The 2003 California recall election represented a unique opportunity to study
leadership in the context of what has been described in the popular media as an
economic and political crisis. Participants (N= 311) reported their perceptions
of the current situation in California and their tendency to attribute outcomes
to leaders rather than situational factors (the Romance of Leadership Scale, or
RLS). They subsequently watched video clips of the incumbent, the incumbent
party challenger and the outside challenger, and rated their delivery style,
charisma and expected effectiveness in office. Results indicate that both
challengers were rated as more charismatic than the incumbent, and crisis
perceptions were related to expected effectiveness ratings for all three
candidates. In addition, higher charismatic delivery was associated with higher
ratings of charisma and effectiveness. Finally, the RLS was significantly
related to ratings of the outside challenger’s charisma, and
interacted with crisis perceptions to predict charisma ratings of both the
incumbent party challenger and the outside challenger. Implications for the
relationship between crisis and charisma, the importance of charismatic delivery
style, and situational influences on the RLS are discussed.
Aiken, L. S.
, &
West, S. G.
(eds) (1991) Multiple regression: Testing and Interpreting
Interactions.
Newbury Park, CA: SAGE
.
2.
Antonakis, J.
,
Avolio, B. A.
, &
Sivasubramaniam, N.
(2003)
‘Context and Leadership: An Examination of the Nine-factor
Full-range Leadership Theory Using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire’
, The Leadership Quarterly14(3):
261-295
.
3.
Atkinson, J. M.
(1984) Our Masters’Voices: The Language and Body
Language of Politics.
London: Methuen
.
4.
Atwater, L. E.
,
Camobreco, J. F.
,
Dionne, S. D.
, &
Avolio, B. J.
(1997)
‘Effects of Rewards and Punishments on Leader Charisma, Leader
Effectiveness and Follower Reactions’
, The Leadership Quarterly8(2):
133-152
.
5.
Avolio, B. J.
,
Waldman, D. A.
, &
Einstein, W. O.
(1988)
‘Transformational Leadership in a Management Game Simulation’
, Group & Organization Studies13:
59-80
.
6.
Awamleh, R.
, &
Gardner, W. L.
(1999)
‘Perceptions of Leader Charisma and Effectiveness: The Effects of
Vision Content, Delivery, and Organizational Performance’
, The Leadership Quarterly10(3):
345-373
.
7.
Bailey, E.
(2003)
‘A Distaste for Recall Could Help Save Davis’
, The Los Angeles Times, 23 July.
8.
Balz, D.
(2003)
‘California May Reset Political Compass’
, The Washington Post, 5 October.
9.
Bandura, A.
(2001)
‘Social Cognitive Theory: An Agentic Perspective’
, Annual Review of Psychology52:
1-26
.
10.
Barabak, M.
(2005)
‘Gov. Walks a Fine Line on Boundaries’
, The Los Angeles Times, 5 January.
11.
Bass, B. M.
(1985) Leadership and Performance Beyond Expectations.
New York: Free Press
.
12.
Bass, B. M.
(1988) ‘Evolving Perspectives on Charismatic
Leadership’, in
J. A. Conger
&
R. N. Kanungo
(eds) Charismatic Leadership, pp. 40-77.
San Francisco: Jossey-Bass
.
13.
Bass, B.M.
(1990) Bass and Stogdill’s Handbook of Leadership:
Theory, Research and Managerial expectations.
New York: Free Press
.
14.
Bass, B. M.
, &
Avolio, B. J.
(1993) ‘Transformational Leadership: A Response
to Critiques’, in
M. M. Chemers
&
R. Ayman
(eds) Leadership Theory and Research: Perspectives and Directions,
pp. 49-80.
New York: Academic Press
.
15.
Bass, B. M.
, &
Avolio, B. J.
(1995) Manual for the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire:
Rater from (5X Short).
Palo Alto, CA: Mind Garden
.
16.
Bennis, W. G.
, &
Nanus, B.
(1985) Leaders: The Strategies of Taking Charge.
San Francisco: HarperCollins
.
17.
Beyer, J. M.
(1999a)
‘Taming and Promoting Charisma to Change Organizations’
, The Leadership Quarterly10:
307-330
.
18.
Beyer, J. M.
(1999b)
‘Two Approaches to Studying Charismatic Leadership: Competing or Complementary?’
, The Leadership Quarterly10:
575-588
.
19.
