Adaptive Leadership Questionnaire

CHAP TE R 11 ADAPTIVE LE AD E RS H I P 1 Adaptive Leadership Questionnaire Purpose: The purpose of this questionnaire is to identify your adaptive leader- ship strengths and weaknesses. Instructions : This questionnaire contains items that assess different dimensions of adaptive leadership and will be completed by someone who knows you (coworkers, friends, members of a group you belong to). 1. Have 1 individual fill out the assessment regarding your leadership 2. Have the individual indicate the degree to which they agree with each of the 30 statements below regarding your leadership by selecting the number from the scale that they believe most accurately characterizes their response to the statement. There are no right or wrong responses. Key: 1 = Strongly 2 = Disagree 3 = Neutral 4 = Agree 5 = Strongly disagree agree 1. When difficulties emerge in our organization, this leader is good at stepping back and assessing the dynamics of the people involved. 1 2 3 4 5 2. When events trigger strong emotional responses among employees, this leader uses their authority as a leader to resolve the problem. 1 2 3 4 5 3. When people feel uncertain about organizational change, they trust that this leader will help them work through the difficulties. 1 2 3 4 5 4. In complex situations, this leader gets people to focus on the issues they are trying to avoid. 1 2 3 4 5 5. When employees are struggling with a decision, this leader tells them what they think they should do. 1 2 3 4 5 6. During times of difficult change, this leader welcomes the thoughts of group members with low status. 1 2 3 4 5 7. In difficult situations, this leader sometimes loses sight of the “big picture.” 1 2 3 4 5 8. When people are struggling with value questions, this leader reminds them to follow the organization’s policies. 1 2 3 4 5 9. When people begin to be disturbed by unresolved conflicts, this leader encourages them to address the issues. 1 2 3 4 5 10. During organizational change, this leader challenges people to concentrate on the “hot” topics. 1 2 3 4 5 11. When employees look to this leader for answers, they encourage them to think for themselves. 1 2 3 4 5

12. Listening to group members with radical ideas is valuable to this leader. 1 2 3 4 5 13. When this leader disagrees with someone, they have difficulty listening to what the person is really saying. 1 2 3 4 5 14. When others are struggling with intense conflicts, this leader steps in to resolve the differences. 1 2 3 4 5 15. This leader has the emotional capacity to comfort others as they work through intense issues. 1 2 3 4 5 16. When people try to avoid controversial organizational issues, this leader brings these conflicts into the open. 1 2 3 4 5 17. This leader encourages their employees to take initiative in defining and solving problems. 1 2 3 4 5 18. This leader is open to people who bring up unusual ideas that seem to hinder the progress of the group. 1 2 3 4 5 19. In challenging situations, this leader likes to observe the parties involved and assess what’s really going on. 1 2 3 4 5 20. This leader encourages people to discuss the “elephant in the room.” 1 2 3 4 5 21. People recognize that this leader has confidence to tackle challenging problems. 1 2 3 4 5 22. This leader thinks it is reasonable to let people avoid confronting difficult issues. 1 2 3 4 5 23. When people look to this leader to solve problems, they enjoy providing solutions. 1 2 3 4 5 24. This leader has an open ear for people who don’t seem to fit in with the rest of the group. 1 2 3 4 5 25. In a difficult situation, this leader will step out of the dispute to gain perspective on it. 1 2 3 4 5 26. This leader thrives on helping people find new ways of coping with organizational problems. 1 2 3 4 5 27. People see this leader as someone who holds steady in the storm. 1 2 3 4 5 28. In an effort to keep things moving forward, this leader lets people avoid issues that are troublesome. 1 2 3 4 5 29. When people are uncertain about what to do, this leader empowers them to decide for themselves. 1 2 3 4 5 30. To restore equilibrium in the organization, this leader tries to neutralize comments of out-group members. 1 2 3 4 5 (Continued)

To arrive at this score: Sum items 11, 17, and 29 and the reversed (R) score values for 5 and 23 (i.e., change 1 to 5, 2 to 4, 4 to 2, and 5 to 1, with 3 remaining unchanged). 5(R) 11 17 23(R) 29 Total= (2+5+4+1+4) 16 ( Moderately high range )(Give the Work Back to the People) Protect Leadership Voices From Below —This score represents the degree to which you are open and accepting of unusual or radical contributions from low- status group members. To arrive at this score: Sum items 6, 12, 18, and 24 and the reversed (R) score value for 30 (i.e., change 1 to 5, 2 to 4, 4 to 2, and 5 to 1, with 3 remaining unchanged). 6 12 18 24 30(R) Total= (4+5+4+5+2) 20 ( Moderately high range )(Protect Leadership Voices From Below) Scoring Interpretation  High range : A score between 21 and 25 means others find you are strongly inclined to exhibit this adaptive leadership behavior.  Moderately high range : A score between 16 and 20 means others find you moderately exhibit this adaptive leadership behavior.  Moderate low range : A score between 11 and 15 means others find you at times exhibit this adaptive leadership behavior.  Low range : A score between 5 and 10 means others find you are seldom inclined to exhibit this adaptive leadership behavior. This questionnaire measures adaptive leadership assessing six components of the process: get on the balcony, identify the adaptive challenge, regulate distress, maintain disciplined attention, give the work back to the people, and protect leadership voices from below. By completing the questionnaire yourself and comparing your scores on each of these components, you can determine which are your stronger and which are your weaker components in each cat- egory. There are no “perfect” scores for this questionnaire. While it is confirming when others see you in the same way as you see yourself, it is also beneficial to know when they see you differently. This assessment can help you understand those dimensions of your adaptive leadership that are strong and dimensions of your adaptive leadership you may seek to improve.