The ebbs and flows of transformational leadership behavior: Towards a cognitive-behavioral understanding

This thesis introduces the Cognitive Behavioral System of Leadership, a model that identifies situational and cognitive antecedents underlying stability and dynamism in transformational leadership behavior. This model proposes that beliefs about oneself, others and the environment (core evaluations) predict between- person differences in the inclination for transformational leadership behavior; and that perceptions of the self, others and the environment (specific evaluations, resulting from the interplay between core evaluations and the situation) predict within-person variation in transformational leadership behavior. The model suggests that positive evaluations provide the psychological resources that are necessary to engage in highly proactive, transformational behaviors. The thesis furthermore closely examines and tests an interaction sequence proposed by the model: namely the relationship between situational features (task complexity, time pressure) and transformational leadership behavior, mediated by the leader’s state core self-evaluations. Finally, the thesis demonstrates that the leader’s psychological resources translate into psychological resources for the subordinate through leadership behavior.status: publishe