Cited by 84Leadership and Management in OrganizationsJob Satisfaction and Organizational BehaviorEmployee Performance and Leadership

The Science of Leadership: A theoretical model and research agenda

Open access
Carton, Andrew M.·2022·Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior

Abstract

I review the empirical literature on leadership, focusing on papers published since 2010. To do so, I introduce a framework composed of two features: whether theories ( a) involve the study of leaders or leading (i.e., the person versus the process) and ( b) conceptualize leadership as a cause or a consequence (i.e., an independent versus dependent variable). This framework can enable future research to accumulate in a more programmatic fashion and help scholars determine where their own studies are located within the landscape of leadership research. I end the review by critically evaluating existing work, arguing that the most popular subcategory of leadership research—lumped conceptualizations of leading, in which scholars examine multiple leader behaviors within a single construct—has significant limitations and may need to be replaced by a greater focus on split conceptualizations of leading, wherein scholars isolate single leader behaviors.

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Crossref · 10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-012420-091227

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  • Since the 2000s, the primary focus of leadership research has been leadership styles, which are often viewed as patterns of behaviors.

    “Since the 2000s, the primary focus of leadership research has been leadership styles, which are often viewed as patterns of behaviors (Carton, 2022) and will be introduced later.”

    From The evolution of leadership: Past insights, present trends, and future directions (2025) · cites this paper as Carton, 2022

    Section 4.1.2 (page unavailable) says research on leading has devoted substantial attention to frameworks that combine multiple leader behaviors, with a primary emphasis on those frameworks. Section 4.1 (page unavailable) connects recurring behavioral patterns with leadership styles. The paper does not establish that styles have been the primary focus of leadership research as a whole since the 2000s. (LLM, conf=0.84)

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Research works printed but not linked: 1

  1. Feng JM, Liu SS, Wu KJ, Wang HC. 2014. A review of the literature of humble leadership. Foreign Econ. Manag. 36:38-48

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Authors
Carton, A. M.
Affiliations
University of Pennsylvania (US)
Corresponding author
Carton, Andrew M.
Venue
Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior
Published
2022-01-21
Volume
9
Issue
1
Pages
61-93
ISSN
  • 2327-0608 (ISSN-L)
  • 2327-0616
OpenAlex
W3213559056
Cited by
84
References
154
Citations by year
2026: 20 · 2025: 17 · 2024: 25 · 2023: 18 · 2022: 4
FWCI
1.99
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • 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
  • Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management › Employee Performance and Leadership
Keywords
leadership, leadership theory, leadership behavior, research agenda

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