Department of Psychology, Florida State University, FL, USA.
J Pers Soc Psychol. 2010 Sep;99(3):482-97. doi: 10.1037/a0018559.
Throughout human history, leaders have been responsible for helping groups attain important goals. Ideally, leaders use their power to steer groups toward desired outcomes. However, leaders can also use their power in the service of self-interest rather than effective leadership. Five experiments identified factors within both the person and the social context that determine whether leaders wield their power to promote group goals versus self-interest. In most cases, leaders behaved in a manner consistent with group goals. However, when their power was tenuous due to instability within the hierarchy, leaders high (but not low) in dominance motivation prioritized their own power over group goals: They withheld valuable information from the group, excluded a highly skilled group member, and prevented a proficient group member from having any influence over a group task. These self-interested actions were eliminated when the group was competing against a rival outgroup. Findings provide important insight into factors that influence the way leaders navigate the essential tension between leadership and power.
纵观人类历史，领导者一直肩负着帮助群体实现重要目标的重任。理想情况下，领导者利用权力引导群体朝着期望的结果前进。然而，领导者也可以将权力用于谋取私利，而不是进行有效的领导。五项实验确定了个人和社会环境中的因素，这些因素决定了领导者是利用权力来促进群体目标还是自身利益。在大多数情况下，领导者的行为与群体目标一致。然而，当领导者由于层级内部的不稳定而权力脆弱时，高（但不是低）支配动机的领导者会将自己的权力置于群体目标之上：他们向群体隐瞒有价值的信息，排斥一名高技能的群体成员，并阻止一名熟练的群体成员对群体任务产生任何影响。当群体与竞争对手进行对抗时，这些出于自身利益的行为就会消失。这些发现为影响领导者在领导力和权力之间的基本紧张关系中做出决策的因素提供了重要的见解。
