CONTIGENCY THEORIES OF

LEADERSHIP
An Assignment given by Sir Muhammad Salman Khan

Anum Ahmer (64331) Leadership & Team building

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1. The Fiedler’s Model:

Fred Fiedler was the first theorist who talks about the situational leadership. According to Fiedler, the
effectiveness of the leadership style depends on the situation. He identified the situational variables and
studied about their relationship with the appropriateness of leadership styles.

This model is comprised of three elements;

I. Leadership styles
II. Situational variables
III. The relationship between styles and situation. 

Leadership Style:

According to Fiedler, the leadership style depends on two types;

I. Task-oriented:
The task-oriented leaders concerned with the task performance and the accomplishment of task
goals.
II. Human-relations oriented:
The human-relations oriented concerned with more emphasis on developing the interpersonal
relationship with their subordinates.

To do this step, He developed a scale called the Least Preferred Coworker (LPC).

 High LPC = Relationship-oriented leader.

 Low LPC = Task-oriented leader.

Situational Variables:

It has been observed that, several situational factors influence the effectiveness of the leadership style.
According to Fiedler there are three critical dimensions;

1. Leader’s Position Power: 

This element is concerned with the power which a leader derives from the position in the
organization.
2. Task Structure: 
In task structure, the actions of the subordinates can be well directed and their performances
can be well controlled, which may not be possible in case of unclear task structure.

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3. Leader-member Relations:
This dimension is about the degree to which the members have trust, confidence and faith in
their manager.

Relation Between Styles and Situations: 

In this Fiedler’s contingency model, He tells about the relationship between the situation and the
appropriateness of leadership style. According to Fiedler, the leadership effectiveness depends on the
situation, it is the situation that gives an opportunity to the leader to influence his subordinates through
the right kind of leadership style.

Example of Contingency Theory by Fiedler:

Domino’s Manager;

In this example, we’re going to imagine that a person has been newly appointed the manager of a
Domino’s Restaurant. In this scenario we might expect the following situational factors:

 Trust will be low. This is because that the manager is new to the job so his team won’t trust him.
Secondly, staff turnover is high so it’s going to be difficult to build strong relationships.

 Task structure is high. This is because there are extremely clear operating procedures to follow
covering everything from how to make each pizza, to how to welcome customers to the
restaurant.

 Position power is high. He has the ability to hire and fire and reward and punish as is required.

According to Fiedler’s Contingency Theory of Leadership, and using the LPC table, a relationship-
oriented leader is best suited to this type of role.

2. Hersey & Blanchard Model:

According to this model, the leader has the leadership style according to the readiness of Coworkers
which moves in stages and has a cycle. This theory is known as the life-cycle theory of leadership.

Hersey and Blanchard developed a theory that suggests that leader’s ability to lead depends upon
certain situational factors.  If a leader understands, recognize and adapt these factors, He will be able to
influence his surroundings and followers much more successfully than if these factors are ignored.
Hersey and Blanchard focused a great part of their research on the characteristics of followers in
determining appropriate leadership behaviors. They found that leaders would have to modify their
leadership style as their followers changed in terms of their;
1. Ability (Task Readiness)
2. Willingness (Psychological Readiness) to perform the required task. 

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According to Hersey and Blanchard, there are four main types of leadership styles:

1. Telling; Telling/Directing Style: (S1)

Directive and authoritative approach. The leader makes decisions and tells employees what to
do.
2. Selling; Selling/Coaching Style: (S2)
The leader is the decision maker, but he communicates and works with the employees rather
than simply directing them.
3. Supporting; Participating Style: (S3)
The leader works with the subordinates to make decisions. He supports them and He is
democratic.
4. Delegating; Delegating Style: (S4)
The leader assigns decision-making responsibility to team members but continuously look their
work.

Examples of Hersey & Blanchard Model:

1. Sports teams experience changes frequently in team members who are coming and going. So,
the strengths and weaknesses of the entire team are constantly changing. Coaches need to
adapt their strategies, approaches and leadership methods in variable situations at hand.

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2. In war, military Officers must constantly change their approaches based on the personalities and
strengths of their units. They also need to change strategies depending on the challenges and
scenarios they encounter. 

3. Path Goal Theory:

The Path-Goal model is based on a leader's style or behavior that best define the employee and
work environment in order to achieve goals. The goal is to increase employees' motivation,
empowerment, and satisfaction so they become productive members of the organization.

The path-goal theory is a process in which leaders select specific characteristics that are best
suited to the employees' needs and the working environment so that they may best guide the
employees through their PATH in the obtainment of their task & work activities GOAL.

EMPLOYEE GOAL

PATH

The Path-Goal model identifies achievement-oriented, directive, participative, and supportive leader

behaviors in four styles;

1. The directive/Instrumental path-goal leaders:

In this the leader’s behavior refers to situations where the leader lets employees know what is
expected of them and tells them how to perform their tasks. 
2. The achievement-oriented leader:
In this leader’s behavior refers to situations where the leader sets challenging goals for
employees to perform at their highest level and shows confidence in their ability to meet this
expectation. 
3. The participative leader:
In this type leader’s behavior involves leaders consulting with employees and asking for their
suggestions before making a decision. 
4. The supportive leaders:
In this type the behavior of a leader is directed towards the satisfaction of employees’ needs
and preferences. The leader shows concern for the employees’ well-being.

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Example of Path-Goal Theory:

An example of path-goal theory in my life is when I was a part of the German language
instructor group last year. The program assigns mentors to upcoming instructors. There are 4
weeks for the students to learn and grow under the instructor and mentor. During this time,
there are weekly lessons, weekly training sessions and weekly assigned classes for the students
to instruct. The role the mentor plays is so important for the mentee.
         The mentor guides the mentee along the lessons, they evaluate their classes and their
sessions. Near the end of the last week mentees are invited to a role play.  The mentor’s
responsibility is to strengthen their mentee’s ability to perform well and to support the mentee
emotionally. Stepping in front of a class of 35 plus students to perform is a stressful situation! It
is important to lead a student group confidently. My mentor was a tremendous influencer. She
always talked to me 5 minutes before each class and She told me to say these words;

“I am capable, I am confident and I can do this”.

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