Leadership Theory and Administrative Behavior: The Problem of Authority

The problem of authority has been selected as the critical dimension through which various theories and practices of organizational behavior are expressed. Following a discussion of the confusions and lacunae in leadership theory, a review of philosophies, ideologies, and practices is presented that identifies two major movements: the traditional theorists and the human relations proponents. Some attention is given to the contemporary revisions and models that endeavor to ameliorate the tensions between the aforementioned movements. Finally, an explication of leadership is presented that attempts to account for the efficacy of certain leadership propositions with respect to a priori criteria of organizational effectiveness.1 Warren G. Bennis is associate professor of industrial management in the School of Industrial Management at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.