'Argyll and Bute Headteachers: Focus on Leadership'

Inveraray, 3rd Sept. 2015

The Personal Qualities (Personality Traits, Dispositions and Attributes) Associated with High- Performance Leadership

of Schools*

Clive DimmockUniversity of Glasgow

clive.dimmock@glasgow.ac.uk

* based on Dimmock, C. (2012). Leadership, Capacity building and School Improvement. London: Routledge.

Aims of session – to address 2 questions 1. What do school leaders need in terms of personality traits,

dispositions, and attributes to be high performing - as opposed to mediocre - leaders?

2. Are successful leaders born or made?

The answer to Q1. helps us answer Q2.

What are your own experiences and ideas in addressing the above questions?

Structure of session

• Definition of ‘high-performing’ leadership

• Background – the nature of headteachers’ work

• Definition of ‘Qualities’ – personality traits, dispositions and attributes

• Introduction to the research of - - Zaccaro on personality and leadership

- Cave and Wilkinson on basic and higher-order abilities of leadership- McKinsey & Co. on successful leader traits, dispositions and attributes

• Are HPLs born or made?

• Q & A

Definition of high-performance leadership (HPL)

HPL is a social influence process guided by moral purpose that builds capacity by optimizing human and other resources in successfully achieving shared and desired individual and organisational goals

Dimmock, C. (2012). Leadership, capacity building and school improvement. London: Routledge.

Background to study of leadership – sociological more than psychological

• Research and literature in Educational leadership in last few decades dominated by sociological perspectives – the field of educational leadership had its roots in sociological theory and this is still perpetuated

• Yet the psychological and socio-psychological factors, personality and individual characteristics that underlie much of what we do, think and practice as leaders, have been relatively ignored

• Exceptions – personality tests - 16 PF Inventory, Myers-Briggs etc. and work on emotional intelligence (eg. Goleman et al.)

Nature of head-teachers’ workLogistics • Huge number of interactions each day• Fragmented and interrupted day, multi-tasking• Networking with large and diverse number of interest groups and individuals –

teachers, students, parents, LAs, peer heads, unions, universities, business, police, etc.

• Large array of tasks – from sorting personal problems, departmental issues, whole school policies and goals, accountabilities, quality performance and social justice

Decision making• Deciding priorities and use of time• Deciding what requires in-depth knowledge as opposed to just awareness• Cognitive dexterity and flexibility to switch quickly• Memorising and ability to recall relevant facts and details of people, events,

problems• Processing experiential learning and making best judgements – tacit knowledge• Right timing is crucial – immediate, delayed/considered, or no decision

Personality Traits, Dispositions and Attributes – Definitions

No clearly agreed definitions of/distinctions between these key terms My definitions are below, boundaries are blurred, and I argue that all three interact –

• Personality traits or characteristics – mainly genetic at core, pre-ordain our ways of acting, reacting and interacting, changeable only at margins

• Dispositions – determine the formation of deeply-held beliefs and values, formed from interaction of personality and a mix of personal experiences and social influences – change is possible

• Attributes – knowledge, skills, surface beliefs – wholly socially acquired, influenced by education, our peer group, and life experiences – most malleable of all

(Dimmock, 2012)

Personality traits that impact on leadership

The ‘Big Five’ personality factors influencing successful leadership –

• Emotional stability (inc. emotional intelligence) • Extroversion – outgoing, sociable • Openness to experience – welcoming new challenges,

willingness to take risks• Agreeableness – pleasing, likeable, willingness to engage• Conscientiousness – careful and persistent in attending to

tasks, wanting to do one’s best

(Zaccaro et. al)

According to Zaccaro et al. successful leaders possess and demonstrate higher levels of -

• social and emotional intelligence (Goleman) – good listeners, understand others, good interpersonal relations, sense of humour (psychological traits)

• self-efficacy, confidence, social engagement, optimism, proactivity, internal locus of control, and nurturance (part psychological traits – dispositions)

• motivation – high on need for dominance and power and/or responsibility

and achievement needs (but not affiliation needs); passion about their work, enthusiasm, commitment, persistence, resilience, industriousness (part psychological traits – part dispositions)

• cognitive abilities – high on intelligence, greater problem-solving expertise,

flexible and creative thinking capacity (mostly psychological traits with some elements of attributes)

• domain-specific knowledge and skills relating to education, leadership and curriculum (attributes).

Emotional Intelligence (EI) Daniel Goleman

People who can solve problems involving emotions, or problems requiring the use of emotions, can better:

• Communicate effectively with staff and clients• Identify and respond to others' emotions• Manage their own and others' emotional reactions• Be less likely to suffer negative emotions• Make them more likely to achieve goals.

These personality characteristics make EI necessary but not sufficient conditions for high-performing leadership.

Cave and Wilkinson Study 1990s English Headteachers

Experiential Evidence on the qualities needed for H-PL

Group of Heads met over extended time to consider:

What knowledge and capabilities are needed for high effectiveness in the role?

