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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.

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.

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.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to contribute to increased knowledge of destructive leadership in crisis management. The specific research questions are: (1) What types of destructive leadership behaviours can be identified in leaders in crisis management? and (2) Why are these behaviours considered destructive in this context? Design/methodology/approach About 21 informants involved in crisis management at regional, local and operational levels in Sweden were interviewed. They were selected since they had recently been involved in severe accidents and/or crises (e.g. terror attacks, forest fires). A grounded theory analysis of interview data yielded two core variables: destructive leadership behaviours, and appraisal: interpretation of leader behaviour. Findings The study identified seven different destructive leadership behaviours: four task-related and three relationship-related. Task-related behaviours primarily led to negative consequences for the task/crisis. Relationship-related behaviours have negative consequences for subordinates' job satisfaction, well-being and/or sense of meaningfulness. The paper relates the identified behaviours to existing leadership ideals within crisis management and discusses behaviours that appear to be unique for the crisis management context. Practical implications The paper highlights the fact that great crisis managers are not always good at managing relationships, which may have negative implications for crisis management in the long term. Originality/value Destructive leadership is a research field that is rapidly expanding. However, there is a lack of knowledge concerning the nature of destructive leadership behaviours and what makes an individual appraise a leader as destructive in crisis management.

Det övergripande syftet med studien var att öka kunskapen om destruktivt ledarskap i krishanteringsorganisationer. En intervjustudie genomfördes med 21 informanter från länsstyrelser, kommuner, kommunal räddningstjänst och polisen. Resultaten visar att destruktivt ledarskap kan förstås som en process som börjar med att individen tolkar ledarens beteenden som destruktiva. Det påverkar individens förmåga och motivation att utföra sitt arbete. Intensiteten i konsekvenserna av dessa upplevda destruktiva beteenden påverkas av de upplevda orsakerna till beteendet, individens coping-strategier och det stöd organisationen ger. De olika delarna i denna process diskuteras mer utförligt i rapporten i relation till krishanteringskontexten. Som exempel kan nämnas att ledare kan vara konstruktiva när det gäller lösandet av uppgiften (krisen) men destruktiva i sin relation till medarbetarna/samarbetsaktörer. I rapporten diskuteras även hur ledarskapsideal kan leda till utövandet av destruktivt ledarskap.

Det övergripande syftet med studien var att studera destruktivt ledarskap vid krishantering. Mer specifikt att studera samband mellan destruktiva ledarbeteenden i vardagen och destruktiva ledarbeteenden under insatser vid olyckor och kriser samt samband mellan destruktiva ledarbeteenden och underställdas tillit, hälsa och prestationer.

Utifrån en tidigare kvalitativ studie formulerades åtta hypoteser som undersöktes med hjälp av en enkätundersökning. Enkäten besvarades av 337 individer med erfarenhet av krishantering från kommun, länsstyrelse, polis och räddningstjänst. Resultaten visar att det framför allt är uppgiftsrelaterade, passiva destruktiva ledarskapsbeteenden som har starkast negativt samband med tillit, hälsa och prestation. Det visar på betydelsen av ledare som vågar fatta beslut och klarar av att vara handlingskraftiga både i vardagen och under osäkra och stressfylda förhållanden. Resultaten belyser också att destruktiva ledare har en negativ inverkan på underställdas förutsättningar att hantera kriser och olyckor.

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.

The aim of this thesis is to study trust in military leaders. Empirical data was gathered through interviews and questionnaires with military personnel mostly from Sweden, but also from four other European countries.

Paper I illustrates that trust in military leaders can be theoretically understood in terms of a hierarchical system of categories, higher-level categories and two superior categories labelled Individual-related and Communication- and relationship-related characteristics.

Paper II examines how trust between military leaders and their subordinates is related to negative critical incidents in international operations. The results show that trust can be affected by pre-existing influences, of both an individual and contextual nature. The level of trust that develops between leaders and subordinates appears to have an influence on perceptions and re-evaluations of leaders’ trustworthiness during and after involvement in critical incidents.