Bligh, M. C.
,
Kohles, J. C.
, &
Meindl, J. R.
(2004a)
‘Charisma Under Crisis: Presidential Leadership, Rhetoric, and
Media Responses Before and After the September 11th Terrorist Attacks’
, The Leadership Quarterly15(2):
211-239
.
20.
Bligh, M. C.
,
Kohles, J. C.
, &
Meindl, J. R.
(2004b)
‘Charting the Language of Leadership: A Methodological
Investigation of President Bush and the Crisis of 9/11’
, Journal of Applied Psychology89(3):
562-574
.
21.
Borowitz, A.
(2003) ‘Gray Davis Evaporates, Becomes Fine Mist as
Days in Office Dwindle’. Available at: http://www.borowitzreport.com
22.
Bycio, P.
,
Hackett, R. D.
, &
Allen, J. S.
(1995)
‘Further Assessments of Bass’s (1985) Conceptualization
of Transactional and Transformational Leadership’
, Journal of Applied Psychology30:
468-478
.
23.
Cohen, J.
, &
Cohen, P.
(1983) Applied Multiple Regression/Correlation Analysis for
the Behavioral Sciences.
Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum
.
24.
Collins, J.
(2001) Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and
Others Don’t.
New York: HarperCollins
.
25.
Conger, J. A.
(1989) The Charismatic Leader: Behind the Mystique of
Exceptional Leadership.
San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass
.
26.
Conger, J. A.
, &
Kanungo, R. N.
(1987)
‘Toward a Behavioral Theory of Charismatic Leadership in
Organizational Settings’
, Academy of Management Review12:
637-647
.
27.
Conger, J. A.
, &
Kanungo, R. N.
(1998) Charismatic Leadership in Organizations.
Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE
.
28.
Coombs, W. T.
, &
Holladay, S. J.
(2002)
‘Helping Crisis Managers Protect Reputational Assets’
, Management Communication Quarterly16(2):
165-187
.
29.
Deluga, R. J.
(1998)
‘American Presidential Proactivity, Charismatic Leadership, and
Rated Performance’
, The Leadership Quarterly9(3):
265-291
.
30.
Deluga, R. J.
(2001)
‘American Presidential Machiavellianism: Implications for
Charismatic Leadership and Rated Performance’
, The Leadership Quarterly12(3):
339-363
.
31.
Den Hartog, D. N.
, &
Verburg, R. M.
(1997)
‘Charisma and Rhetoric: Communicative Techniques of International
Business Leaders’
, The Leadership Quarterly8:
355-391
.
32.
Dvir, T.
, &
Shamir, B.
(2003)
‘Follower Developmental Characteristics as Predicting
Transformational Leadership: A Longitudinal Field Study’
, The Leadership Quarterly14(3):
327-344
.
33.
Ehrlich, S. B.
,
Meindl, J. R.
, &
Viellieu, B.
(1990)
‘The Charismatic Appeal of a Transformational Leader: An
Empirical Case Study of a Small, High-technology Contractor’
, The Leadership Quarterly1:
229-247
.
34.
Emrich, C. G.
,
Brower, H. H.
,
Feldman, J. M.
, &
Garland, H.
(2001)
‘Images in Words: Presidential Rhetoric, Charisma, and Greatness’
, Administrative Science Quarterly46:
527-557
.
35.
Gardner, W. L.
, &
Avolio, B. J.
(1998)
‘The Charismatic Relationship: A Dramaturgical Perspective’
, Academy of Management Review23:
32-58
.
36.
Grusky, O.
(1963)
‘Managerial Succession and Organizational Effectiveness’
, American Journal of Sociology69:
21-31
.
37.
Halverson, S. K.
,
Murphy, S. E.
, &
Riggio, R. E.
(2004)
‘Charismatic Leadership in Crisis Situations: A Laboratory
Investigation of Stress and Crisis’
, Small Group Research35(5):
495-515
.
38.
Harper, T.
(2003)
‘Recall Pits Strong Man Against Weak Governor’
, The Toronto Star, 1 October.
39.
Heritage, J.
, &
Greatbatch, D.
(1986)
‘Generating Applause: A Study of Rhetoric and Response at Party
Political Conferences’
, American Sociological Review92:
110-157
.
40.
Holladay, S. J.
, &
Coombs, W. T.
(1993)
‘Communicating Visions: An Exploration of the Role of Delivery in
the Creation of Leader Charisma’
, Management Communication Quarterly6:
405-427
.
