Article Reviews- part 1
Moral development concerns the growth in the ability of an individual “to understand the difference between right and wrong, to care about the difference between them, and to act on the basis of this understanding” (Parker, 1998, p. 267; as cited in Mulla Krishnan, 2011, p.131). The components of moral development (Rest, 1997; as cited in Mulla are: a) moral sensitivity; b) moral judgment; c) moral motivation; d) moral character/implementation.
Moral judgment is figuring out what one ought to do and formulating a plan of action that applies the relevant moral standard or ideal. The development in moral judgment is a necessity in producing moral action. The development of moral judgment is crucial to a transformational leader when they involve taking a moral action concerning a critical situation. Therefore, the transformation in one’s reasoning or expanding on one’s perspective may consider a change that was not considered previously. Even after an individual identify the most moral action in a particular situation, and there may be other values like pleasures, careers advancement, personal relationship, that may prevent from taking action that aligns with one’s moral judgment. Therefore, any moral actions taken by TL may implicit an altruistic behavior influenced by followers-interests over self-interest of transformational leader when decision making.
Moral development is related to transformational leadership as an essential characteristic which affects follower’s outcome through transforming relationship.
Moral sensitivity in moral development concern “the receptivity to a social situation, the ability to interpret a situation and identify a moral problem” (Mulla & Krishnan, 2011, p.131). Transformational leaders themselves driven by a sense of moral sensitivity that involves skills in deeper awareness, empathy, role taking, and understanding of other people’s needs. The transformation happens in part through the development of moral sensitivity; which creates followers who strive to go beyond their self-interest for the good of the group. Regarding leader-follower interaction, followers shift from individual concerns to collective contributions which positively impact the good of the group.
The impact of transformational leadership on follower’s moral sensitivity was higher for the high duration; therefore, moral development of followers is a process that occurs over a period. In other words, only when followers interact with leaders over an extended period the positive effects of transformational leadership manifested.
In this study, the average duration of the leader-follower relationship was about three years, which is quite representative of the general condition of the industry. Organizations with high employee turnover, the length of the relationship may be even less. Organizations must strive for longer stints; especially when a follower’s satisfaction with the leader-follower relationship is high or must ensure that individuals move in pairs across assignments.
Reference
Mulla, Z.R. and Krishnan, V.R. (2011). Transformational leadership: Do the leader’s morals matter and do the follower’s morals change? Journal of Human Values 17(2), 129-143. Retrieved from: https://ezproxy.student.twu.ca/login?url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/097168581101700203