Leadership Styles and its Effectiveness among Police Personnel

Abstract

Globally, human resource development professionals have intensely debated about leadership styles terming one superior to another. Academic research on various leadership styles has shown that no single leadership style is superior in all given situations. This study, based on Hersey and Blanchard's model of situational leadership, indicates that best leaders are those who are adaptable to various types of people and situations. The study aims to determine how the three categories of police personnel differ on leadership styles and also examines the relationship and predictive power of leadership styles with leadership effectiveness. A sample of 168 police personnel belonging to three hierarchial levels (SIs, CSPs and IPS officers) was taken. “Leadership Effectiveness and Adaptability Description (LEAD)” questionnaire developed by Hersey and Blanchard (1972) was used and Pearson product moment correlation and step wise multiple regression were employed for statistical analysis. Results revealed that a majority of officers predominantly used selling style of leadership, marking a shift from their stereotyped autocratic style of leadership. Correlation and regression results indicate that participatory style was found to be more effective among officers' and SIs, whereas among CSPs, delegating style was a better predictor of leadership effectiveness. The study offered valuable inputs for the professionals involved in leadership development programmes especially for security forces.