MANAGEMENT OF

BUSINESS
TRAIT THEORY
GROUP MEMBERS:
RHAJAE MELBOURNE
GIANNI HENRY
DUVAUGHN MARRIOTT
TYREKE LIVINGSTON
ALECKI REID
 
 WHAT IS TRAIT THEORY?

The trait theory of leadership is an early assumption that leaders are born and
due to this belief, those that possess the correct qualities and traits are better
suited to leadership. This theory often identifies behavioral characteristics that
are common in leaders.
Some examples of traits are:
• Physiological
• Demographic
• A drive to achieve
• Knowledgeable
• Motivated Leader
 RALPH STOGDILL
Ralph Stogdill was among the first to challenge traditional trait-based theory. In 1948 Stogdill analysed data and
findings from over a hundred leadership related studies, across 27 groups of factors.
Stogdill was one of the first people to point out that a person doesn’t become an effective leader just because he, or she,
holds certain traits. He argued that a successful leader’s characteristics must be relevant to the demands of the leadership
situation, this is, the specific challenges faced and the abilities, hopes, values and concerns of the followers.
So instead he proposes ten traits in which give a clearer picture of who an effective leader is. These are:
• Honesty
• Intelligence
• Having a great sense of humor
• Using initiative
• Competence
• Integrity and conviction
• Responsibility
• Insight
• Self- Confidence
• Inspirational
 RICHARD D MANN
Richard D. Man conducted a study on many findings about leadership. Mann
focused on the findings about personality and leadership in small groups. As such,
his study suggested that indeed personality traits could be used to positively
distinguish leaders from non-leaders.
So Mann summarised the traits that were identified by previous theorists and the
following traits are:
• Intelligence
• Masculinity
• Dominance
 HANS EYSENCK
This was the first theorist to put a statistical twist on the research on traits. His research was
characterized by a list of adjective that were issued to hundreds of thousands of people. He then
used statistics to figure the factors that carry the most weight. Once these were identified,
Eysenck developed a test that is referred to as the ‘Eysenck Personality Questionnaire’ (EPQ).
His research findings suggested that there are three dimensions of personality:
• Introversion/Extroversion – Introversion involves directing attention on one’s own experiences,
while extraversion is where attention is placed on other people and the environment and it
encompasses a number of more specific characteristics such as sociability, assertiveness, high
activity level and positive emotions.

• Neuroticism/Stability- neuroticism refers to the tendency of an individual to become upset or

emotional while stability refers to the tendency of the individual to remain emotionally sound.

• Psychoticism-Individuals with this trait are said to have difficulty dealing with reality and are
often anti-social, hostile, non-empathetic and manipulative.
 HANS EYSENCK CONT’D

His research findings suggested that there are three dimensions of personality:
• Introversion/Extroversion – Introversion involves directing attention on one’s own experiences,
while extraversion is where attention is placed on other people and the environment and it
encompasses a number of more specific characteristics such as sociability, assertiveness, high
activity level, positive emotions, and impulsivity.

• Neuroticism/Stability- neuroticism refers to the tendency of an individual to become upset or

emotional. Also they tend to have an overactive sympathetic nervous system and have an
emotional state that tends to go into a flight-or-fight reaction while stability refers to the
tendency of the individual to remain emotionally sound.
 `
• Psychoticism-Individuals with this trait are said to have difficulty dealing with reality and are
often anti-social, hostile, non-empathetic and manipulative.
 FIVE FACTOR THEORY

The improvement of technology and knowledge, other theorists have built on the work
of Eysenck to develop what is called the five factor theory. The five personality
traits are :
• Extraversion – introversion
Extraversion is characterized by excitability, sociability, talkativeness,
assertiveness.
Extraversion people are outgoing and tend to gain energy in social situations.
Being around other people helps them feel energized and excited.
Introversion people tend to be more reserved and have less energy to expend in
social settings. Social events can feel draining and introverts often require a period
of solitude and quiet in order to "recharge."
• Emotional Stability
Emotional stability refers to a person's ability to remain stable and be
balanced. At the other end of the scale, a person who is high in emotional
stability has a tendency to easily experience negative emotions. Also People
who score high in emotional stability on a career test react less emotionally
and are not easily upset. They tend to be emotionally stable, calm, and do not
constantly experience negative feelings

• Agreeableness - This is where people tend to be friendly and accommodating.

