Incumbency and self-uncertainty: when prototypical leaders lose their advantage

ABSTRACT

Research on how uncertainty affects the preference for prototypical over non-prototypical leaders has produced mixed results. To understand these discrepancies, two studies explored leader status (prospective versus incumbent) as a potential moderator. Participants reported levels of self-uncertainty (Study 1) or were primed with high versus low self-uncertainty (Study 2) before evaluating a prototypical or non-prototypical leadership candidate who was incumbent or prospective. For incumbent candidates, prototypicality predicted more favorable evaluations under low self-uncertainty, but this relationship was weakened under high self-uncertainty. For prospective candidates, prototypicality predicted more favorable evaluations under high self-uncertainty, but this relationship was weakened under low self-uncertainty.

KEYWORDS:

• Group processes
• influence
• leadership
• prototypicality
• social identity
• uncertainty

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The data described in this article are openly available on the Open Science Framework at https://osf.io/jqwsg

Open scholarship

This article has earned the Center for Open Science badges for Open Data and Open Materials through Open Practices Disclosure. The data and materials are openly accessible at https://osf.io/2uqz and https://osf.io/9e5v4.

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.

Notes on contributors

Yunzhu Ouyang

Yunzhu Ouyang is a PhD student in psychology at the University of Alberta. Her research focuses on leader rhetoric, group entitativity, group change, and leadership in times of uncertainty.

Kathryn M. Kincaid

Kathryn M. Kincaid is a PhD student in psychology at the University of Alberta. Her research focuses on autocratic leadership, leader rhetoric, and leadership in times of uncertainty.

David E. Rast

David Rast III is an associate professor of psychology at the University of Alberta. His research focuses on intergroup leadership and how leaders incite social and organizational change.

Amber M. Gaffney

Amber Gaffney is an associate professor of psychology at California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt. Her research focuses on minority influence, group polarization, leadership, and attitude change.

Michael A. Hogg

Michael Hogg is a professor of social psychology at Claremont Graduate University. His research focuses on intergroup relations, group processes, influence and leadership, and self and identity.