In Paper III, an instrument, Destrudo-L, was developed to measure destructive leadership behaviours on five different dimensions: Arrogant, unfair, Threats, punishments, overdemands, Ego-oriented, false, Passive, cowardly, and Uncertain, unclear, messy.

In Paper IV the relationship between constructive and destructive leadership behaviours and trust is examined. The results show that constructive leadership contributed most to trust in the immediate supervisor. A great deal of trust in immediate supervisors can be understood by evaluating both constructive and destructive leadership behaviours.

This thesis contributes with context-specific knowledge on trust in leaders in a military context and knowledge of psychological processes and individual dispositions that shape and change the willingness to trust leaders. The main findings presented in this thesis are the identification of characteristics of the trustor, the trustee, and the context which influences trust in military leaders.

In recent years, scholars have focused more on the "dark sides of leadership." Both the negative and positive aspects of the relationship between leaders and followers are considered. But the relationship between leaders and followers is also influenced by the context in which the relationship occurs. Organizational aspects such as culture and structures are studied in relation to how negative leadership develops. Organizations, just like humans, are able to develop justifications for their actions, to self-aggrandize by claiming their exclusivity. In this book, the dark sides of organizational behaviors and leadership are considered from different aspects and contexts. The book contributes knowledge of how negative leadership develops, what part organizational structures play, and what the consequences are for the leader, the subordinates and the organization.

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.

The Swedish Armed forces has been transformed to an all-volunteer force where the first soldiers began their employment in May 2011. The number of applicants has been satisfying but experiences from other countries indicate that it has been easier to recruit soldiers than to retain them. The aim of this study was to investigate factors affecting the job satisfaction of soldiers. Twenty-one informants who had been employed as soldiers for about a year participated in the study. They came from all three fighting services (army, air force, navy). The data was analyzed according to a grounded theory approach.

      The results show that the soldiers’ job satisfaction is related to their inner motivation to join the armed forces. The inner motivation can be divided into: (a) primarily searching for a job and a steady income, (b) a great interest in the armed forces and military tasks, and (c) an aim for a certain education/position. Factors that appear to affect the job satisfaction are, for example: co-workers, salary and experienced meaningfulness. Another result from the study is that strategic decisions at the Head Quarter level that involve unexpected readjustments at the local level tend to have a negative effect on of the soldiers’ motivation and job satisfaction because  the leaders at the local units are poorly prepared to handle the changes. This will be more thoroughly discussed during the presentation.

As many other armed forces, the Swedish Armed Forces (SAF) is having a difficult time recruiting a sufficient number of soldiers. The turn-over rate is high as well as the cost for recruiting and training soldiers, should they leave the SAF immediately (after basic training) or after a shorter period of employment. This has brought attention to the issue of re-enlistment and the need to understand what factors impact soldiers’ willingness to re-enlist to the SAF. The aim of the study is to investigate the motives and driving forces that make soldiers inclined to re-enlist within the SAF. Interviews are conducted with about 20 re-enlisted soldiers from three different units. A grounded-theory approach will be used to analyse the data. At the time of the conference the data analysis will be completed and the results will be presented.

The aim of this study was to investigate the motive-structure of soldiers who has re-enlisted with the Swedish Armed forces. The following research questions were formulated: (1) Which factors influenced the decision to leave the armed forces, and (2) which factors influenced the decision to re-enlist with the armed forces. Eleven re-enlisted soldiers, from three different units, were interviewed. The interviews were analyzed according to a grounded theory-approach. A theoretical model describing the re-enlistment process from an individual perspective was developed.The theoretical model shows that in order to understand re-enlisted soldiers motive-structure in relation to re-enlistment we need to consider the following aspects: (a) the soldiers´ individual work approach, (b) their experiences of employment, (c) factors influencing their decision to leave the armed forces, (d) their reflection process that develops as a result of a contrast between the civilian and the military employment, and (e) their motives and thoughts in relation to the decision to re-enlist with the armed forces. In the report, we discuss the importance of goal attainment, commanders’ attitude towards re-enlisted soldiers and commitment and interest in the armed forces as a result of the reflection process.

