the
trust was built then both Lisa and Yolanda may have begun to feel comfortable
interacting with other camp staff and possibly integrated themselves into the in-group.
After becoming part of the in-group, Lisa and Yolanda would have wanted to exceed the
expectations Taylor had for them resulting in more help around camp and improved
attitudes. Overall, mindfully creating high quality exchanges with both Lisa and Yolanda
would have allowed Taylor to integrate them into the staff in a more efficient and
successful way.

Question 3: Describe Taylor’s leadership style based on Trait theories and concepts you’ve
encountered so far in class. Specifically regarding the Big 5 traits, which do you think Taylor
ranks high in?

Relevant Theories: Trait Theory

Note to Instructor: This theory is based on personality traits and how some of them can be used
in effective leadership.

Possible Answers:

● The Big 5 traits I see most in Taylor are Agreeableness and Extraversion. When Gina
demands that Taylor go inside and help with campers, Taylor did not object or accuse
Gina of being rude, she just agreed. Also, when Lisa and Yolanda refused to participate,
instead of making a scene, Taylor just agreed and went on with the meeting. Also, I think
she is extroverted because although she is nervous, Taylor was not afraid to talk with
people and interact with campers on a whim. She had high energy, enjoyed leading the
meetings for the most part, and handled conflicts in person as they arose.

Question 4: Based on Global Leadership and the GLOBE Project, with the link provided,
compare and contrast China’s and another country’s leadership practices and values.

Relevant Theories: Global Leadership

Note to Instructor: Students will need to conduct some research on the GLOBE link in order to
learn about the practices and values of different countries and compare them to those in China.
https://globeproject.com/results#country

Possible Answers:

● If this camp had been in Germany, the planning process may have been relatively similar
as both countries have a medium level practice of future orientation which involves
planning and future investments in the camp. Taylor would have been more assertive in
her communication and problem-solving tactics with staff, because Germany’s practice
of being assertive is relatively high whereas in China it is at a medium level. In regards to
leadership visualization, it seems that both countries are relatively similar, except for
when it comes to participative leadership practices. If the camp had been in Germany,
Taylor might have involved Gina in her problem solving tactics much more, and they
may have worked together more as a single unit. However, in the Chinese leadership
culture, it appears to be a bit more autocratic, because the participative leadership
visualization only contributes slightly to a leader’s success.
● There were a few key differences in the culture and leadership visualization between
China and the United States that could have made a difference. First, there were two
leadership styles that the U.S. ranked higher in by a considerable amount, participative
and charismatic. Charismatic leaders draw others in with their vision, and if Taylor had
been more charismatic maybe Lisa and Yolanda would have been more apt to join her. In
the participative role, there is a possibility that if Taylor had worked alongside Lisa and
Yolanda more she would have uncovered their sources of tension earlier on and been able
to address issues sooner. In terms of the culture, China had a much lower practice number
for assertiveness meaning that it is more uncomfortable for them to address conflict
which shows based on how long it took Lisa and Yolanda to finally admit to Taylor what
was wrong and why Taylor did not push for answers right away. China also puts a much
higher value on in-group collectivism meaning that it was much harder for Lisa and
Yolanda to entirely express themselves because they did not feel a part of the group. If
this had taken place in the U.S., the confrontation of the problem would have happened
sooner and with a different set of leadership practices the problem could have been
resolved much faster.
● If this happened in the United Kingdom, Taylor would have more confidence to be the
leader because people in the UK have higher gender egalitarianism. She would not be
seen as weak or unqualified because she is a young lady. For future orientation, since
people in the UK have higher scores than those in China, Taylor might be better at
building long term relationships with the followers which could have also helped reduce
the problems. However, since China is seen to have more humane orientation and has
higher scores on in-group collectivism that means if this case happened in the UK, people
may not consider others’ personal feelings or think about the followers’ interests. Even
 the in-group people would not express more loyalty to the group.

● Question 5: After researching the differences in country’s practices and values, based
on Implicit Leadership Theory, how could Taylor have handled the conflict
differently?

Relevant Theories: Implicit Leadership Theory

Note to Instructor: Implicit Leadership Theory explores the ideas and expectations followers
have for leaders in order to view leaders as effective.

Possible Answers:

● Implicit Leadership Theories (ILTs) are based on peoples’ past experiences with various
leaders in different contexts according to Kennedy Offerman and additional researchers.
ILTs are broken down into eight primary dimensions that include: sensitivity, tyranny,
dedication, charisma, attractiveness, masculinity, intelligence, and strength (Offerman et
al., p. 54). With those pieces being said, Lisa and Yolanda may have viewed Taylor as a
young leader who wasn’t as strong as them or believed to have the necessary intelligence
to run an entire camp. Lisa and Yolanda may have encountered leaders like this before
and decided that their efforts to interact would be more beneficial amongst themselves
versus with Taylor or the group. Lisa and Yolanda would have done well to notice
Taylor’s sensitivity to theirs and others’ behavior and Taylor’s ability to be charismatic
and interactive with campers and other staff members. Had they looked at Taylor for
what she was good at versus her shortcomings, resolutions to problems could have been
possibly more likely to happen.
● Because Taylor was unaware of Lisa and Yolanda’s implicit perceptions of leadership
there was a misunderstanding from the beginning of what Taylor should be doing as the
leader. Taylor exhibited the necessary intelligence that was needed to run the camp
effectively and the dedication to work long hours in order to ensure the happiness of
campers and staff members. Because of their Chinese culture, Lisa and Yolanda may
have expected more structure and strength from Taylor in assigning tasks and keeping the
staff in line. Taylor should not have been as timid when interacting with her staff
members. She needed to be direct in asking about what was going on and not give up
until she had a solid answer.

