NEUROSCIENCE AND THE LINK BETWEEN INSPIRATIONAL LEADERSHIP AND RESONANT RELATIONSHIPS by Richard Boyatzis Featured | January / February

2012 Share on emailEmailShare on twitterShare on TwitterShare on facebookPost to FacebookShare on linkedinShare on inked!nShare on deliciousSa"e to #eliciousShare on insta$a$erSa"e to !nsta$a$er Relationships, says a dejected Alvy Singer, Woody Allens character in the movie, Annie Hall. Who needs them. The fact is that every leader needs to have smooth, prod ctive relationships !ith those aro nd him or her. " t !hat ma#es for a re!arding relationship $ and its opposite $ has long %een nclear or n#no!n. This a thor, !ho has cond cted and !ritten e&tensively a%o t the impact of %rain activity on s ch relationships, descri%es some important, ne! o%servations that hold the promise of helping leaders to form more effective relationships. E"ery leader knows how im$ortant relationshi$s are to effecti"e leadershi$% &fter all' you cannot ha"e a leader without followers% (ost will e"en admit that bein) ins$irin)' com$assionate' mindful *actin) with inte)rity+ and e"en $layful hel$s create and sustain more effecti"e leadershi$ relationshi$s% ,ut amid the hectic demands of day-to-day work' a crisis here and there' and the ne"er-unyieldin) $ressure to $erform and inno"ate' leaders will often act in ways that e"en they know are unins$irin) or not com$assionate% The rationale or e.cuse )i"en at the time is' /They know ! care'0 or /! don1t ha"e time'0 or /They are e.ecuti"es ! don1t need to coddle them%0 ,&(2 The effecti"e relationshi$ of the leader and those around him or her' or the e3uity already in"ested in sustainin) an effecti"e relationshi$' has 4ust been sub"erted' con"erted into a set of interactions and $attern of beha"ior that result in diminishin) returns and e"entually' dissonant relationshi$s% Today' research is hel$in) us understand how and why so many smart' sa""y and sensiti"e leaders act in ways that diminish their effecti"eness% &s this article will describe' disco"eries in neuroscience are $roducin) some confirmin) insi)hts and sur$risin) obser"ations% RESONANT LEADERS ATTRACT, DISSONANT ONES REPEL !n a recent study soon to be $ublished in 'eadership ( arterly' collea)ues at the 5le"eland 5linic 6 #rs% (ichael Philli$s' (ark owe' 7atherine 7oeni)' ,lessy (atthews' Jamie Stoller' and &n)ela Passarelli 8 and myself assessed the im$act that emotionally salient situations with both resonant and dissonant leaders in the $ast had on e.ecuti"es workin) under them *,oyat9is' Passarelli' 7oeni)' owe' (athew' Stoller : Philli$s' in $ress+% The e.ecuti"es were on a"era)e' ;< years old and critical incident inter"iews with them identified such key moments in their $ast% & few weeks later' the e.ecuti"es underwent an f(=! *functional (a)netic =esonance !ma)in)+% >hile in the scanner' they $ushed buttons ta$ed to their le)s *without mo"in) their hands+ in res$onse to statements indicatin) how they felt about these im$ortant e$isodes at work%