The aim of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of leadership in military operations characterized by the presence of critical incidents (IED attacks). Twenty-one Swedish soldiers and officers (ranking from soldier to colonel) who had experienced IED attacks in Afghanistan during the period 2005-2008 were interviewed, and their responses were analyzed according to grounded theory methodology. A model was developed according to which the essence of military leadership immediately following an IED attack could be summarized as recapturing control over self, the group and the task. The model also illuminates the importance of selected pre-existing conditions and the leader's appraisal/ sensemaking processes. Nine leadership acts of balance were identified, including balanced grief (self), balanced focus on emotional and functional recovery (group), and balanced handling of safety versus necessary risk-taking (task).

Syftet med studien var att studera potentiell återanställningsbarhet och motivationsstruktur hos individer som lämnat Försvarsmakten. Följande frågeställningar avsågs att besvaras: (1) Vilka faktorer påverkade individernas beslut att lämna Försvarsmakten? och (2) Vilka faktorer påverkar huruvida individen vill ta återanställning i Försvarsmakten eller ej?

Med hjälp av en enkät besvarade 786 tidigare kontinuerligt tjänstgörande gruppbefäl, soldater och sjömän frågor om varför de lämnade Försvarsmakten och om deras attityd till att ta återanställning. Resultaten visar att de flesta trivdes bra under sin anställning. Vanligaste orsakerna till att lämna var brist på utveckling, missnöje över lönen, och för att  påbörja civila studier/arbete. Brist på utveckling är den faktor som bäst predicerar om tidigare kontinuerligt tjänstgörande personal vill ta återanställning i Försvarsmakten eller ej.

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to investigate if the thesis “bad is stronger than good” also holds true for a number of leadership issues, more specifically: trust in the immediate leader, emotional exhaustion, work atmosphere and propensity to leave.

Design/methodology/approach

– Questionnaire responses were obtained from military personnel in Estonia, Sweden, Switzerland and the Netherlands (n=625).

Findings

– Multiple regression analyses revealed a certain pattern. Constructive leadership behaviours showed stronger positive associations with trust in the immediate supervisor and work atmosphere, than destructive leadership behaviours showed negative associations. On the other hand, destructive leadership behaviours showed stronger positive associations with emotional exhaustion and propensity to leave, than constructive leadership behaviours showed negative associations. This suggests that constructive leadership behaviours possibly have a greater impact on positive phenomenon and/or phenomenon associated with work-related relationships. On the other hand, destructive leadership behaviours appear to have a greater impact on negative phenomena with a stronger personal meaning. The results also show that the passive forms of destructive leadership are the behaviours that had the strongest impact on the investigated dependent variables.

Research limitations/implications

– Limitations related to item construction, common method variance, response set tendencies, translation of the instruments, and lack of response rate are discussed.

Practical implications

– The results emphasize the importance of focusing on both constructive and destructive leadership at the selection stage, as well as during training of military leaders. Focusing on them separately obstructs optimal leader development and prevents leaders from gaining authentic self-knowledge. The results also point at the importance of including both aspects of leadership in leader evaluation processes.

Originality/value

– The use of both constructive and destructive leadership behaviours with respondents from multiple nations in the same analysis.

Purpose

This paper reports the results of three quantitative studies on destructive leadership in a military context. The aim is to identify (a) which behaviors are considered passive leadership in this type of context, (b) outcomes of passive leadership, and (c) hierarchical differences regarding outcomes of passive leadership.

Design/Methodology

Questionnaire data was collected from (a) three Swedish military groups (n = 428), (b) military personnel in Estonia, Sweden, Switzerland and the Netherlands (n = 625), and (c) Swedish military personnel serving in Afghanistan (n = 289).