9. Teaching Materials and Tips

● Big 5 Traits
 ○ Interactive Quiz: http://personality-testing.info/tests/BIG5.php
● Global Leadership
○ Link to GLOBE: https://globeproject.com/results#country
● Implicit Leadership Theory

10. Epilogue

Upon conclusion of the camp, Taylor, Lisa and Yolanda all returned to their homes and lives.
They discovered they lived in the same city and continued to make an effort to meet up once a
month to talk about their lives and dreams. Each of them took different lessons from the summer
at camp and continued to use them in their daily lives. Taylor felt more confident in her ability to
address conflict and lead large groups of people even at her young age. This has helped her land
a job managing homes for orphans within the city. Lisa understands now how to take criticism in
a constructive way and address conflict in a way that works towards a solution versus creating a
divide. Yolanda learned the importance of clear communication and has been working to
improve with her coworkers to ease tensions and avoid conflict.

Sometimes when visiting together, none of them can believe that they were not friends from the
start. Each of them anticipate a return to Camp Hope in a future summer and further the mission
of loving orphaned children. They know that if they can work together effectively and provide a
welcoming and safe environment for the staff members then, they can give even more love and
attention to their campers. With trust established and the skills to communicate effectively, all
three women can now be extremely successful.

11. Annotated Bibliography

Avolio, B.J., Gardner, W.L., Walumbwa, F.O., Luthans, F., & May, D.R. (2004).
Unlocking the mask: A look at the process by which authentic leaders impact follower
attitudes and behaviors. The Leadership Quarterly, 15, 801-823.
This paper is to provide some basic work for a broader theoretical framework of how a more
authentic leader can influence the attitude, behavior and performance of his followers. The
author also described the process in which real leaders exert influence on followers’ attitudes and
behaviors from the perspective of positive organizational behavior, trust, hope, emotion, identity
and identity theory. This paper puts forward the research proposition based on the proposed
theoretical model, as well as the enlightenment for the future theoretical construction and
research.

Derue, D.S., Nahrgang, J.D., Wellman, N., & Humphrey, S.E. (2011). Trait and
behavioral theories: An integration and meta-analytic test of their relative validity.
Personal Psychology, 64, 7-52.

This paper studies the relative effectiveness of a leader’s traits and behaviors across four
leadership effectiveness to solve the problem of lack of integration. Although the author thinks
that leaders’ behaviors are more likely to explain the change of leadership effectiveness than
leaders’ traits, the results show that it is necessary to develop a comprehensive model of the
relationship between leaders’ traits and effectiveness.
 Fisher, B.M., & Edwards, J.E. (1988). Consideration and initiating structure and their
relationships with leader effectiveness: A meta-analysis. Proceedings of the Academy of
Management, August, 201-205.

This article observed that consideration and initiating structure and the relationships between
them and leader effectiveness through a meta-analysis. And the analysis showed that things are
different in different situations.

House, R.J., & Javidan, M. (2004). Overview of GLOBE. In R.J. House, P.J. Hanges, M.
Javidan, P.W. Dorfman, & V. Gupta (Eds.). Culture, Leadership and Organizations (pp.
9-28). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
This chapter is the overview of the globe and it stated the major problems concerning leadership.
The author also explained cross cultural leadership needs, two main issues and the definitions of
leadership and culture. It also described the globe research program and showed the globe
questionnaire scales. In the end, the author also explained that the research program will have
beneficial social and economic applications.

Judge, T.A., Bono, J.E., Ilies, R., & Gerhardt, M.W. (2002). Personality and leadership:
A qualitative and quantitative review. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87, 765-780.

This paper makes a qualitative review of trait perspectives in leadership research, followed by a
meta-analysis. Using the five factor model as the organizational framework, the authors
conducted a meta-analysis of 222 correlations from 73 samples. The results show that the
relationship between neuroticism, extroversion, experience openness and conscientiousness and
leadership is universal. Extraversion is the standard of cross research environment and
leadership.

Offermann, L. R., Kennedy Jr, J. K., & Wirtz, P. W. (1994). Implicit leadership theories:
Content, structure, and generalizability. The Leadership Quarterly, 5(1), 43-58.
This research is about the the content and the factor structure variation of ILT for male and
female perceivers cross leaders, effective leaders and supervisors. Also, it showed the results of
the research suggests that all of the eight factors that remain relatively stable across the percerver
sex and stimuli. Author believes that ILT can be different in many ways.

Schriesheim, C.A., Castro, S.L., & Cogliser, C.C. (1999). Leader-member exchange (LMX)
research: A comprehensive review of theory, measurement, and data-analytic practices.
Leadership Quarterly, 9, 63-113.
This article explains that the concept definition of LMX and its sub dimensions has developed
over time. Similarly, the methods used to evaluate LMX vary widely. The results show that we
may not know much about the basic communication process between leaders and members, and
future research must pay more attention to the key issues outlined in this review.

Yukl, G., Gordon, A., & Taber, T. (2002). A hierarchical taxonomy of leadership behavior:
Integrating a half century of behavior research. Journal of Leadership and Organizational
Studies, 9(1), 15-32.

This article integrated a half century of leadership research by using hierarchical taxonomy with
three metacategories, which are task, relations and change behavior, to solve the problem of
lacking agreement about which behavior categories are relevant and meaningful in leadership
research. The article also explained all the three behaviors and compared them with the earlier
measures.

Yukl, G. (2013). Leadership in organizations. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. Chapter 8:
Power and Influence (pp. 85-120).
This chapter mainly explained that the constructs used in the power and influence literature, and
it also described the different sources and types of power. Author showed both information about
how to gain and lose power, and provided the advice of how to use power to make the leadership
more effective. Besides, this chapter also provided some influence tactics for leaders to influence
their followers more effectively.