&lthou)h it was 4ust one study 8and one that needs to be re$licated to be "alid or widely a$$licable 6 we found that e.ecuti"es1 recall of moments with resonant leaders acti"ated neural circuits in their brain% These circuits ha"e been shown to be in"ol"ed in the mirror-neuron network that is acti"ated when a $erson mimics another1s actions and senses how another $erson feels% This means that when an e.ecuti"e feels and a$$ears uneasy about somethin) that ha$$ened with their husband or wife' others at work will e.$erience that unease' e"en if they did not witness the situation or hear about it directly% This brain-to-brain transmission occurs $rimarily below consciousness% >e also witnessed the acti"ation of $arts of the #efault (ode ?etwork% !t has been called the social network in recent research' because it is acti"e when someone is en)a)ed with others and focusin) on them% *Jack' #awson' 5iccia' 5esaro' ,arry' Snyder : ,e)any' 200<+% =ecallin) $re"ious emotionally im$ortant situations with resonant leaders acti"ated attention in ways that allow a $erson to be o$en to new ideas and new emotions' and to be able to scan the business and social en"ironment' somethin) which e"ery successful e.ecuti"e must be able to do% =eactions when recallin) such situations with dissonant leaders were almost com$letely different% !n this case' the social network was si)nificantly deacti"ated or su$$ressed% &t the same time' areas of the brain noted for focused attention were acti"ated% >hile this reaction allows us to sol"e $roblems and $ersist in a task' it also closes our minds to ideas or emotions that ha"e not been a $art of a defined situation or task' effecti"ely $re"entin) an e.ecuti"e from bein) o$en to new ideas and scannin) the business and social en"ironment% !t was as if recallin) key moments with resonant leaders $ut a $erson back into a $ositi"e state' one in which they could build relationshi$s' think creati"ely' remain o$en' and a$$roach $eo$le% (eanwhile' moments with dissonant leaders' thou)h they aroused a few of the same areas' had mostly the o$$osite effect and dro"e $eo$le to a"oid such leaders% This obser"ation is im$ortant because it would be difficult for a leader to ins$ire and moti"ate those around him or her without en)a)in) them% >hen leaders sli$ into beha"iour that re$eatedly threatens $eo$le or demeans others' or focuses on weaknesses and what needs to be fi.ed' the brains of $eo$le around them are acti"ated in a way that makes $eo$le want to mo"e away from the leader and the situation% !n contrast' moments with resonant leaders stimulate a de)ree of co)niti"e and emotional o$enness' and $ull $eo$le to them% >hile we need all of the networks described' re$eated arousal of the dissonant' more ne)ati"e networks will result in a"oidance' not en)a)ement *the anterior 5in)ulate 5orte. is one $art of the brain associated with ne)ati"e emotions+% That a"oidance mi)ht take the form of /effort minimi9in)0 *i%e%' $eo$le doin) as little as needed to )et by+ or /$uttin) u$0 with the leader% ,uildin) on 3uite a lot of research from #eci and =yan' ,ass and &"olio' @ukl and =i))io' 5on)er and 7otter' and many others studyin) effecti"e leadershi$' we found that the ins$iration and moti"ation aroused by resonant leaders are more likely to hel$ $eo$le want to use their talent' seek inno"ati"e solutions' and ada$t to new

technolo)ies and the chan)in) en"ironment% &)ain' this was only one study' but it hel$ed to e.$lain the neurolo)ical $rocesses that are likely to underlay much of the beha"ior and results obser"ed in many other research studies o"er the last A0 years% 5ollea)ues usin) EEB technolo)y to e.amine neural acti"ation ha"e found that charismatic leaders use "isionin) in their interactions with others *>aldman' ,altha9ard' Peterson' Bal"in' : Thatcher' in $ressC collea)ues are #a"id >aldman' Pierre ,altha9ard and Su9anne Peterson at &ri9ona State Dni"ersity' as well as ,en4amin Bal"in at the Dni"ersity of >ashin)ton and =obert Thatcher at the &$$lied ?euroscience =esearch !nstitute+% ,y /"isionin)0 we mean creatin) an e.citin) "iew of the future for a business' $roduct' ser"ice' or $ro)ram% 5harismatic leaders also ha"e neural circuits that are more coherent 6 *i%e%' different $arts of their brain are connected to each other+ than other ty$es of leaders% !n the research' >aldman and others show that this /coherence0 occurs when the ri)ht and left $arts of the brain are in )reater coordination *i%e%' acti"ated at the same time+ than is the case with the same re)ions of the brain for other e.ecuti"es% They contend that increased /coherence0 results in a more holistic and authentic charismatic leader8 someone who walks the talk% EN A IN AND !OTI"ATIN OTHERS

