Leader and Team Adaptation: The Influence and Development ...

[Pages:100]Technical Report 1256

Leader and Team Adaptation: The Influence and Development of Key Attributes and Processes

Stephen J. Zaccaro Deanna Banks Lee Kiechel-Koles Cary Kemp Paige Bader George Mason University

August 2009

United States Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.

U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences

A Directorate of the Department of the Army Deputy Chief of Staff, G1

Authorized and approved for distribution:

MICHELLE SAMS, Ph.D. Director

Research accomplished under contract for the Department of the Army George Mason University Technical reviews by: Jay Goodwin, Army Research Institute Stanley M. Halpin, Army Research Institute

NOTICES

DISTRIBUTION: Primary distribution of this Technical Report has been made by ARI. Please address correspondence concerning distribution of reports to: U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences, Attn: DAPE-ARI-ZXM, 2511 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, Virginia 22202-3926. FINAL DISPOSITION: This Technical Report may be destroyed when it is no longer needed. Please do not return it to the U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences. NOTE: The findings in this Technical Report are not to be construed as an official Department of the Army position, unless so designated by other authorized documents.

1. REPORT DATE (dd-mm-yy)

August 2009

REPORT DOCUMENTATION PAGE

2. REPORT TYPE

Final

3. DATES COVERED (from. . . to)

July 1998 ? September 2003

4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE

Leader and Team Adaptation: The Influence and Development of Key Attributes and Processes

6. AUTHOR(S)

Stephen J. Zaccaro, Deanna Banks, Lee Kiechel-Koles, Cary Kemp, and Paige Bader (George Mason University)

5a. CONTRACT OR GRANT NUMBER

DASW01-98-K-0005

5b. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER

611102

5c. PROJECT NUMBER

B74F

5d. TASK NUMBER

1904

5e. WORK UNIT NUMBER

7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME AND ADDRESS

George Mason University 4400 University Dr. Fairfax, VA 22030

8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION REPORT NUMBER

9. SPONSORING/MONITORING AGENCY NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES)

U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences 2511 Jefferson Davis Highway Arlington, VA 22202-3926

10. MONITOR ACRONYM

ARI

11. MONITOR REPORT NUMBER

Technical Report 1256

12. DISTRIBUTION/AVAILABILITY STATEMENT

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.

13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES

Contracting Officer's Representative and Subject Matter POC: Paul Gade

14. ABSTRACT (Maximum 200 words):

This report summarizes the results of a series of investigations that examined (a) the role of feedback processes as a leadership tool in team adaptation, (b) the influence of developmental work experiences on team and leader adaptability, and (c) the effects of combinations of leader qualities on the display of adaptation processes and performance in dynamic military and business settings. The results of these investigations indicated that (a) processoriented, team level, and public feedback from leaders was most effective in facilitating team adaptation, particularly when team members possess high levels of cognitive skills; (b) developmental assignments are associated with growth in social competencies, but only when participating leaders have high levels of metacognitive skill, cognitive complexity, and tolerance for ambiguity; (c) social competencies influence leader adaptability, but only when the organizational climate supports innovation; and (d) several cognitive, social, and dispositional leader attributes were related singly and in combination to leader adaptability.

15. SUBJECT TERMS

Leader training and development Leader adaptability, team leadership, and team adaptation

16. REPORT Unclassified

17. ABSTRACT Unclassified

18. THIS PAGE Unclassified

19. LIMITATION OF ABSTRACT

Unlimited

20. NUMBER OF PAGES

110

21. RESPONSIBLE PERSON

Ellen Kinzer Technical Publication Specialist 703-602-8049

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Technical Report 1256

Leader and Team Adaptation: The Influence and Development of Key Attributes and Processes

Stephen J. Zaccaro, Deanna Banks, Lee Kiechel-Koles, Cary Kemp, and Paige Bader George Mason University

Basic Research Unit Paul A. Gade, Chief

U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences 2511 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, Virginia 22202-3926

August 2009

Army Project Number 611102B74F

Performance, Personnel and Training

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS We want to acknowledge a number of graduate students who assisted at different phases

of this research effort. They include Lisa Boyce, Celia Chandler, Meredith Cracraft, Patrick Fleming, Zachary Horn, Sean Marsh, Mike McGee, and Gabrielle Wood. These students were instrumental in the conduct of the investigations described here, and co-authored several of the research products that have emerged from this effort. We would also like to acknowledge and thank Herb Barber and the faculty at the Army War College; Lieutenant Colonels Mark Jordan, Steve Flippo, and the faculty at the Air Command and Staff College; and Ellen Van Velsor and the trainers at the Center for Creative Leadership. Finally, I would like to thank Michael Drillings and Paul Gade for their support over the course of this research effort.

