Emotional Intelligence as a Moderator of the Relationship Between Followership Behavior and Influence Ability
Emotional Intelligence as a Moderator of the Relationship Between Followership Behavior and Influence Ability
Lavoy Love | 2020
Abstract
The study of organizational leadership focused on a leader’s ability to influence followers (Humphrey, 2002). Goleman (1998) asserted leadership used emotional intelligence ability to affect influence as part of the leadership process. With the emergence of followership research, Kelley (1992) contended effective followers possessed attributes similar to those of effective leadership. This study extended research informing the similarities between leadership and followership behavior founded on literature supporting the congruence between effective leadership and exemplary followership behaviors (Kelley, 1992), the existence of a relationship between followership and emotional intelligence (Nicolet, 2014), and the existence of a relationship between leader emotional intelligence and influence ability (Hong, 2016). This study investigated the moderating effect of emotional intelligence on the relationship between followership behavior and influence ability. Followership behaviors consisted of the courage to assume responsibility, the courage to serve, the courage to challenge, the courage to participate in transformation, and the courage to take moral action (Chaleff, 1995). This study included the use of online surveys to collect data from 116 members of an online community of leaders and aspiring leaders. The survey instrument informed follower behavior, as measured by the Followership Profile (E. N. Dixon, 2003); an emotional intelligence score, as measured by the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Test (Schutte, Malouff, & Bhullar, 2009); and participant influence sophistication, as measured by the Cialdini Influence Quiz (Cialdini & Goldstein, 2004). Bivariate correlational analyses provided support for positive relationships between followership and emotional intelligence along with followership and influence. Furthermore, a multiple regression procedure supported the statistical significance of the moderating effects of emotional intelligence. This research resulted in findings supportive of the similar nature of leadership and effective followership. However, an opportunity emerged from the findings as leadership informed a relational process, while followership manifested itself as a behavioral relationship linked to the leadership process through a complementary and supportive interactive role.