&nother study' of two different a$$roaches to e.ecuti"e coachin)' yields more insi)ht into how leaders mi)ht affect others% & )rou$ of researchers at 5ase >estern =eser"e Dni"ersity sou)ht to e.amine the effects of' a+ a thirtyminute coachin) session focusin) on what is called the Positi"e Emotional &ttractor *PE&+' and b+ a thirty-minute session focusin) on the ?e)ati"e Emotional &ttractor *?E&+ *,oyat9is' Jack' 5esaro' Passarelli : 7hawa4a' 2010+% >e were able to show that askin) so$homores to talk about their dreamed-about future ten years hence *i%e%' the PE& coachin)+ acti"ated $arts of the "isual corte. that is in"ol"ed in ima)inin) thin)s' and com$onents of the #(? and social networks mentioned earlier% (eanwhile' the ?E& session' which asked students about how they were doin) on their homework' readin)s and assi)nments' re"ealed little that was noteworthy' e.ce$t that such a line of 3uestionin) acti"ated areas known to indicate selfconsciousness and )uilt% &)ain' the more $ositi"e a$$roach to coachin) stimulated those $arts of the brain in"ol"ed in bein) o$en to new ideas and other $eo$le% This raises serious 3uestions about whether many $erformance-mana)ement $ractices and $erformance re"iews are as de"elo$mental or $roducti"e as $eo$le think% Eur results su))est that en)a)in) in a $erformance re"iew' which is an im$ortant $art of the mana)erial and leadershi$ res$onsibility' is 3uite different than en)a)in) someone in a de"elo$mental discussion% The more e"aluatin) 8 or de"elo$mental 6 discussion actually leads a $erson to be more neurolo)ically closed to new ideas or to work on learnin) or chan)in)% &nother im$lication is that when en)a)ed in a de"elo$mental discussion' a focus on what needs to be fi.ed' and o"ercomin) weaknesses and /)a$s0 has

the e.act o$$osite effect on the sub4ect of the inter"iew% The discussion only cements the sub4ect1s defensi"eness and $otential to discount any benefit of the recommendations or ad"ice% >hile it may in"oke com$liance-oriented beha"ior' any $ositi"e effect of such acti"ities or desire for im$ro"ement will $robably be short li"ed% &lthou)h he did not conduct a neurolo)ical study' (asud 7hawa4a' now at the Dni"ersity of (anitoba' found that a $atient1s e.$erience of more PE& than ?E& in their relationshi$ with their $hysician had the si)nificant im$act of determinin) treatment adherence for Ty$e !! #iabetics% Treatment adherence is ty$ically about F0 $ercent for Ty$e !! #iabetics' and only half of the dia)nosed $atients take their medicine and follow the dietary restrictions e.$lained by their $hysicians% ,ut those who e.$erienced more PE& than ?E& in their relationshi$ with their $hysician followed the desired treatment $lan better than others% >hen your doctor tells you to e.ercise more and eat less' do you do soG (any of us do not' which is why obesity-related com$lications are one of the lar)est $ublished health ha9ards in ?orth &merica today 6 and $ut the most financial strain on the health care system% >hen our resol"e to maintain a healthy life a$$ears to be weakenin)' the PE& a$$roach to coachin) and stren)thenin) the moti"ation to chan)e is much stron)er than the more ty$ical ?E& a$$roach of tellin) $eo$le what they /should0 do% En the basis of 2< lon)itudinal studies at 5ase >estern =eser"e Dni"ersity' we now know that the emotional' social and co)niti"e intelli)ence com$etencies of mana)ers and e.ecuti"es in de"elo$ment im$ro"e dramatically when these $ro)rams use the PE& a$$roach% This is im$ortant because' as other studies ha"e shown' such com$etencies $redict leadershi$' mana)ement and $rofessional effecti"eness% *,oyat9is' Stubbs : Taylor' 2002 and later studies+% So' if the PE& a$$roach to coachin) works better in mana)ement and leadershi$ de"elo$ment' health care' and hi)her education' the f(=! study mentioned earlier su))ests why it works better than the alternati"e% !t )ets our attention% TWO KINDS O# E!PATH$ &dditional insi)ht into the ty$es of $rocesses described abo"e comes from another set of neuroscience studies conducted mostly by Professor Jean #ecety and his collea)ues at the Dni"ersity of 5hica)o' and Professor #on ,atson at the Dni"ersity of 7ansas% They ha"e shown that we can em$athi9e in two ways *#ecety : ,atson' 200HC #ecety : (ichalska' 2010+% Ene is more self-reflecti"e' in that we em$athi9e with another $erson in terms of how we mi)ht feel in their situation or how it makes us feel% The other form of em$athy is bein) o$en to how the other $erson feels' with substantially less selfreferral in the $rocess% The latter is a truer form of bein) o$en to another $erson and carin) about them% !t is also a $urer form of em$athy' one that has many similarities to circuits that are like the #(? and social network mentioned earlier% To build more effecti"e leadershi$ relationshi$s and to hel$ others feel moti"ated and ins$ired to chan)e' learn and de"elo$' leaders need to ha"e em$athy% ,eyond feelin) that they are understood' other $eo$le need to feel

