Psicothema was founded in Asturias (northern Spain) in 1989, and is published jointly by the Psychology Faculty of the University of Oviedo and the Psychological Association of the Principality of Asturias (Colegio Oficial de Psicología del Principado de Asturias).
We currently publish four issues per year, which accounts for some 100 articles annually. We admit work from both the basic and applied research fields, and from all areas of Psychology, all manuscripts being anonymously reviewed prior to publication.
Lucas Monzani1,2, Pilar Ripoll1,2 and José María Peiró1,2,3
Background: Effective leaders understand that loyal followers are the key for success. To win their loyalty, leaders usually build social exchange relationships with them, through a wide range of behaviours, such as honouring agreements or using open and transparent communication. However, the effect of these behaviours on their followers’ loyalty can differ depending on followers’ individual differences, especially in relational traits such as agreeableness and extraversion. Method: We explored the moderating role of followers’ agreeableness and extraversion in the relationship between authentic leadership (using transactional leadership as reference group) and followers’ loyalty. A two-wave experiment, where 224 participants with and without work experience were randomly assigned to either a transactional or authentic leadership style condition was conducted. Results: Our results show that followers in the authentic leadership condition had higher levels of loyalty toward their leader. Moreover, followers’ agreeableness played a negative moderating role in this relationship whereas extraversion played a positive moderating role in it. Conclusions: Our results indicate that followers’ characteristics influence the effect of situational factors on their attitudes, such as loyalty, providing support for the need of a more integrative approach to leadership, where followers need to be considered as active elements of this process ofinfluence.
La afabilidad y extroversión de los seguidores y su lealtad hacia el liderazgo auténtico. Antecedentes: los líderes efectivos entienden que la lealtad de sus seguidores es clave para el éxito. Para conseguirla, establecen intercambios sociales, a través de conductas tales como recompensar con justicia o utilizar una comunicación transparente. Sin embargo, el efecto de estas conductas sobre la lealtad de sus seguidores puede variar en función de las diferencias individuales de esos seguidores, en especial en aquellos aspectos que influyen en la forma en que se relacionan las personas, como por ejemplo su extroversión o afabilidad. Método: se realizó un experimento de diseño longitudinal donde 224 participantes, con o sin experiencia laboral, fueron asignados al azar a un líder con estilo auténtico o estilo transaccional. Resultados: nuestros resultados muestran que los seguidores bajo un líder auténtico reportan mayores niveles de lealtad que aquellos bajo un líder transaccional. La afabilidad y la extroversión de los seguidores modulan la relación entre el estilo de liderazgo y la lealtad hacia el líder. Conclusión: las características de los seguidores modulan el efecto del estilo de liderazgo sobre las actitudes de los seguidores, apoyando la necesidad de un enfoque más integrador del estudio del liderazgo, donde los seguidores han de ser considerados como elementos activos de este proceso.
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https://doi.org/10.7334/psicothema2013.67