Implementation of Transformational Leadership Aspect of

"Inspirational Motivation"

Behavior in Leadership of Higher Education Academic Development

Diding Nurdin

and Bambang Ismaya

Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Bandung, Indonesia

Teacher Training Faculty, Universitas Singaperbangsa Karawang, Indonesia

bais1251@yahoo.com

Keywords: Transformational leadership, Inspirational Motivation, UII Yogyakarta higher education.

Abstract: Inspirational motivation describes managers who motivate associates to commit to the vision of the

organization. Managers with inspirational motivation encourage team spirit to reach goals of increased

revenue and market growth for the organization. Leaders who communicate high expectations to followers,

inspiring followers through motivation to commitment and engagement in shared vision of the organization.

Judging from the transformational style applied in UII Yogyakarta that they are able to bring high education

that has high competitiveness at both national and international level, in the application of its leadership using

"Inspirational Motivation", So based on the description of the phenomenon of the problems mentioned above,

the authors are interested to conduct research with the title “Implementation of Transformational Leadership

Aspect of "Inspirational Motivation" Behavior in Leadership of Higher Education Academic Development”.

1 INTRODUCTION

Individual, group and organizational outcome have

been associated with leadership styles, and

transformational leadership is believed to achieve

outstanding levels of outcome from their followers

(Khan et al., 2014). Leadership leads to procedural

changes which organizations are facing in the

dynamic competitive environment and no doubt

transformational leadership plays a crucial role in an

organizational success.

Inspirational motivation describes managers who

motivate associates to commit to the vision of the

organization. Managers with inspirational motivation

encourage team spirit to reach goals of increased

revenue and market growth for the organization.

Leaders who communicate high expectations to

followers, inspiring followers through motivation to

commitment and engagement in shared vision of the

organization.

Has four interrelated behaviors that he views as

essential for leaders to move followers in to the

transformational style: Idealized influence,

inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation and

individualized onsideration. Idealized influence

constitutes the charismatic factor of transformational

leadership in which leaders become role models for

ethical behavior by their followers (Avolio and Bass,

2004, hal. 4).

Figure 1: Transformational Leadership Model.

According to Bass the aim of transformational

leadership would be to „transform‟ people and

organizations inside a literal sense - to alter them in

the mind and heart enlarge vis ion, insight and

understanding clarify reasons make behavior

congruent with values, concepts and brings about

changes which are permanent, self-perpetuating and

momentum building.

According to Bass and Avolio, transformational

leadership happens when leader become wider and

Inspirational

Motivation

Intellectual

Stimulation

Idealized

Influence

Individual

Consideration

Tranformati

onal

Leadership

550

Nurdin, D. and Ismaya, B.

Implementation of Transformational Leadership Aspect of "Inspirational Motivation" - Behavior in Leadership of Higher Education Academic Development.

In Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Educational Sciences (ICES 2017) - Volume 1, pages 550-553

ISBN: 978-989-758-314-8

uphold the interests of the employees, once they

generate awareness and acceptance for the purpose

and assignment of the group, so when they blend

employees to appear beyond their own self-interest

for the good of the group. (Nanjundeswaraswamy T.

S. and Swamy 2014: 58)

Some major weaknesses associated with

Transformational leadership are:

a) The ambiguity underlying its influences and

processes.

b) Several studies have shown that

transformational leadership can have

detrimental effects on both followers and the

organisation.

c) Stevens et al. (1995) believes that

transformational leadership is biased in favour

of top managements, owners and managers.

(Odumeru & Ifeanyi, 2013: 335).

d) Moreover Transformational leadership theory

assumes the heroic leadership stereotype.

(Odumeru &Ifeanyi, 2013: 335).

In this case, academic leaders such as university

administrators, deans, academic coordinators, and

even heads of programs play an important role in

enhancing the culture of excellence to attract the most

able to motivate existing academics.

