Leader assumed dissimilarity as a measure of prejudicial cognitive style

Abstract

In a series of studies Fiedler concluded that leaders who maintain a greater psychological distance between themselves and the group members are more effective in promoting group productivity. Statistical and sampling shortcomings of these studies led to the present study involving 43 infantry teams in training. The leaders of high teams as compared to low teams (as rated by their commanding officers) evaluated a least and most preferred co-worker on a series of dyadic adjectival scales. leaders of high rated teams evaluated the low reference person higher (p < .05) and used the lowest evaluation point less frequently when describing the least preferred co-worker (p < .05). The results suggest that under conditions where the leader is not an agent of selection, leaders of more successful teams are less severe in their evaluations of members with lower achievement potential. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)