41.
Holladay, S. J.
, &
Coombs, W. T.
(1994)
‘Speaking of Visions and Visions Being Spoken: An Exploration of
the Effects of Content and Delivery on Perceptions of Leader Charisma’
, Management Communication Quarterly8:
165-189
.
42.
House, R. J.
,
Spangler, W. D.
, &
Woycke, J.
(1991)
‘Personality and Charisma in the US Presidency: A Psychological
Theory of Leader Effectiveness’
, Administrative Science Quarterly36:
364-395
.
43.
House, R. J.
,
Woycke, J.
, &
Fodor, E. M.
(1988) ‘Charismatic and Noncharismatic Leaders:
Differences in Behavior and Effectiveness’ in
J. A. Conger
&
R. N. Kanungo
(eds) Charismatic Leadership, pp. 98-121.
San Francisco: Jossey-Bass
.
44.
Howell, J. M.
, &
Frost, P. J.
(1989)
‘A Laboratory Study of Charismatic Leadership’
, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes43:
243-269
.
45.
Hughes, R. L.
,
Ginnett, R. C.
, &
Curphy, G. J.
(2001) Leadership: Enhancing the Lessons of Experience.
New York: McGraw-Hill
.
46.
Hunt, J. G.
,
Boal, K. B.
, &
Dodge, G. E.
(1999)
‘The Effects of Visionary and Crisis-responsive Charisma on
Followers: An Experimental Examination of Two Kinds of Charismatic Leadership’
, The Leadership Quarterly10(3):
423-448
.
47.
Kathlene, L.
(1989)
‘Uncovering the Political Impacts of Gender: An Exploratory Study’
, Western Political Quarterly42:
397-421
.
48.
Kellerman, B.
(2003) One Expert’s Opinion: Business and Public
Leaders Have Much in Common. Available at: http://www.ksg.harvard.edu/news/experts/2003/kellerman_leadership_111903.htm
49.
Kirkpatrick, S. A.
, &
Locke, E. A.
(1996)
‘Direct and Indirect Effects of Three Core Charismatic Leadership
Components on Performance and Attitudes’
, Journal of Applied Psychology81(1):
36-51
.
50.
Klein, K. J.
, &
House, R. J.
(1995)
‘On Fire: Charismatic Leadership and Levels of Analysis’
, The Leadership Quarterly6:
183-198
.
51.
Lord, R. G.
, &
Maher, K. J.
(1991) Leadership and Informational Processing: Linking
Perceptions and Performance.
Boston, MA: Unwin-Hyman
.
52.
Lupia, A.
(2003)
‘Are the State’s Voters up to the Task?’
, The Los Angeles Times, 7 October, B13.
53.
Madsen, D.
, &
Snow, P. G.
(1991) The Charismatic Bond: Political Behavior in Time of
Crisis.
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press
.
54.
Maney, K.
(2003)
‘Motorola’s Former CEO Might Have Failed, but
He’s a Good Guy’
, USA Today, 24 September,
3B
.
55.
Meindl, J. R.
(1990)
‘On Leadership: An Alternative to the Conventional Wisdom’
, Research in Organizational Behavior12:
159-203
.
56.
Meindl, J. R.
(1993) ‘Reinventing Leadership: A Radical,
Social Psychological Approach’, in
K. Murnighan
(ed.) Social Psychology in Organizations: Advances in Theory and
Research, pp. 89-118.
Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall
.
57.
Meindl, J. R.
(1995)
‘The Romance of Leadership as a Follower-centric Theory: A Social
Constructionist Approach’
, The Leadership Quarterly6(3):
329-341
.
58.
Meindl, J. R.
, &
Ehrlich, S. B.
(1988)
‘Developing a Romance of Leadership Scale’
, Proceedings of the Eastern Academy of Management:
133-135
.
59.
Meindl, J. R.
,
Ehrlich, S. B.
, &
Dukerich, J. M.
(1985)
‘The Romance of Leadership’
, Administrative Science Quarterly30:
78-102
.
60.
Mischel, W.
(1977) ‘The Interaction of Person and
Situation’, in
D. Magnusson
&
N. S. Endler
(eds) Personality at the Crossroads: Current Issues in Interactional
Psychology, pp. 333-352.
Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum
.
61.
Murphy, D.
