Wir gratulieren unserem Doktoranden Benjamin Horvath zur Annahme des Papers „Cognition and Confidence: How Structural Elements of Charismatic Rhetoric Affect Team Performance” bei der Academy of Management Conference 2017 in Atlanta und insbesondere zur Aufnahme der Studie in die Best Paper Proceedingsals eines der besten bei der Organizational Behavior (OB) Division der Academy of Management eingereichten Paper (typischerweise werden ca. 5% der mehr als 900 bei OB eingereichten Papiere hierfür ausgewählt). Die Studie entstand unter Co-Autorenschaft von Andreas König und Professor Nathan Hiller (Florida International University). Großer Dank gilt auch Alexander Derksen, Judith Endres, Nathanael Hammer, Josefa Lovrek, Dieter Schierer, Evelyn Schmid, Marina Schmid und Yannick Seppich für ihre wertvolle Forschungsassistenz.
Abstract
We investigate how a leaders’ tendency to use structural charismatic rhetoric – i.e., literary devices that have been categorized as being effective in creating the impression of charisma and greatness – influences team performance. We develop two dimensions of structural charismatic rhetoric: cognition-oriented charismatic rhetoric, which includes metaphorical communication and stories; and confidence-transmitting charismatic rhetoric, which encompasses hyperboles and the absence of filled pauses. We then incorporate theory on shared mental models and trust in leader to propose that teams led by leaders who often use structural charismatic rhetoric perform better than teams led by leaders who use structural charismatic rhetoric less frequently. Integrating threat-rigidity theory, we predict that the effect of leaders’ structural charismatic rhetoric is amplified when the team has recently performed below stakeholders’ expectations. We find support for our predictions when testing them using a large sample of communication events from 20 coaches and 553 matches in the highest professional soccer league in Germany, as well as data from the betting market. Our research is first to combine theory on leaders’ use of classical elements of speech with team research and provides a contextualized portrayal of charismatic rhetoric which could trigger fruitful conversations on charismatic leadership, teams, and context.