Judging from the transformational style applied in

UII Yogyakarta that they are able to bring high

education that has high competitiveness at both

national and international level, in the application of

its leadership using "Inspirational Motivation", So

based on the description of the phenomenon of the

problems mentioned above, the authors are interested

to conduct research with the title “Implementation Of

Transformational Leadership Aspect Of

"Inspirational Motivation" Behavior In Leadership Of

Higher Education Academic Development”.

2 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This study was carried out with a qualitative research

design. These kinds of researches are used to gain in-

depth knowledge in a study (Denzin, Norman K. &

Lincoln, Yvonna S., 2005; Marshall, C. & Rossman,

G. B., 2006). More specifically, the study employed

an ethnographic research design in collecting data.

Ethnographic designs, as (Creswell, J. W., 2005)

described them, “are qualitative research procedures

for describing, analyzing, and interpreting aculture-

sharing group’s shared patterns of behavior, beliefs,

and language that develop over time”. As such, by

using this research design and utilizing in-depth

interviews, the study explored “culture-sharing”

behaviors, beliefs, and language among teachers in

Turkey context. Teachers’ views were obtained

through interviews with semi-structured questions, as

recommended by (Bogdan, R., & Biklen, S. K.,

1998), to “get the subjects to freely express their

thoughts around particular topics”.

2.1 Sample

The participants of this study were 8 leader in heigher

education Universiti Islamic Indonesia Yogyakarta.

The participants were chosen by using a purposive

sampling method described as the best used with

small numbers of individuals or groups which may

well be sufficient for understanding human

perceptions, problems, needs, behaviors and contexts,

which are the main justification for a qualitative

audience research [Bailey, K.D. (1994)].

2.2 Data Collection and Analysis

The data collection was using the “repertory grid”

technique, which is a constructed interview method.

This technique can best be characterized as a semi-

structured interview (face-to-face, computerized, or

phone interview) in which the respondent is

confronted with a triad of elements and then asked to

specify some important ways in which two of the

elements are alike and, thereby, different from the

third (Bailey, K. D., 1994; Kerkhof, Ad., Apter, Alan.

& Grimland, Meytal., 2006).

In this study, the data collection was using the

following procedure. First, in an e-mail, the teachers

were informed about the purpose of the study, and

they were asked if they could participate in this

research voluntarily. Those who were invited to take

part in the research consented after being assured of

the confidentiality of the data to be gathered from

them. It was promised that their identities would be

kept in secret and their names would not be

mentioned in any part of the study or shared with

anyone else. Second, an interview was planned on an

agreed-upon day with those who accepted the

invitation, and the participants were visited on that

date. The interviews were both recorded and noted

with their permission and each took approximately

50-60 minutes.

In order to analyze the data, the “content analysis”

technique was employed. This type of analysis

usually aims to analyze similar data on a topic and

comment on it (Büyüköztürk, Ş., Kılıç Çakmak, E.,

Akgün, Ö.E., Karadeniz, Ş. ve Demirel, F., 2010;

Yıldırım, A. ve H. Şimşek, 2010). The first step taken

in the data analysis process was the data organization

Implementation of Transformational Leadership Aspect of "Inspirational Motivation" - Behavior in Leadership of Higher Education

Academic Development

551

procedures recommended by (Bogdan, R., & Biklen,

S. K., 1998). In organizing the data, the researcher

revisited each interviewer and listened to each

audiotape while reviewing the transcripts to ensure

the accuracy of the data. Each participant’s interview

transcript was later analyzed according to the data

analysis procedures described by (Bogdan, R., &

Biklen, S. K., 1998), which call for development of

coding categories, mechanical sorting of the data, and

analysis of the data within each coding category. In

this respect, each participant’s interview was coded

separately according to the participant’s views on

principals’ transformational leadership behaviors as

well as on various emerging themes and, later on

repeated themes among the interviews was grouped

into coding categories. It was done in three steps:

category definition, exemplification, and codification

regulation. First, the answers to each question were

separated into meaningful categories, named, and

coded. For example, the questions were

conceptualized and named with four separate

statements as transformational behaviors. These are

idealized influence, inspirational motivation,

individualized consideration and intellectual

stimulation. In the second step, the conceptualized

statements were brought together. In the third step, it

was intended to avoid repetition. In the last phase, the

identified results were explained and related to each

other. It was also intended to build a cause-and-effect

relationship among the separate parts. In this sense,

the views of teachers were coded as T1, T2, T3, and

T4.

