A Case for democratic leadership !

November 05, 2013
A Case for democratic leadership ! 
Research finding : 
When You Feel Powerful You Talk Too Much, and Your Subordinates Perform Poorly
Experiment : 
In a computer-based simulation of a Mount Everest expedition, teams whose leaders had been induced to feel powerful (“Think about a time when you had power over someone”) achieved just 59% of their goals, in comparison with 76% by teams whose leaders hadn’t been induced to feel powerful . 
Reason ? 
A feeling of power prompts leaders to verbally dominate, which gives the impression that they are LESS  open to others’ ideas ! 
This perception diminishes team performance. 
Advice to Orgnanizations : 
Organizations might be able to minimize this effect by maintaining an egalitarian culture, reminding leaders of subordinates’ importance, and encouraging employees to question the legitimacy of leaders who dominate social interactions, the researchers say.
Research Conducted by : Leigh Plunkett Tost of the University of Michigan, Francesca Gino of Harvard, and Richard P. Larrick of Duke. 
SOURCE: When Power Makes Others Speechless: The Negative Impact of Leader Power on Team Performance