Results

The results show that passive leadership in a military context is defined as behaviors related to being “passive, cowardly” and “uncertain, unclear, messy”. Passive leadership behaviors had a stronger impact (than active destructive leadership behaviors) on outcomes such as emotional exhaustion and propensity to leave the organization. The results also reveal that passive leadership behaviors are more common on higher hierarchical levels compared to lower.

Limitations

Limitations related to common method variance, response set tendencies and lack of response rate are discussed.

Research/practical implications

The results emphasize the importance of focusing on passive leadership behaviors in the research field of destructive leadership. From a practical perspective, implications for military organizations are discussed.

Originality/Value

Since most of the studies on passive leadership are conducted in civilian settings, the results from this paper contribute with context-specific knowledge about passive leadership in a military setting.

The aim was to explore which components military personnel in peacekeeping operations perceive as contributing to trust in their superior and subordinate leaders during international or national operations or exercises. Data were collected among 591 military officers and cadets from Norway and Sweden using a questionnaire with open-ended questions. Two superior categories emerged: Individual-Related Characteristics and Communication- and Relationship-Related Characteristics. The former is made up of the higher-level categories Personal attributes and Experience and competence. The latter is derived from the higher-level categories Consideration and inspiration and Effective communication. In turn, all higher-level categories are underpinned by a number of subcategories (13 altogether). When comparing trust in superior leaders with trust in subordinate leaders, the results show that trust in superiors is characterised to a greater extent by Communication- and Relationship-related characteristics and also by Experience and professional knowledge. Trust in subordinate leaders is characterised to a greater extent by Personal attributes and Management competence.

The aim of this study was to investigate whether constructive or destructive leadership behaviors are the best predictors of soldiers’ experienced meaningfulness of work and general job satisfaction. Data were collected among 300 employed soldiers using a questionnaire. The questionnaire contained questions about the immediate leader’s constructive and destructive leadership, meaningfulness of work and general job satisfaction. The results show that the constructive leadership factor inspiration and motivation was the best predictor of both experienced meaningfulness of work and general job satisfaction. None of the destructive leadership factors gave a significant contribution to the models although both the passive and active forms of destructive leadership showed a weak to moderate significant, negative correlation with experienced meaningfulness of work and general job satisfaction.

Syftet med studien var att erhålla fördjupad förståelse av hur allvarliga incidenter som inträffat under tjänstgöring i Afghanistan (huvudsakligen Improvised Explosive Device-attentat) påverkar ledarskap, tillit och motivation. Totalt intervjuades 21 personer, 16 officerare och fem civila. Alla informanter har tjänstgjort i Afghanistan och kan delas in i följande kategorier: (a) indirekta ledare (förbandschefer), (b) direkta ledare (grupp/teamledare för grupper som varit involverade i incidenter), (c) individer involverade i incidenten, (d) individer tillhörande involverad grupp men ej direkt involverade i incidenten, samt (e) individer som inte tillhörde involverad grupp men aktuellt förband. Incidenterna som studerades var framförallt IED-attentat där svenskar omkommit, skadats eller klarat sig utan skador.Resultatet visar på en kedjereaktion: individ- och omgivningsförhållanden påverkar individernas generella uppfattningar av insatsen som i sin tur påverkar uppfattningar, reaktioner och ageranden under och direkt efter incidenter. De omedelbara reaktionerna påverkar i sin tur resultatet av såväl de specifika incidenterna som insatsen generellt. Genomgående visar resultatet på svårigheter att hantera "den osynliga fienden". IED-attentat uppfattas vara svåra, om inte omöjliga, att upptäcka och påverka, vilket leder till en frustration hos både underställda och ledare. Andra aspekter som behandlas i rapporten är bland annat hur incidenter uppfattas, tillit, motivation, sorghantering och beslutsfattande. Slutligen ges praktiska råd till ledare som ska tjänstgöra i Afghanistan.