Pros and Cons of Trait Theory

The Great Man Theory

This is one of the early theories that focus on the personal characteristics of the leader and attempt to gain a better understanding on their impact and role in an organizational performance. This theory focuses on that leaders are born and not made. The leaders had a tendency to be male and in the upperclass. However, this does not allow for the thought that leaders can be developed through experience, upbringing, different morals and values. The Great Man Theory mentions that there are specific characteristics that make up a great leader. This does not allow for modification or that each leader is individually unique to one another thus showing the characteristics might be a little different.

Trait-Based Theory

This theory assumes that certain characteristics and personalities made an individual a better leader and consequently sought to identify those qualities.

Based on the article "Leadership: do traits matter?" by Shelley A. Kirkpatrick and Edwin A. Locke, mention that there are six traits that help differentiate leaders from non-leaders. Those include drive, desire to lead, honesty and integrity, self-confidence, intelligence, and job-relevant knowledge. However, this can come off as subjective and a judgment on who is a "good" or "successful" leader. This also leads to the disagreement on which traits are actually useful to the leader. Trait-based theory does help categorize or measure individuals on the basis of understanding of leadership making it easier to comprehend and can be intuitive. Each theory has its unique way of defining or differentiating what is a good leader but it ultimately is based on the belief of what the individual believes makes a good leader. One main thing to understand is that actions need to occur based on the traits the define or measure the individual.