Page 105 - Biobehavioral Resilence to Stress

82 Biobehavioral Resilience to Stress

Inspirational Leadership Effects

In the case of inspirational leadership, it appears that leader characteristics
may interact with subordinates’ characteristics. The notion that a leader

might create or call forth resilience is an intriguing theoretical possibility,

with significant practical implications. Although we are able to outline in

conceptual terms how such an effect or interplay might occur (see Table 4.3),
current research on the question remains uncomfortably anecdotal. Th ere

is a need for specific research to address and test processes such as those
we have proposed in Table 4.3. Such studies should be designed to directly
test the impact of inspirational leadership on a team’s ability to demonstrate
resilience in the face of hardship. Here again, resilience should be operation-

ally defined such that observed differences are both measurable and distinct

from other parameters of group performance. Environments that demand
inspirational leadership and resilience are typically extreme and oft en dan-
gerous. It is neither feasible nor ethical to conduct laboratory research in
such settings. Rather, researchers must turn their attention to fi eld situations
(e.g., combat) from which data can be derived. For example, investigators
might consider joint cooperative studies of leadership and resilience as may
occur during the rigorous and often extreme training of elite military units

(e.g., U.S. Navy Seals and U.S. Army Rangers). Such studies, if designed to
focus specifically upon inspirational leadership and group resilience and con-

ducted in accord with normal training evaluations and aft er-action reviews,
could offer a wealth of substantive data and insight.

Institutional Leadership Effects
Finally, there is the question of how high-level institutional leadership might
aff ect the resilience of all who work within the organization. As our earlier
analysis indicates, psychological resilience to stress may be enhanced or
reduced not only by the behavior of leaders immediately above the individu-
als and working groups of interest, but also by the actions taken (or not taken)
by those at even higher organizational levels. Early and obvious support for

effective coping may help to set the tone for successful stress management.
For example, organizational leadership may promote resilience by provid-
ing resilience training programs that are adequate and appropriate to the
types of stressors associated with job performance. Evidence from the study
of hardiness training indicates that such programs may be particularly ben-
eficial for individuals in “at-risk” populations (e.g., former drug users and

laid-off workers). There is a need for additional research to address how such

programs might be modified to address the needs of other populations, such
as those who work in uniquely stressful, at-risk occupations (e.g., soldiers,

fi refighters, police offi cers).

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