Trust as a mediator of the relationship between character and perceptions of leader effectiveness during the COVID-19 crisis.

Abstract

Character is a leadership quality that is often scrutinized yet poorly understood. Our research focuses on several questions relating to character and perceived leader effectiveness during the COVID-19 crisis. First, does the character of the prime minister matter to voters during major crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic? Second, are all dimensions that comprise the leader character framework we examined considered essential for political leadership in times of crisis? Third, is character related to perceptions of leadership effectiveness? Fourth, what role does identification-based trust play in the relationship between character and perceptions of leadership effectiveness in times of crisis? The results of our survey taken during the early weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic reveal that character is considered among Canadians of voting age as an important ingredient of political leadership. We also found that there is a significant gap between the perceived importance of the dimensions that comprise character and the belief that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau lives up to the expectations. The congruence between the perceived importance of the character dimensions and the belief that Trudeau demonstrated these dimensions predicted leadership effectiveness, and this relationship was mediated by trust. Our results are based on perceptions of leadership effectiveness; that is, we do not have objective measures of performance. Public Significance StatementThis study advances our understanding of the importance of character in political leadership during crisis situations such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Our findings explicate the behaviors associated with leader character. Additionally, the study reveals that trust helps to explain the effect of character on perceived effectiveness of leaders.

Character and Trust in Crisis Leadership: Probing the Relationships Among Character, Identification-Based Trust, and Perceptions of Effectiveness in Political Leadership During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…We conducted a factor analysis to support the aggregation of the eleven dimensions that comprised the assessment of Trudeau's overall character as adjudicated by the respondents into a single score for subsequent analyses. We performed a principal component analysis on the dimensions using a Promax rotation because the dimensions tend to be highly correlated (e.g., Crossan et al, 2017 ; Seijts et al, 2021 ). The results for the first assessment of character in April that revealed a single extracted factor ( λ = 8.32) explained 75.60% of the variance.…”

“…Thus, consistent with Seijts et al (2021) , we explore whether citizens of voting age report higher identification-based trust in leaders who they consider to be of high character, demonstrated through virtuous behaviors throughout the crisis (e.g., demonstrating humanity, integrity, temperance, collaboration, and judgment), than with those who are seen as having low character. Identification-based trust instills citizens with confidence that their interests will be protected and, as such, facilitates confidence in the leader.…”

“…Our research builds on prior studies of the role of character in political leadership (e.g., de Clercy et al, 2020 ; Seijts et al, 2021 ) and on the scholarship on virtuous character (e.g., Crossan et al, 2017 ; Hannah & Avolio, 2011 ; Peterson & Seligman, 2004 ). We focus on virtuous character (henceforth character) because it is concerned with the quality of judgment in decision-making and as such is not limited to the domain of ethical or moral decision making.…”

“…We first investigate whether Canadians of voting age believe character is important in political leadership during major health, economic, and societal crises. There has been a tradition of emphasizing and scrutinizing the role of character in political leadership (e.g., Barber, 1972 ; de Clercy et al, 2020 ; Greenstein, 1968 ; Laustsen & Bor, 2017 ; Seijts et al, 2021 ), yet the construct is not well understood. Second, we examine voter perceptions of the importance of the dimensions of character identified by Crossan et al (2017) to effectively fulfill the role of prime minister and to what extent voters perceive Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau demonstrated these dimensions during the COVID-19 pandemic.…”

Does Leader Character Have a Gender?

“…Researchers have begun to take a keen interest in character in business leadership because it is seen as an indispensable component of sustained excellence. The various dimensions of character have been shown to contribute to leadership effectiveness as well as positive follower and organizational outcomes (e.g., Monzani et al, 2021 ; Seijts et al, 2021 ; Sosik et al, 2019 ). Yet despite these advances and calls for a deeper understanding of the role of character in leadership, the effect of individual differences such as gender in the enactment and evaluation of leader character has received scant attention (e.g., Sarros et al, 2006 ; Wilson & Newstead, 2022 ).…”