Empathy and the emergence of task and relations leaders

A Theory of Collective Empathy in Corporate Philanthropy Decisions

“…Moreover, the top-down and bottom-up aspects of emotions in organizations are likely to be intertwined and mutually reinforcing. For instance, by harnessing and acting on employees' collective emotions, executives will make their subordinates feel understood and valued while simultaneously reinforcing their leadership position (Kellett et al, 2006;cf. also Tierney, 2011).…”

“…Moreover, the actions leaders take in response to emotion have a profound impact on followers' emotional reactions (Walter, Cole, & Humphrey, 2011); adeptly addressing followers' feelings and concerns can help leaders generate and maintain follower trust and cooperation (George, 2000). Thus, the infusion of executive decisions with collective emotion can be important for the management of emotions in the organization (Ashkanasy & Daus, 2002), with longer-term benefits for employees, the organization, and the executive's position as a leader (Kellett et al, 2006).…”

Corporate Philanthropic Responses to Emergent Human Needs: The Role of Organizational Attention Focus

“…Yet other organizations have a 'human focus' (Liebowitz and Suen 2000), in which employees, as the human element in organizations, are central to management attention patterns (Flamholtz et al 2002;Lester et al 2010). When managers pay more attention to employees, employees perceive management to be fair, just, and empathic (Cropanzano et al 2007;Kellett et al 2006), perceptions which lead to greater organizational identification and belonging (Bowen et al 2000). Organizational identification and belonging in turn motivate employees to not only behave altruistically toward their colleagues inside the organization (Cohen-Charash and Spector 2001; Grant et al 2008), but can also drive them to push for social behaviors directed outside the organization, including corporate philanthropy (Aguilera et al 2007;Frey and Meier 2004).…”

Responsible Leadership as Virtuous Leadership

“…For example, honesty, transcendent meaning, caring and giving behavior, gratitude, hope, empathy, love, and forgiveness, among other virtues, have been found to predict desired outcomes, such as individuals' commitment, satisfaction, motivation, positive emotions, effort, physical health, and psychological health (Andersson et al 2007;Giacalone et al 2005;Fry et al 2005;Kellett et al 2006;Gittell et al 2006;Luthans et al 2007;Dutton and colleagues 2006;Grant 2007;Snyder 1994;Sternberg 1998;Seligman 2002;Peterson and Bossio 1991;Harker and Keltner 2001;McCullough et al 2000;Emmons 1999). While relatively few studies have investigated virtuousness in the leadership of organizations, a limited number of investigations have explored the effects of virtuous leadership on organizational performance.…”