The role of patience as a decision-making heuristic in leadership

Abstract

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to address the gap in the literature by providing a precise conceptualization of the concept of patience in the context of leadership.

Design/methodology/approach
The current study was conducted using a qualitative approach as it aimed to explore leaders’ perceptions and experiences with patience and eventually build a theoretical model in relation to the role of patience in leadership. Because the aim of the study was to obtain insight into the experiences of the participants in their own words, this study adopted a grounded theory research design.

Findings
The grounded theory study resulted in an emergent theoretical model for understanding the decision-making process of leaders who exhibit patience as a character strength and how those leaders promote organizational success. Through an inductive approach, this grounded theory study identified the behaviors that participating leaders viewed as patient, as well as the outcomes and the contextual conditions for the effectiveness of such behaviors.

Research limitations/implications
A major contribution of this study is that leaders epitomized by patience are guided by a decision-making framework that can contribute to more favorable decision making outcomes.

Practical implications
The proposed model for patience leadership has implications for developing the leadership capacity.

Originality/value
Patience, as a leadership quality, has been overlooked virtue in the social and psychological sciences. In order to explore the potential nexus between patience and leadership, the study has offered an emergent theoretical model and indicated the specific ways in which leaders may effectively practice patience.

Full text

The role of patience as a
decision-making heuristic
in leadership
M.D. Haque
ADR Global Management, Los Angeles, California, USA
Lu Liu
Department of Organizational Leadership,
University of La Verne, La Verne, California, USA, and
Angela TitiAmayah
Department of Business Management and Economics,
State University of New York Empire State College, Rochester, New York, USA
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to address the gap in the literature by providing a precise
conceptualization of the concept of patience in the context of leadership.
Design/methodology/approach –The current study was conducted using a qualitative approach as it
aimed to explore leaders’perceptions and experiences with patience and eventually build a theoretical model
in relation to the role of patience in leadership. Because the aim of the study was to obtain insight into the
experiences of the participants in their own words, this study adopted a grounded theory research design.
Findings –The grounded theory study resulted in an emergent theoretical model for understanding the
decision-making process of leaders who exhibit patience as a character strength and how those leaders
promote organizational success. Through an inductive approach, this grounded theory study identified the
behaviors that participating leaders viewed as patient, as well as the outcomes and the contextual conditions
for the effectiveness of such behaviors.
Research limitations/implications –A major contribution of this study is that leaders epitomized
by patience are guided by a decision-making framework that can contribute to more favorable decision
making outcomes.
Practical implications –The proposed model for patience leadership has implications for developing the
leadership capacity.
Originality/value –Patience, as a leadership quality, has been overlooked virtue in the social and
psychological sciences. In order to explore the potential nexus between patience and leadership, the study has
offered an emergent theoretical model and indicated the specific ways in which leaders may effectively
practice patience.
Keywords Leadership, Leadership and patience, Leadership decision making,
Management decision making, Patience, Patience and decision making
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Many scholars have claimed that leaders’weakness in capacity and character (Grahek
et al., 2010) as wellas poor and risky decision making (Segon and Booth, 2015) were significant
contributors to the recent global financial crisis. This prompted consideration of the
leadership development practices and in particular, the leader virtues (De Braine and Verrier,
2007; Grahek et al., 2010; Rego et al., 2010). Several scholars recognize patience as an important
leader virtue, especially in the context of decision making (Fry and Slocum, 2008; Khuntia and
Suar, 2004; Sankar, 2003). Leaders’patience in followers is part of transformational leadership
(Shamir et al., 1998), leader-member exchange theory (Graen and Uhl-Bien, 1995) servant
leadership (Covey, 2006) as well as of spiritual leadership (Fry, 2003). Peterson and Seligman’s
(2004) review resulted in 24 leadership characteristics, and patience is one among them.
In the context of decision making, patience is primarily associated with correct timing
Qualitative Research in
Organizations and Management:
An International Journal
Vol. 12 No. 2, 2017
pp. 111-129
© Emerald Publishing Limited
1746-5648
DOI 10.1108/QROM-01-2015-1263
Received 1 January 2015
Revised 1 April 2016
17 September 2016
3 January 2017
Accepted 28 February 2017
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/1746-5648.htm
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Role of
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