Interest in leadership is driven by one quite practical consideration: Leaders help get jobs done. For over thirty-five years, social scientists have been studying leadership by analyzing group communication patterns.22 This research suggests that two basic types of leadership behaviors emerge in most groups. The first is task leadership behavior, which directs the activity of the group toward a specified goal. The second is social leadership behavior, which helps to build and maintain positive relationships among group members.
Task leaders initiate goal-related communication, including both giving and seeking information, opinions, and suggestions. A task leader might say, “We need more information on just how widespread sexual harassment is on campus. Let me tell you what Dean Johnson told me last Friday. . . .“ Or the task leader might ask, “Gwen, tell us what you found out from the Affirmative Action Office.”
Social leaders express agreement, help the group release tension, and behave in a supportive manner. A social leader looks for chances to give compliments: “I think Gwen has made a very important point. You really helped us by finding that out.” Sincere compliments help keep members from becoming defensive and help maintain a constructive communication atmosphere. In a healthy communication climate, the two kinds of leadership behavior support each other and keep the group moving toward its goal. When one person combines both styles of 1eacership, that person is likely to be highly effective.
Leadership has also been discussed in terms of how the leader functions. An autocratic leader makes decisions without consultation, issues orders or gives direction, and controls the members of the group through the use of rewards or punishments. A participative leader functions in a more democratic fashion, seeking input from group members and giving them an active role in decision-making. A free-rein leader leaves members free to decide what, how, and when to act, offering no guidance. In effect, such “leadership” abdicates leadership. If you were working in an organization, you might well say that you “worked for” an autocratic leader, “worked with” a participative leader, and “worked in spite of” a free-rein leader.
As we move into the twenty-first century, another way of looking at leadership is emerging. It suggests that leadership styles are either transactional or transformational. Transactional leadership takes place in an environment based on power relationships and relies on reward and punishment to accomplish its ends. Transformational leadership appeals to “people’s higher levels of motivation to contribute to a cause and add to the quality of life on the planet.”23 Transformational leadership carries overtones of stewardship instead of management. Transformational leaders have the following qualities:
• They have a vision of what needs to be done.
• They are empathetic.
• They are trusted.
• They give credit to others.
• They help others develop.
• They share power.
• They are willing to experiment and learn.
In short, transformational leaders lead with both their hearts and their heads.
According to John Schuster, a management consultant who specializes in
transformational leadership training, “The heart is more difficult to develop.
It’s easier to get smarter than to become more caring.”24
To understand your leadership potential, you need to consider the major components of ethos: competence, trustworthiness, likability, and forcefulness. An effective leader is competent. This means that the leader understands the problem and knows how to steer a group through the problem- solving process. An effective leader is both trustworthy and trusted. This means that the leader is honest, concerned about the good of the group, and willing to place group success above personal concerns. Just as important, the leader is perceived to have these qualities by group participants. An effective leader is likable. This means that he or she is friendly and interacts easily with others. Finally, an effective leader is forceful. Forcefulness suggests enthusiasm, energy, and optimism, and implies the ability to get others to act.
Don’t be intimidated by this idealized portrait of a leader. Most of us have these qualities in varying degrees and can use them when the need for leadership arises. To be an effective leader, remember this simple overriding goaL Help others be effective and get the job done. Cultivate an open leadership style that encourages all sides to air their views.

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