Leadership and Team Dynamics for Dangerous Military Contexts

Abstract

We propose an interdisciplinary, multilevel model of leadership and team dynamics for dangerous military contexts. Viewing this context as a higher level of analysis, our model includes constructs and multiple levels of analysis involved in team formation and assembly, which result in leadership and team dynamics, which in turn yield team performance and maintenance. Pragmatic leadership at the individual level, individualized leadership at the dyadic level, and shared leadership at the team level provide an integrated core for the approach. Multilevel precursors, consequences, and moderators of this leadership and team dynamics approach also are discussed. Twelve key multilevel propositions and five multilevel exploratory ones are derived from the model and asserted for testing in future work on dangerous military contexts.

RETRACTED: The relationship between authentic leadership and follower job performance: The mediating role of follower positivity in extreme contexts

“…In comparison to more traditional work contexts, extreme contexts provide greater opportunity for leaders to encourage positivity and reduce negativity in followers (Hannah et al, 2009;Yammarino et al, 2010). This is simply because the jobs people do bring more stress in such contexts, and followers tend to look to leaders for cues as to how to feel and behave under such conditions and they look to their leaders for support and meaning (Bartone, 2006;Stouffer et al, 1965).…”

“…Specific to the current set of studies, Hannah, Uhl-Bien, Avolio, and Cavarretta (2009) argued that in more extreme contexts where risks of physical, psychological, or material consequences (e.g., psychological trauma or physical harm) to followers or their constituents exist, leadership may be especially important because followers look to leaders for cues as to how to respond in stressful situations or events and are more needing of emotional support and psychological support when faced with such stressors (cf. Bartone, 2006;Stouffer et al, 1965;Yammarino, Mumford, Connelly, & Dionne, 2010). Consistent with this view, Gal and Jones (1985) argued that leaders are well positioned to impact followers' psychological states when performing in more extreme or volatile contexts.…”

Análisis del liderazgo a partir de ejercicios de maniobra militar

“…Como plantearon Yammarino et al (2010), los escenarios actuales del accionar militar exponen a los militares a situaciones de peligro bajo condiciones estresantes y exigentes. Además, por la complejidad de las nuevas misiones se requiere que los líderes sean más innovadores y adaptativos al contexto para poder desenvolverse eficazmente ante la diversidad situacional y la incertidumbre de los acontecimientos (Pulakos et al, 2000;Whiffen, 2007).…”

“…ej., combate) y las no tradicionales (p. ej., lucha contra el terrorismo, misiones de paz y operaciones de ayuda humanitaria), los exponen durante largos periodos de tiempo a situaciones de peligro bajo condiciones estresantes y exigentes (Yammarino, Mumford, Connelly y Dionne, 2010). Ante este nuevo escenario, las Fuerzas Armadas requieren que los líderes sean más innovadores y adaptativos al contexto para poder desenvolverse eficazmente ante la diversidad situacional y la incertidumbre de los acontecimientos (Pulakos, Arad, Donovan y Plamondon, 2000;Whiffen, 2007).…”

Team dynamics in virtual, partially distributed teams: Optimal role fulfillment

“…A vPDT is a hybrid of virtual and co-located face-to-face teams that has at least one co-located subgroup and at least two geographically-dispersed subgroups (Huang & Ocker, 2006;Plotnick, Hiltz, Ocker, & Rosson, 2008); in other words, vPDTs consist of some members being co-located, while others are geographically dispersed. Virtual PDTs are utilized in all types of fields, including software development (Plotnick et al, 2008), education (Ocker, Huang, Benbunan-Fitch, & Hiltz, 2009), and military settings (Yammarino, Mumford, Connelly, & Dionne, 2010). Our particular focus is on the form and effects of team role composition on team performance in informal, temporally and geographically dispersed vPDTs that have a limited life cycle.…”