Followers' ability as a substitute for leadership

Abstract

The conviction that under certain circumstances “hierarchical leadership influence is replaced by the contingencies” is the central premise of the substitutes for leadership. In this regard, spectacular research has been taken to identify the potential substitutes for the leadership especially in European and American contexts. However, the present study for the first time in Pakistani context, has evaluated the followers’ ability as a substitute for leadership. For this purpose, a sample of 365 middle level managers from financial sector was utilized and the proposed relationships were tested through hierarchal regression. The statistical results obtained through hierarchical regression confirmed the substitution effects of followers’ ability on leadership styles and followers’ criterion variables. Based on the findings of the study, practical implications for practicing managers and academicians are discussed at the end.