Leadership Style Assessment
Leadership varies widely between individuals—not just in effectiveness, but in approach. Dr. Bernard Bass and Dr. Bruce Avolio, pioneers in leadership research, developed the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) (1994), which identified key aspects of leadership styles, including transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire approaches. This test explores how you approach leadership based on established psychological research. The test is rooted in Bass and Avolio’s (1994) model of leadership (inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, individualized consideration, contingent reward, passive management) and supplemented with modern leadership research from Northouse (2016) and Yukl (2013) for adaptability and ethical orientation.
How do you express leadership? For each of the following questions, indicate how well it applies to you below.
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The IDRlabs Leadership Style Assessment (IDR-LSA) was developed by IDRlabs. The IDR-LSA is based on the work of Dr. Bernard Bass, Ph.D., and Dr. Bruce Avolio, Ph.D., who researched leadership and developed models of transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire leadership, as well as other researchers in the field. The IDR-LSA is not associated with any specific researchers in leadership studies or affiliated research institutions.
The IDRlabs Leadership Style Assessment was informed by Bass and Avolio’s work as published in Bass, B. M., & Avolio, B. J. (1994). Improving Organizational Effectiveness through Transformational Leadership, adapted here to assess individual leadership styles across five distinct scales.
The work of Bass and Avolio identified key components of leadership, such as inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and contingent reward. It has been adapted here to inform the diagnostic criteria of this Leadership Style Assessment by exploring how these traits manifest in personal tendencies. The present test is intended for educational purposes only. IDRlabs and the present IDRlabs Leadership Style Assessment are independent of the above researchers, organizations, or their affiliated institutions.
The Leadership Style Assessment is based on famous and well-regarded research into the traits of effective leaders. However, free online tests and quizzes such as this one are solely first takes and cannot provide accurate assessments of your leadership traits. Hence, the test is intended to be used for educational purposes only. A definitive leadership evaluation can be made only by a qualified professional.
As the publishers of this free online Leadership Style Assessment, which allows you to screen yourself for the characteristics of your leadership approach, we have strived to make the test as reliable and valid as possible by subjecting it to statistical controls and validation. However, free online quizzes such as the present Leadership Style Assessment do not provide professional assessments or recommendations of any kind; the test is provided entirely “as-is.” For more information about any of our online tests and quizzes, please consult our Terms of Service.
Why Use This Test?
1. Free. This Leadership Style Assessment is delivered to you without the need for sign-ups or registration and will allow you to obtain your scores related to inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, individualized consideration, contingent reward, and passive management.
2. Statistical controls. Statistical analysis of the test is conducted to ensure maximum accuracy and validity of the test scores.
3. Made by professionals. The present test has been made with the input of people who work professionally in psychology and individual differences research.