Het Ontcijferen van Ambidexterous Leiderschap: De Meting, Leiderskenmerken en Voorspelling van Innovatief Gedrag

The overarching goal of the research is to enrich the understanding on Ambidextrous Leadership (AL), a leadership style introduced to be effective in managing the paradoxical nature of innovation (i.e. exploration vs. exploitation). Three important gaps in the AL literature were identified and addressed in this dissertation. First, it was determined that the field lacks in a validated measure for opening and closing behaviors, the interaction of which is used to measure AL. To address this gap, with multiple samples across different organizational contexts a measurement scale for AL, which is comprised of opening and closing behaviors, was developed. Specifically, five sequential studies were conducted to generate and validate the items; to examine the scale's dimensionality; and to assess the convergent, incremental, discriminant and criterion validity of the scale beyond other relevant leadership measures. These studies resulted in an AL scale comprising 6 items for opening behaviors and 5 items for closing behaviors. The second problem identified was the lack of research in the AL literature regarding the examination of specific traits (i.e. self-monitoring, cognitive complexity, future orientation) proposed as antecedents to becoming ambidextrous. To address this problem, a person-centered approach was adopted, and the Latent Profile Analysis (LPA) was conducted. Using a multi-source dataset consisting of 76 leader-follower dyads working in innovation contexts, first the profiles of leaders combining opening and closing behaviors at different levels were determined. Then, if these traits could be observed in the profile where AL (a balanced combination of high opening and high closing behaviors) is present, was investigated. The results showed that cognitive complexity was the significant predictor of AL, whereas self-monitoring and future orientation were not. The third problem was the inconsistent results obtained in the AL literature on the central promise of AL which states that innovative workplace behaviors (IWB) are enhanced through the high adoption of both opening and closing behaviors. Drawing on paradox meta-theory and social information processing perspective, the third study aimed to address this inconsistency. By using the same dyadic dataset mentioned above, it examined different combinations of opening and closing behaviors and their relations with IWB. Results showed that contrary to previous AL theorizing, adopting predominantly opening behaviors rather than a balanced combination of high opening and closing leader behaviors more strongly predicted followers' IWB.