An Analysis Of Leadership Effectiveness In The Naval Surface Community PDF Download

This study attempts to provide empirical data which will show how and to what extent specific styles of leadership may maximize the performance and retention of units within the Navy. The study focuses upon a sample of twenty comparable destroyers and frigates within the Pacific Fleet. Leadership-style data were collected from the first and second officers in command of these units (CO and XO) by means of Fleishman's Leadership Opinion Questionnaire (LOQ) a self administering inventory which measures two important dimensions of leadership behavior: consideration, relating to the leader's degree of socio-emotional emphasis; and structure, relating to the leader's degree of task-related emphasis. The results of this study indicate that the CO either tends to perform both the task-related and socio-emotional functions, or the CO and XO appear to divide these functions, with CO performing the socio-emotional function, and the XO performing the task-related function. The results also indicate the leadership styles of the CO and XO appear to exert the most influence upon overall mission readiness and retention, while unit training readiness appears to be unrelated to the leadership style of either the CO or XO.