LEADERSHIP CHARACTERISTICS OF ... - Drake University

A study of 40 primary health centers in Spain focused on the
transformational leadership styles of the centers' coordinators. Each
coordinator led a team of family doctors, pediatricians, nurses, and clerks.
The leadership of the coordinators was more likely to be legitimate in the
team members' eyes when the coordinator ranked higher in
transformational factors. Team members found it more acceptable for the
coordinators to organize, manage, control, and evaluate their performance
(transactional factors). Role conflict was noted to be lower in these
settings with a greater sense of autonomy and improved interpersonal
relationships when the health care coordinators were seen as
transformational (Morales & Molero, 1995). Additional research regarding
the impact of these factors on leadership potential will help to increase the
knowledge base and increase the possibility of more efficient leadership
development.
Information related to the experience of the leader was examined
by Bass (1 990). His study revealed that when employees rank their
managers on the MLQ, they describe new business leaders as more
transformational than established business leaders. He suggests that
MLQ scores could be used to identify executives to head new ventures.
Additionally, Bass found that managers tend to model their own leadership
style after those of their immediate supervisor. Therefore, if more higher-
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