Cited by 165Employee Performance and LeadershipLeadership and Management in OrganizationsJob Satisfaction and Organizational Behavior

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Authoritarian leadership styles and performance: a systematic literature review and research agenda

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Pizzolitto, Elia, Verna, Ida, Venditti, Michelina·2023·Management Review Quarterly

DOI 10.1007/s11301-022-00263-y

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Abstract

Although authoritarian leadership styles are often associated with negative performance, work climate deterioration, increased power distance, and centralized control, contradictory empirical evidence has emerged in the literature. In this paper, we perform a systematic literature review with three aims: (1) understand the effects of authoritarian leadership styles on performance, (2) study the temporal and geographical evolution of the scientific debate, and (3) establish a research agenda for the future. The results show that in the last two decades, the interest for the field has shifted from Western to Eastern countries. Moreover, many authors encourage leaders to increase or decrease their degree of authoritarian leadership depending on the context to more effectively connect leadership with performance. Therefore, leadership should be studied in light of a more complex approach that considers hybrid leadership styles and their effects on performance. Finally, we discuss our study’s limitations and managerial implications.

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Authors: Pizzolitto, E., Verna, I., & Venditti, M.
Affiliations: University of Chieti-Pescara (IT)
Corresponding author: Pizzolitto, Elia
ORCID: Pizzolitto, Elia
Verna, Ida
Venditti, Michelina
Venue: Management Review Quarterly
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published: 2022-04-04
Volume: 73
Issue: 2
Pages: 841-871
ISSN: 2198-1620 (ISSN-L)
2198-1639
DOI: 10.1007/s11301-022-00263-y
OpenAlex: W4226053984
Cited by: 143
References: 69
Citations by year: 2026: 45 · 2025: 44 · 2024: 37 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 5
FWCI: 4.03
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: hybrid
doi.org
Licence: cc-by
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 (tdm)
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 (vor)
Locations: Management Review Quarterly (publishedVersion, cc-by)
RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
ARCA (Università Ca' Foscari Venezia) (submittedVersion)
Funders: Open access funding provided by Università degli Studi G. D'Annunzio Chieti Pescara within the CRUI-CARE Agreement.
Topics: Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management › Employee Performance and Leadership
Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Strategy and Management › Leadership and Management in Organizations
Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management › Job Satisfaction and Organizational Behavior
Keywords: authoritarian leadership, leadership styles, organizational performance, power distance, centralized control, organizational climate, contextual leadership, research agenda

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Authoritarian leadership styles and performance: a systematic literature review and research agenda

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