Leader appeal measured in labs diverges from real-world leader effectiveness

Evidence

Why do these conclusions diverge from much of the experimental social psychological research on leadership? The timebound constraints of the laboratory often lead researchers to rely on group member sociometric ratings of leadership; that is, leader appeal. Not surprisingly, the results often involve some kind of complex leader-situation interaction. But factors that predict leadership that is sociometrically defined in this way may not necessarily predict long-term effective leader performance and evaluation, which of course is hard to study in the time-foreshortened laboratory microcosm. This divergence of leader appeal and leader performance should underline the importance of studying leadership in the real world, using archival, at-a-distance measures. — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 1367

Categorization

• DEFINE: Clearly distinguishes sociometric leader appeal from long-term leader performance as separate constructs.