that the leader /cares0 about them% & basic com$onent of this $rocess is likely to be a leader1s ability to sus$end his or her own issues and a)enda and understand the other $erson1s issues' thou)hts and feelin)s% That is' en)a)e in a truer form of em$athy% CO!!ON SENSE, BUT NOT CO!!ON PRACTICE E"en thou)h most e.ecuti"es and leaders know that more effecti"e leadershi$ relies on better relationshi$s and know how to a$$roach a $erson in order to moti"ate and ins$ire him or her' we do not take the time to walk the talk' at least not consistently% Ether issues and challen)es distract our attention' or in neurolo)ical terms' refocus our attention not on the other $eo$le around us but on the /$roblem%0 &s we sli$ into a more defensi"e or focused mode of thou)ht' we close oursel"es off to others% !n doin) so' we limit our ability to le"era)e the human ca$ital in our or)ani9ations to inno"ate' create' en)a)e and ada$t to the world around us% The disco"eries discussed abo"e are e.citin)' but they are only a be)innin)% The scientific )low of lookin) dee$ into our brains and seein) neural scans can feel like the awe and ma)ic of a Io)warts indoctrination ceremony% !t is' after all' still science% >e need to be e.cited but cautious' en)a)ed but ske$tical of neuroscience1s a$$lications and be wary of claims of new eli.irs% !n the stream of research described in this article' ! ha"e tried to show how findin)s from many fields 6 neuroscience' medicine' mana)ement' $sycholo)y and education 6 are con"er)in) to su$$ort some e.istin) theories' and to shine a li)ht on the $ath ahead to de"elo$in) more effecti"e leaders and to more research and e.$erimental a$$lications% RE#ERENCES ,oyat9is' =% E%' Jack' &%' 5esaro' =%' Passarelli' &% and 7hawa4a' (% *2010+' )oaching !ith )ompassion* An f+R, St dy of )oaching to the -ositive or .egative /motional Attractor, Presented at the &nnual (eetin) of the &cademy of (ana)ement' (ontreal% ,oyat9is' =%E%' Passarelli' &%(%' 7oeni)' 7%' owe' (%' (athew' ,%' Stoller' J%7% and Philli$s' (% * in $ress+' /E.amination of the neural substrates acti"ated in memories of e.$eriences with resonant and dissonant leaders'0 The 'eadership ( arterly. ,oyat9is' =% E%' Stubbs' E% 5%' : Taylor' S% ?% *2002+% earnin) co)niti"e and emotional intelli)ence com$etencies throu)h )raduate mana)ement education% Academy of +anagement 0o rnal on 'earning and /d cation, 1*2+' 1F0-1J2% #ecety' J%' : ,atson' 5% #% *200H+% Social neuroscience a$$roaches to inter$ersonal sensiti"ity% Social .e roscience, 2, 1F1-1FH% #ecety' J% : (ichalska' 7%J% *2010+% ?eurode"elo$mental chan)es in the circuits underlyin) em$athy and sym$athy from childhood to adulthood% 3evelopmental Science, 14567, KKJ-K<<% Jack' &%' #awson' &%' 5iccia' &% 5esaro' =%' ,arry' 7%' Snyder' &%' : ,e)any' 7% *200<+% Social and mechanical reasoning define t!o opposing domains of

h man higher cognition% Presented at the Society for ?euroscience &nnual 5onference in 5hica)o' 200<% The manuscri$t is currently under in-de$th re"iew in Science% 7hawa4a' (% *2010+% The mediatin) role of $ositi"e and ne)ati"e emotional attractors between $sychosocial correlates of doctor-$atient relationshi$ and treatment of Ty$e !! diabetes% #octoral #issertation' 5ase >estern =eser"e Dni"ersityC 5le"eland' Ehio% >aldman' #% &%' ,altha9ard' P% &%' Peterson' S% J%' Bal"in' ,%(% : Thatcher' =%>% *in $ress+% inkin) neuroscience' sociali9ed "ision' and charismatic leadershi$% Strategic +anagement 0o rnal.