Leader-Follower-Context Nexus

Is your Leader-Follower-Context Nexus in balance at your office?

LEADERS have a clear understanding of their limitations and work well with others in solving problems. Leaders gain followers because they have earned respect because of their hard work, integrity, dedication, and character. They also have unique attributes and embraces the role and influence of context and followers.

CONTEXT consists of the values, cultural biases, political convictions, religious values, experiences and expectations that someone always carry with them; these influences have a profound impact on an individual's external environment.

Combine the individual’s context with the organization’s, department’s, or profession’s history, culture, core values, and policies and procedures, it becomes layered very quickly. Being able to distinguish the context becomes an important skill for athletic trainers. In order to lead effectively within any context, the leader must be able to discern and decipher all of the different inputs of a particular moment.

FOLLOWERS’ play an important role in contributing to leadership outcomes. Followership is the process of being guided and directed by a leader in their work. In essence, followership is the degree to which an individual allows themself to believe in and submit to the authority of a leader. The degree to which he or she will submit includes the follower’s biases, preconceptions, and the expectations of the leader. Followership is the study of how a follower’s traits, emotions, and attitudes influence his or her perceptions of, or preferences for, certain types of leaders.

Without an understanding of followers, it is not possible to fully understand leadership or the context in which leadership takes place. The fact is that followers have a large degree of power within the workplace because they can voluntarily withdraw their support of any leader at any time. Therefore, leaders, to some degree, are dependent upon a follower’s voluntary submission to accomplish desired leadership outcomes.

Kutz, M. Leadership and Management in Athletic Training: An Integrated Approach: Leadership Behaviors for Athletic Trainers. Jones & Bartlett Learning; 2018; 6:1 (1-19)

Shelby 6/2024