Structural Impacts on the Occurrence and Effectiveness of Transformational Leadership: An Empirical Study at the Organizational Level of Analysis
Journal
The Leadership Quarterly
ISSN
1048-9843
ISSN-Digital
1873-3409
Type
journal article
Date Issued
2010-10
Author(s)
Abstract
This article empirically investigates the role of organizational structure in the transformational leadership (TFL) process. We examine organizational centralization, formalization, and size as antecedents of an organization's TFL climate, and as moderators of the relationship between TFL climate and productive organizational energy (POE). Hypotheses are tested using a sample of 125 organizations. Results show that both the centralization and size of an organization are negatively related to its TFL climate, whereas formalization has a positive association. Further, while there is a positive linkage between TFL climate and POE, both centralization and formalization moderate this relationship. The TFL climate-POE linkage is diminished under conditions of high centralization, and it is enhanced under conditions of high formalization. These findings point to the role of organizational structure as a boundary condition for both the occurrence and the effectiveness of TFL in organizations. The paper concludes by acknowledging its limitations and discussing its implications for practice and research.
Language
English
Keywords
Transformational leadership
Organizational structure
Centralization
Formalization
Organization size
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
Refereed
Yes
Publisher
Elsevier
Publisher place
Amsterdam
Volume
21
Number
5
Start page
765
End page
782
Pages
18
Subject(s)
Division(s)
Eprints ID
69897