| The purpose of this case study was to explore and understand the forces that drove decisions made by leaders who exhibited self-leadership behaviors. The study was framed by the theories of Maslow, Goleman, and Bandura. The concept of self-leadership and its connection to (a) motivation, (b) emotional intelligence, and (c) social cognitive theory, had the ability to provide the foundational answers to solve the problem being studied. To gain this understanding, data were collected through the Abbreviated Self-Leadership Questionnaire, a demographics questionnaire, semi-structured interviews, and a sociogram. A purposively selected group of 10 leaders, comprised of upper managers, middle managers, and supervisors, was interviewed to reflect upon and determine the driving forces behind their decision-making. The strongest themes that emerged from the data analysis included (a) data driven, (b) directed by superiors, (c) outside influence, (d) customer relationships, (e) stakeholders, and (f) honesty and integrity. The findings in this study suggested that (a) leaders did not have a single method for making decisions; subsequently, they tended to rely on speculation and perception instead of on facts and data; (b) customers and the person to whom an individual directly reported were external forces that directed the decision-making process; and (c) social desirability---self-promotion and self-preservation acted as the internal factors behind many decisions. Such findings seem applicable in other industries and, as such, may be of use to organizations, seeking to develop their leaders, in the areas of decision-making, self-leadership, emotional intelligence, and self-regulation. |
