Definitely not a breeze: Extending an operant model of effective supervision to teams

Abstract

To identify what leaders ought to do to orchestrate optimal team performance, an expanded model of effective supervision was tested in a setting combining realism, control, and clear-cut outcomes. The components of the empirically based operant model—monitoring and consequences—were extended to tasks requiring the integration of team efforts. A sailboat regatta was arranged, with series standings as the primary measure of supervisory effectiveness. Using the Operant Supervisory Team Taxonomy and Index, trained observers recorded skippers' ( N = 19) actions. As predicted, racing success correlated significantly ( p < .05) with monitors and consequences ( r = –.51 and –.47, respectively) during the actual races. The relationship between the model's two critical behaviors and an unfiltered measure of effectiveness has implications for the group and leadership literatures as well as for management practices. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)