Situational leadership theory in Taiwan: a different culture perspective

Reports a study to investigate the applicability of situational leadership theory within the Republic of China (Taiwan). The study was conducted in a large construction company with a broad diversity of managerial responsibilities. The LEAD‐Self instrument was given to a large sample of managers, to determine their perception of their own leadership style. Employees completed the LEAD‐Other questionnaire, to give their perceptions of their manager. Productivity scores were also established for each manager using measures of absenteeism, turnover, overall profitability and quality of work. The results indicated that the situational leadership theory does have applicability in Taiwan; there was a good match between the self‐perception of leaders and perceptions by peers, superiors and subordinates and between the LEAD‐Self score and LEAD‐Other; also that leadership adaptability was directly related to productivity as measured by absenteeism, turnover rates, profitability and, to a lesser extent, quality.