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LEADER AND TEAM ADAPTATION: THE INFLUENCE AND DEVELOPMENT OF KEY ATTRIBUTES AND PROCESSES

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Research Requirement:

This report summarizes the results of a series of investigations that examined (a) the role of feedback processes as a leadership tool in team adaptation, (b) the influence of developmental work experiences on team and leader adaptability, and (c) the effects of combinations of leader qualities on the display of adaptation processes and performance in dynamic military and business settings.

Procedure:

Investigation 1 examined the hypothesis that team-level process-oriented feedback as a form of leadership communication would facilitate team adaptation more so than individual-level process-oriented feedback or outcome-only feedback. The sample for this effort included 186 undergraduate students who completed a computer-based military simulation game.

Investigation 2 examined the hypothesis that the public versus private administration of leader feedback would moderate the effects of feedback on the development of team mental models and team adaptation, such that feedback effects would be stronger in public administrations. The sample for this effort included 171 undergraduates who completed the same computer simulation as in Investigation 1.

Investigation 3 tested the hypothesis that the joint effects of practice scenario variability and feedback would promote team adaptation. The sample for this effort included 198 undergraduates.

Investigations 4 and 5 examined the hypothesis that developmental work experiences would foster the adaptability attributes of tacit knowledge and social capabilities, but these effects would be stronger in leaders with particular cognitive and dispositional attributes. The participants included 150 military and civilian leaders (O5s, O6s, GS 14s and 15s) in Investigation 4, and 72 comparable leaders in Investigation 5.

Investigation 6 examined the hypothesis that developmental assignments would foster social competencies, and that this adaptability attribute would predict ratings of adaptive performance. The effects of assignments on attributes were proposed to be enhanced by leader cognitive and dispositional attributes, while the effects of adaptability attributes on adaptation would be enhanced by organizational support for innovation. The sample for this research included 120 business managers at lower, middle, and upper organizational levels.

Investigations 7 and 8 examined the hypothesis that cognitive, social, and dispositional attributes of the leader would act jointly to influence the display of leader adaptation in a

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business role play (Investigation 7) and a military simulation task (Investigation 8). The samples for these efforts were 142 upper and middle level managers (Investigation 7) and 572 military officers (Investigation 8).

Findings:

Overall, the findings of each research effort provided reasonable support for the proposed hypotheses. In investigation 1, which examined team-level process-oriented feedback as a form of leadership communication, the joint effects of feedback level and content were found to be even stronger in teams that possessed higher levels of aggregated metacognitive skills.

In investigation 2, which examined the public versus private administration of leader feedback, the feedback effects on team adaptation were shown to occur primarily through their effects on shared mental models.

In investigation 3, which examined the joint effects of practice scenario variability and feedback, variability marginally increased adaptation when feedback was provided. This result suggests a need for future research to examine more closely the effects of variability on adaptation. Other results from this investigation indicated that teams receiving feedback also were found to engage in more effective team processes and displayed higher collective efficacy and better quality team mental models than teams that did not receive feedback. Training variability reduced collective efficacy and team mental model quality.

In investigations 4 and 5, which examined developmental work experiences, adaptability characteristics were cultivated but more so in leaders with particular cognitive and behavioral traits.

In investigation 6, which examined the impact of developmental assignments on social competencies, leader cognitive and dispositional attributes enhanced the effect of such assignments while social competence was promoted by organizational support.

In investigations 7 and 8, which examined the impact of cognitive, social, and dispositional attributes of the leader on adaptation, such characteristics moderately influenced leader adaptation in a role play and military simulation task.

Zaccaro (2001) argued that research efforts on leadership should focus on five sets of leadership constructs, and provide evidence for the validated linkages among the variables across these sets. These leadership construct sets were: (a) the nature of leadership performance, (b) the leadership processes contributing to performance, (c) the attributes and characteristics of leaders that promote the effective display of leadership processes, (d) leader training and development principles that foster growth in these attributes and characteristics, and (e) assessment and selection strategies based on these attributes. Taken together, the investigations in this research effort provide data and results pertinent to each of these construct sets.

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