Leadership and Cooperation in Groups

Two major types of motivation underlie the ability of leaders to gain cooperation in groups. First is the desire of people to gain rewards and avoid punishments. Leaders can tap into such motivations to the extent that they control resources and/or instruments of surveillance and sanctioning. Second is people's internal attitudes and values, which shape what people want or feel they ought to do. Leaders can draw on these internal motivations by appealing to or creating attitudes and values. Both strategies influence behavior, but there are clear advantages to leadership based on connecting to people's attitudes and values. In particular, people voluntarily follow leaders who engage their internal motivations.