This personality dimension includes attributes such as trust, altruism, kindness
and affection. People who are high in agreeableness tend to be more
cooperative while those low in this trait tend to be more competitive and
sometimes even manipulative.
• Conscientiousness – These people tend to be orderly, get their work done and be
punctual.
Standard features of this dimension include high levels of thoughtfulness, good
impulse control, and goal-directed behaviors. Highly conscientious people tend to be
organized and mindful of details. They plan ahead, think about how their behavior
affects others, and are mindful of deadlines.
• Openness -These people tend to be open minded and creative.
This trait features characteristics such as imagination and insight. People who are
high in this trait also tend to have a broad range of interests. They are curious about
the world and other people and eager to learn new things and enjoy new experiences.
People who are high in this trait also tend to be more adventurous and creative.
People low in this trait are often much more tradition and may struggle with abstract
thinking.
 ADVANTAGE OF TRAIT THEORY

• It is used as a yardstick to asses an individuals leadership traits

• It outlines, in detailed way, the leader tend to run to a very long list
• The basis of the theory has been validated by a number of other pieces of
research
 DISADVANTAGES OF TRAIT THEORY

• It lends itself to subjectivity  

• The traits of successful leaders tend to run to a very long list
• Equating physical traits, such as height and weight may not be the best tool for
measuring effective leadership
• Based on the theorists work it is evident that there are disagreement in terms of
which traits are most important for effective leadership.
• The traits that are needed for one organization may be very different from
those needed for another.
 LEADERSHIP SKILLS

The desire of any leader is to be successful and guide his/her followers in the
right direction to achieve the desired goals. However, this may not be possible
unless the leader possesses the right skills. The skills needed by the leader may
vary, depending on the situation or task requirement. However the common
ones include:
• Communication Skills
• Critical Thinking
• Problem Solving
• Planning
• Consideration
 COMMUNICATION SKILLS

It is often said that leaders are great communicators. For any leader to be effective it is
imperative that he/she is able to communicate effectively. This is because
communication is at the core of effective leadership. If you want to influence and
inspire your team, you need to practice empathy and transparency, and understand how
others perceive you, through your verbal and non-verbal cues. The leader must be able
to give unambiguous instructions and be able to communicate the objectives and goals
of the firm to their subordinates.
Effective communication can help the leader develop a good business relationship with
the employees which may bring forth success. Poor communication can lead to low
worker morale and confusion regarding the expectation of the employees.
The ability to listen is also a vital part of communication and to any leader. In order to
communicate effectively, the leader must also learn to listen actively. Subordinates will
be motivated by a leader who takes the time to listen to their concerns and suggestions.
Good listening skills can also generate respect, trust and belief in the leader.
 CRITICAL THINKING

An effective leader is one who practices higher-order thinking by making

responsible judgements and decisions. A critical thinker is an individual who
asks the appropriate questions in order to ascertain relevant information and
then uses the information to draw logical conclusions. The leader needs to
think critically to deal with the day to day running of the firm and to make
strategic decisions on how to move forward. So in general, critical thinking
is the ability to deal with the contradictions and problems of a tumultuous
environment in a reasoned, purposeful, productive way. Decisions are made
using an approach that is fair, objective, accurate and based on information
that is relevant to the situation.
 PROBLEM SOLVING

To be an effective problem solver, the leader needs to be a critical thinker. It is

inevitable that a leader will be faced with different problems or decisions within the
organization. Therefore, having the skill of problem solving is vital to the effective
running of the firm. Problem solving skills speaks to the leader's ability to work
through the details or aspects of a problem and to reach an appropriate solution.
Leaders with an aptitude for problem-solving have the ability to analyze, diagnose
and deal with problems effectively. Whether the problem is linear or nonlinear and
adept problem solvers have a natural propensity to discover and help lead others to
solutions
 PLANNING
Planning is the setting of business objectives and establishing the necessary
plan to achieve such objectives. An effective leader needs to be a very good
planner. Having stated goals is not enough unless there is a clearly outlined
step-by-step plan to achieve those goals. The leader needs to identify
opportunities and develop the courses of action to take while making the best
use of the limited available resources. A good planner will be aware of the
foreseeable future and develop strategies to deal with the possible problems
he/she may encounter.
 CONSIDERATION
A leader who needs to gain trust and support of subordinates must learn how
to be considerate. Employees come to work with a lot of ‘baggage’ and may
respond to a situation in a particular way depending on what’s happening in
their own environment. The leader needs to be sympathetic to employees as
they go through their different challenges. The effective leader is one who will
be considerate of a decision affecting his/her subordinates. When a leader gives
consideration in response to good performance it increases the likelihood of the
level of performance being repeated.