In the 20th century, the study of leadership started to grow and there have many different theories on what makes a good leader. One of the simplest ways to describe a good leader is by the traits that they possess. Early researchers believed that leaders were born with certain personality traits and only “great” people had these traits (PSU, 2018). This was later criticized and psychologists found that this belief only limited the study of leadership by preventing the allowance of learned leadership. The trait theory may have had a place in the past but today it only hinders the capability of hiring the right type of leader.
The theory is characterized by its list of inherent qualities and character traits that it perceived as being present in influential social, political and military leaders throughout the time (Northouse, 2016). It may be hard to refute that all leaders have these traits and are born with them, but experience and studies have criticized these allegations. Many leaders are more than capable in learning how to become a successful manager and all situations are not the same for managers and leaders. One leader may be better in a certain situations compared to another. To become a good leader in the business world, a person must have integrity, capable of growth and communication, and adapt to change with situations. All of these traits are capable of being learned and applied to leadership.
A leader may not possess all of the characteristics described in the traits theory but it is important for them to be able to show initiative to learn them. It is also possible that a person could be a perfect match in an interview. Many times a persons attitude and leadership capabilities can change from what was perceived in an interview. As a supervisor in my current position, I was given the task to interview a candidate for another supervisor position. The candidate seemed perfect; she showed initiative and had all the good traits of a leader. A month into the job, she was calling off every week, late, and could not get the support of her team to get a project done.
In almost all situations, she did not seem to be able to do the job she was hired for and seemed defeated. After receiving help from directors and supervisors in the organization, she was starting to learn how to run a team. Her morale started to increase and she was on time for work consistently, along with getting all projects done. This goes to show that leadership can be learned.
Many of the greatest leaders in history may have had certain traits from birth, but this is not a rational way to think of all leadership. With the trait theory, leaders are not judged individually but are looked at from prior research of groups with similar traits. Trait theory does not look at the individuals, situations, or the fact that people can change. Although trait theory should not be thrown completely out because of criticisms, it is not a valid way to find the right type of leader for an organization.
References:
Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: theory and practice (7th ed). Sage Publications: Thousand Oaks, CA.
Penn State University. (2018). Psych 485: Leadership in work settings. Lesson 2: Trait Approach. Retrieved from https://psu.instructure.com/courses/1925331/modules/items/23786480