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Purpose

The aim of this study was twofold, first to examine the relationship between developmental leadership (a Scandinavian culture adapted version of transformational leadership) and instrumental leadership, as well as the relationship between these leadership variables and indices of performance and job satisfaction. Second, to identify individual patterns regarding developmental and instrumental leadership.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a longitudinal design, questionnaire data were collected three times among Swedish conscripts and voluntarily employed soldiers during their basic military training (n = 667 at T1, n = 503 at T2 and n = 554 at T3).

Findings

The main findings were: (1) high observed correlations between the developmental and instrumental leadership scales on all measurement occasions; (2) a low to moderate amount of explained variance explained by these leadership scales in regression analyses with performance and job satisfaction as dependent variables, where developmental leadership was strongly associated with ratings of job satisfaction and instrumental leadership accounted for a higher proportion of the variance on ratings of performance and (3) the identification of three distinct profiles of response patterns on the leadership scales, which were fairly similar across time and indicate a temporal consistency of leadership styles.

Research limitations/implications

Methodological strengths include the longitudinal study design, the comparatively large sample size, the use of well-established measurement scales and the person-centered approach allowing for the identification of response patterns. Study weaknesses include too few background variables and the use of self-report ratings only. From a work and organizational perspective, the sample with low-level conscripts and soldiers could also be regarded as unusual.

Practical implications

Education of leaders should focus on the importance of both interpersonal and instrumental aspects. There is also a need for development of leadership training fostering leaders’ instrumental leadership skills.

Originality/value

The study responds to the call from leadership researchers to further research on instrumental leadership and its relationship to the FRLT across diverse organizational contexts. Longitudinal comparisons of developmental (transformational) and instrumental leadership resulted in more trustworthy results as both a variable-oriented and a person-oriented approach was used.

Research shows that high-level military and sport leaders share a high-stress and high-stakes leader role due to similar experiences of demanding conditions mainly manifested in psychological burden. This raises research questions about leaders’ psychological strategies to maintain their mental health and performance under demanding conditions. Thus, the current study investigated how experienced demanding conditions were related to self-rated leader performance level and mental health indicators among high-level military and sport leaders and whether the application of psychological skills by these leaders moderated these relationships. A composite questionnaire was used to collect data longitudinally, once a week for four consecutive weeks. Fifty-two Swedish high-ranking military officers and executives in elite team sport organizations completed the questionnaire. Multilevel analysis revealed no effect of demanding conditions on leader performance, but they harmed leader vitality and were associated with higher stress symptoms. Moreover, psychological skills did not moderate the relationship between demanding conditions and leader performance. However, motivational and instructional self-talk negatively moderated the relationship between demanding conditions and vitality. In contrast, emotional regulation, comprised of mindfulness and cognitive reappraisal, positively moderated vitality. Emphasizing the nuanced application of psychological skills is crucial while avoiding one-sided beliefs about their positive effects. Interventions are suggested to focus on vitality and related psychological skills to ensure leaders feel good while performing under demanding conditions. More cross-contextual leadership research, suggestively applied research, is needed to better understand the links between high-level military and sport leaders’ psychological skills, leader performance, and mental health under demanding conditions.

Military and sport have attracted increased research interest separately as two distinctly demanding performance- and leadership-driven contexts. However, cross-contextual psychological research in leadership is lacking. Such research has potential to expose unique cross-fertilising insights into resemblances in leadership challenges among military and sport leaders, transferable to a broader range of contexts. Thus, the current study simultaneously explored high-level military and sport leaders’ real-life experiences of similarities in demanding conditions and their psychological manifestations. Sixteen participants - eight Swedish high-level military leaders and eight Swedish high-level sport leaders, participated in the study. Using a qualitative inductive cross-contextual design enabled in-depth knowledge and transferability. A reflexive thematic analysis (RTA) of sixteen interview transcripts generated four common themes of demanding conditions: (1) Developing organisations: Leading under an extensive workload and responsibility, (2) Managing destructive superiors and subordinates: Standing up for oneself, (3) Taking care of the minds and moods of others: Leading deliberated difficult conversations, and (4) Periods of extreme concentration: Leading critical coordination, decisions, and timing. The findings tie high-level military and sports leaders together into a high-stress and high-stakes leader role invoked to manoeuvre a complex buildup of demanding conditions. Implications are presented.

Personnel selection research has seen an increasing interest in integrity tests. Although these tests have been found to predict a variety of workplace criteria, a long-standing criticism of integrity tests is their criterion-focussed nature. A construct-oriented approach to integrity test development involves identifying important elements of integrity and developing content to reflect those elements. Drawing upon earlier attempts to define integrity, this paper conceptualizes integrity as a behavior, and elaborates on two definitional elements, nature of standards and their referent. Undertaking a content analysis of the high-level codes of conduct of 13 military nations, this paper illustrates the application of an approach to defining integrity for use in the military context. It includes a discussion on the operationalization of integrity for assessment purposes, highlighting considerations that must be given to all aspects of the assessment development process.

Cohesion is one of the most studied group phenomena and there is an agreement among scholars today that cohesion is a key contributor to team functioning and performance. A large body of research has shown that cohesion has several positive effects on psychological, social, and behavioral outcomes. Since research on cohesion has increased significantly in recent decades there is a need for an updated overview of research regarding antecedents and outcomes of cohesion in a military context. In this paper, a systematic literature review is conducted. The paper adheres to suggestions by scholars, relating the results in accordance with the dimensionality (i.e. social, task, or general) and organizational level of the construct (i.e. horizontal, vertical, or organizational) as well as focusing exclusively on studies with a longitudinal design. The paper highlights gaps in the literature and provides direction for future research.

Purpose: This study aims to investigate the differences between destructive leadership in two different contexts: crisis management and usual circumstances. The specific research questions are as follows: What is the relationship between destructive leadership behaviours in usual circumstances and destructive leadership behaviours in crisis management? Are destructive leadership behaviours in usual circumstances or in crisis management the best predictors of trust in the leader and subordinate performance? Design/methodology/approach: Questionnaire responses were obtained from 337 individuals who had experience from handling various societal crises, such as terror attacks and forest fires. The respondents represented four different organisations: municipalities, county administrative boards, the police and the emergency service. Findings: The results from the study reveal that there is a strong association between destructive leadership in usual circumstances and destructive leadership during crisis management. The study indicates that everyday leadership matters the most. It is above all behaviours in usual circumstances that show the strongest associations with trust in the leader and subordinate performance. The results also show that it is especially task-related, passive forms of destructive leadership behaviours that show the strongest association with the studied outcome variables. Research limitations/implications: Limitations related to measurements and self-reported data are discussed. Practical implications: The study emphasises the importance of paying attention to leaders' task- and strategic-oriented behaviour as well as the importance of building trusting relationships with the subordinates. Originality/value: The need for industry-specific studies of destructive leadership has been highlighted and this study contributes with knowledge from the crisis management context.