Development of a Nomological Net Surrounding Leader Self-Development

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine both antecedents and consequences of high quality leader self-development activities. Specifically, Study 1 sought to delineate factors that impact the quality attributes of leader self-development activities and the effect of those attributes on performance outcomes. Study 2 investigated the impact of a training program to understand if leaders can be trained to make more effective decisions regarding the attributes in their self-development activities. Leaders from a multilevel marketing company completed two surveys over a period of three months with a training intervention in between the surveys. Data from the first survey administration (Study 1) demonstrated that engagement in high quality leader self-development activities is important to growing two types of performance. Specifically, experiential variety and the level of learner control in leader self-development activities positively impacted adaptive performance. Experiential variety was also a significant predictor of the performance of one’s team, indicating that engaging in a greater variety of leader self-development activities helps to foster leader effectiveness. Further, Study 1 results showed additive and multiplicative effects of motivational variables (leader self-identity and modeling behaviors from the leaders’ own leaders) and individual skill variables (self-appraisal and self-regulation skills) in the prediction of quality attributes. Study 2 examined the impact of training and demonstrated that leaders can be trained to impact choices regarding their self-development activities. Results showed that individuals who received training on the processes associated with effective leader self-development were not only more likely to engage in leader self-development activities, but those subsequent activities were more challenging and allowed for more learner control and learner engagement.