Page 81 - Biobehavioral Resilence to Stress

58 Biobehavioral Resilience to Stress

Inspirational Leadership Eff ects .................................................................... 82
Institutional Leadership Eff ects .................................................................... 82
References .............................................................................................................. 83

In 1914, explorer Ernest Shackleton led a 28-men expedition through frigid
seas and across icy wastelands to the South Pole. His expedition would be
plagued by extreme misfortune, relentless hardship, and prolonged suff er-
ing. Shackleton and his team never reached the South Pole. More remarkably,
they survived their journey. Their story serves as testimony to the combined

power of leadership and resilience in the face of adversity.

This chapter will examine and answer questions concerning leadership and
its impact on human resilience. First, we will explore a number of essential
ideas relating to the general nature of leadership, the personal characteristics

and behavior of effective leaders, and the broad processes by which leaders

reach out and influence the mind-set, and the behavior of their followers.
We will also explore the concept of “resilience” by considering theoretical
linkages between resilience and current notions regarding stress, stressors,
and stress episodes (acute events that produce short-term strain). Th ese
foundational ideas will support an integrated conceptual structure to expli-

cate the potential effects of leadership on resilience. Finally, we will consider
the “state of the possible” regarding the potential power of leadership to

increase individual and team resilience in stressor-filled and stress-inducing
work environments.

Leadership: Basic Considerations

To understand the effect(s) of leadership on resilience, we must fi rst examine

the nature of leadership itself. A review of the relevant literature turns up
almost as many definitions of “leadership” as there are researchers interested

in it (e.g., Antonakis, Cianciolo & Sternberg, 2004; Bass, 1990; Daft, 2005; Yukl,

2005). Rather than attempting to wrestle with or reconcile many diff erent con-
ceptualizations of leadership, we choose instead to highlight commonalities

that can be found among them. These commonalities capture the essential
characteristics of leadership and thus reveal the core nature of the construct.

Eliciting Willing Acceptance of Infl uence

Contained in virtually every definition of leadership is the notion that

leadership is a process of social influence. An effective leader must inspire
individuals to do willingly what they might not otherwise be inclined to do.

1/21/2008 4:49:23 PM
CRC_71777_Ch004.indd 58 1/21/2008 4:49:23 PM
CRC_71777_Ch004.indd 58