(2003)
‘Voters Took Leap of Faith’
, The San Francisco Chronicle, 11 October,
B1
.
62.
Norton, R. W.
(1983) Communicator Style: Theory, Applications, and
Measures.
Beverly Hills, CA: SAGE
.
63.
Pearson, C. M.
, &
Clair, J. A.
(1998)
‘Reframing Crisis Management’
, Academy of Management Review23(1):
59-76
.
64.
Pillai, R.
(1996)
‘Crisis and the Emergence of Charismatic Leadership in Groups: An
Experimental Investigation’
, Journal of Applied Social Psychology26(6):
543-562
.
65.
Pillai, R.
, &
Meindl, J. R.
(1991)
‘The Impact of a Performance Crisis on Attributions of
Charismatic Leadership: A Preliminary Study’
, Proceedings of the 1991 Eastern Academy of Management
Meetings:
138-141
.
66.
Pillai, R.
, &
Meindl, J. R.
(1998)
‘Context and Charisma: A “Meso” Level
Examination of the Relationship of Organic Structure, Collectivism, and
Crisis to Charismatic Leadership’
, Journal of Management24(5):
643-664
.
67.
Pillai, R.
, &
Williams, E. A.
(1998)
‘Does Leadership Matter in the Political Arena? Voter Perceptions
of Candidates’ Transformational and Charismatic Leadership and the
1996 U.S. Presidential Vote’
, The Leadership Quarterly9:
397-416
.
68.
Pillai, R.
,
Williams, E. A.
,
Lowe, K. B.
, &
Jung, D. I.
(2003)
‘Personality, Transformational Leadership, Trust, and the 2000
U.S. Presidential Vote’
, The Leadership Quarterly, 14(2):
161-192
.
69.
Poole, O.
(2003)
‘Terminator Ready to Trample on “150 lb Weakling”’
, The Daily Telegraph, 2 October,
17
.
70.
Provance, J.
(2003)
‘Davis’Aloof Manner Boosts Recall Effort; Voters
Forgive if They Like You’
, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 1 September,
A1
.
71.
Rimban, L.
(2002)
‘Star-Studded Politics’
, Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism,
8(4):
1
.
72.
Shamir, B. M.
(1994)
‘Ideological Position, Leaders’ Charisma and Voting
Preferences: Personal vs. Partisan Elections’
, Political Behavior16:
265-287
.
73.
Shamir, B. M.
(1995)
‘Social Distance and Charisma: Theoretical Notes and an
Exploratory Study’
, The Leadership Quarterly6:
19-47
.
74.
Shamir, B. M.
&
Howell, J. M.
(1999)
‘Organizational and Contextual Influences on the Emergence and
Effectiveness of Charismatic Leadership’
, The Leadership Quarterly10(2):
257-283
.
75.
Stewart, R.
(1967) Managers and Their Jobs: A Study of the Similarities
and Differences in the Way Managers Spend Their Time.
London: Macmillan
.
76.
Stewart, R.
(1976) Contrasts in Management.
Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill
.
77.
Tejeda, M. J.
,
Scandura, T. A.
, &
Pillai, R.
(2001)
‘The MLQ Revisited: Psychometric Properties and Recommendations’
, The Leadership Quarterly12(1):
31-52
.
78.
Tichy, N. M.
, &
Devanna, M. A.
(1986) The Transformational Leader.
New York: Wiley
.
79.
Tyson, L.
(2003)
‘A New Governor Won’t Fix What Ails California’
, Business Week24
.
80.
Villa, J. R.
,
Howell, J. P.
,
Dorfman P. W.
, &
Daniel, D. L.
(2003)
‘Problems with Detecting Moderators in Leadership Research Using
Moderated Multiple Regression’
, The Leadership Quarterly14:
3-23
.
81.
Washington Post (2003)
‘Exit Poll’
. Available at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/recallexitpoll.html
82.
Weber, M.
(1947) The Theory of Social and Economic Organizations.
New York: Free Press
.
83.
Wolinsky, H.
(2003)
‘New CEO: “A Lot of Great Assets” at Motorola’
, The Chicago Sun-Times, 17 December,
91
.
84.
Yukl, G. A.
(1999)
‘An Evaluation of the Conceptual Weaknesses in Transformational
and Charismatic Leadership Theories’
, The Leadership Quarterly10(2):
285-305
.
85.
Yukl, G. A.
(2002) Leadership in Organizations.
Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall
.