IDENTIFIED 2 LEVELS OF, AND 3 COMPONENTS TO, KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS

2 levels of knowledge and skills – BASIC and HIGHER-ORDER

BASIC1. Professional knowledge – from literature, programs etc. – social, legal,

educational (curriculum, pedagogy, assessment)2. Skills and techniques – from formal training, mentoring and most

importantly, from practical experience on the job (tacit knowledge)

Nb. i) A lot of the above are attributes that can be acquired...BUT..ii) We know some heads have higher propensity to learn from tacit

knowledge than others – which is (f) personality (intelligence, cognitive processing and insight) and dispositions – which suggests HIGHER-ORDER CAPACITIES

HIGHER-ORDER CAPACITIES

These are what really distinguish high-performing leaders – generally cognitive abilities (and some dispositions eg values) that promote and optimize the effective use of basic level knowledge and skills

4 higher-order capacities (largely personality traits/dispositions):- Reading situations – receptive, evaluative, timeliness- Making balanced judgements – decision making, whether to take

action and what action, combination of rational and intuitive- Having good intuition – hunch plus stored memory and ordered

experience- Possessing political-social acumen – skills to bargain, persuade,

manage information, networking etc.

Remember Zaccaro’s research also suggests the following personality traits/dispositions are crucial – confidence, optimism, resilience and reflection.

Main argument

1.Higher-order capacities are what distinguishes high- performing leaders from mediocre; they not only enable leaders to apply their basic knowledge and skills more effectively, but add a higher dimension of insights and intuition to how they work

2.Tacit knowledge accounts for 90% plus of what heads learn to do and how they do it - higher-order capacities enable heads to more effectively learn and apply the lessons from practical experience – it makes them better leaders

3. Higher-order capacities are mostly shaped by personality characteristics and dispositions

McKinsey & Co. (2010) – The Leadership Premium - recently identified traits, dispositions and attributes – of successful

leaders

• focused on student achievement, student welfare ahead of politics (dispositions)

• resilient and persistent in goals, but adaptable to people and context (personality traits and dispositions)

• willing to develop a deep understanding of people and context (personality traits/dispositions)

• willing to take risks, and challenge accepted beliefs and behaviours (personality traits/dispositions)

• self-aware and willing to learn (personality traits and dispositions)

• optimistic and enthusiastic (personality traits and dispositions).

Future research

We need to - • combine studies of personality traits – that is, cognitive

abilities, motives, social skills, expertise and problem solving skills

• look at patterns and integrations of multiple traits and dispositions

• distinguish those traits, dispositions and attributes that are not malleable from those that are bounded/influenced by situational contexts

• understand how combinations of malleable/fixed traits/dispositions and attributes connect to fit with type of school and context.

Question

Undertaking a self assessment –

1. Which personality traits, dispositions and attributes do you feel you possess sufficiently to enable you to be a high-performing leader?

2. Which do you feel you particularly need to develop?

Are leaders born or made?

Nicholson (2007) – London Business School – the most important pre-requisite for leadership is DESIRE TO LEAD

3 types of people, those - • with strong drive to lead – irrespective of situation, or field – small

minority – my hunch - maybe c.5% or less?• with no desire to be leaders (content, unambitious, priority to

family, hobbies etc)- large proportion – maybe 45% to 50%?• persuadable to be leaders, but only under specific conditions (eg.

where they feel a good match with school, salary, location etc.) – maybe 40 to 50%?

Cont….

• ‘Drive’ – is a basic personality trait, therefore mostly genetic, rather than socially influenced; to the extent that ‘drive’ is a personality trait/disposition, it can be (marginally) changed

• Group 1 (above) needs few inducements to seek promotion to the top echelons of leadership

• Group 2 – some may be potentially good leaders, but they have eschewed leadership in preference for other life goals

• Group 3 – have some drive and propensity for leadership but need encouragement and right opportunities, training and experiences to be committed to leadership. They are usually particular about the level of leadership to which they aspire – HoD, VP etc. and the context – city/rural, large/small school SES catchment etc

Besides ‘Drive’, good leaders need ‘Capability’ DRIVE + CAPABILITY= HPL

‘Capability’ = the right person, doing the right things, in the right place

2 things follow – high performing leaders – • read situations well, and how they change over time• have willingness, resilience, values and abilities to complete

what needs to be done.

When these are all aligned = ‘high-performing leaders’

Nicholson concludes – BORN or MADE?

• Many leadership capabilities are inborn (eg. core personality traits inc. ‘drive’)

• They are often mediated by dispositions and values (socially acquired in part)

• The rest (attributes) is learned – provided there is motivation (‘drive’) and willingness

• Hence a lot of our leadership attributes (largely learnt) depend on, and are programmed by, our personality and dispositions – eg. seeking knowledge, finding out the facts of a situation, furthering experience etc.

• The less inborn an individual’s leadership capabilities, the more the aspirant leader needs to develop and rely on dispositions and attributes to ‘compensate’ – but higher-order capacities will be harder to develop

Conclusions1. Outstanding leaders possess higher-order capacities and personal/social

skills that raise them above the mediocre, and enable them to successfully manage complex situations in which poor and mediocre leaders flounder

2. We can explain the effectiveness of high performing leaders by considering the key personality traits, dispositions and attributes that differentiate them from the rest

3. While the relationships between personality traits, dispositions and attributes have multiple iterations, personality traits combine with social factors to determine dispositions, and both of these in turn exert powerful effects on attributes

4. Serving head teachers can improve their performance levels by focusing on developing their higher-order capacities, personal (including cognitive) and interpersonal skills – which improve their tacit knowledge (practical wisdom)

Cont…..

Cont…

5. In future, spotting, nurturing, training and selecting leaders MUST take greater account of the qualities (personality traits, dispositions and attributes) required of potential high-performing leaders

6. We also need to get smarter in how we train leaders to improve their learning through tacit knowledge

7. Greater use of system leadership is needed – where outstanding leaders at headteacher-, middle- and teacher-levels – are deployed to other schools across local, regional and national boundaries…..to maximise benefits to all students.