From Directive to Shared Leadership: The Context of Virtual Teams

Building on Bell and Kozlowski’s (2002) framework, this study proposes that formal leaders in virtual teams can foster shared leadership by using directive behaviors that establish structural support systems. A 10-week field study of 392 team members from 70 teams across two Fortune 500 companies supports the proposed model: directive leadership enhances shared leadership indirectly through team empowerment. This indirect effect is amplified when location diversity is high and perceived media richness is low. The findings contribute to the virtual teams and leadership literatures and offer practical recommendations for leaders managing distributed work.