The constant comparative approach (Glaser, B.

G., 1992) was used in the process of organizing and

analyzing the data. The use of the constant

comparative method results in the saturation of

categories and the emergence of theory. Theory

emerges through continual analysis and doubling

back for more data collection and coding (Bogdan, R.,

& Biklen, S. K., 1998; Glaser, B. G., 1992). In this

method, each set of data collected (interview

transcripts) were reviewed in search of key issues,

recurrent events, or activities in the data that became

categories of focus.

3 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The data for each participant were reviewed multiple

times for confirmatory and contradictory statements

until the data were organized into satisfactory

categories and sub-codes to address the research

question. In order to fulfill the aforementioned

purpose, the following semi-structured questions

were raised:

1. How does UII leader apply “Inspiring

Motivation” in inspiring, motivating and

modifying leaders’ organization behavior in

developing academic quality?

4 PRACTICAL CONTRIBUTIONS

Understanding the functionality of transformational

leadership improves its practical application.

A process that motivates followers by appealing

to higher ideas and moral values where the leader has

a deep set of internal values and ideas and is

persuasive at motivating followers to act in a way that

sustains the greater good rather than their own

interests". Defined transformational leadership as

“The style of leadership in which the leader identifies

the needed change, creates a vision to guide the

change through inspiration, and executes the change

with the commitment of the members of the group.

Similar in some ways to great man theories, the

trait theory assumes that people inherit certain

qualities or traits make them better suited to

leadership. Trait theories often identify particular

personality or behavioural characteristics that are

shared by leaders. Many have begun to ask of this

theory, however, if particular traits are key features of

leaders and leadership, how do we explain people

who possess those qualities but are not leaders?

Inconsistencies in the relationship between leadership

traits and leadership effectiveness eventually led

scholars to shift paradigms in search of new

explanations for effective leadership.

Transformational leadership is about building

relationships among people and creating real,

significant change by emphasizing values and

creating a shared vision among those in the

organization. Transformational leaders generally rise

during times of turmoil and change in an

organization. The first priority of a transformational

leader is to identify and understand the needs of the

individuals in the organization and then elevate those

needs. By focusing on their requirements, the

transformational leader motivates individuals to

achieve at higher levels and to produce the type of

work they did not think they could. This increases the

employees’ beliefs in themselves and their abilities.

Transformational leaders inspire employees to

“transcend their own immediate self-interest” and

focus on the common interests of their colleagues and

the organization as a whole.

ICES 2017 - 1st International Conference on Educational Sciences

552

Individual, group and organizational outcome

have been associated with leadership styles, and

transformational leadership is believed to achieve

outstanding levels of outcome from their followers

(Khan et al., 2014). Leadership leads to procedural

changes which organizations are facing in the

dynamic competitive environment and no doubt

transformational leadership plays a crucial role in an

organizational success.

5 CONCLUSION

As a conclusion, UII leader apply aspect “Influence

Charisma Ideal” in giving information and awareness

at organization vision and mission by emphasizing

the subordinates to be actively involved in giving

advice to subordinates when subordinates committed

violations, especially in the process of vision and

mission.

Furthermore, the leadership of Islamic University

of Indonesia Yogyakarta has an attitude of openness

to any new ideas and criticism from subordinates.

Moreover, Leaders at UII Yogyakarta consider

that the new ideas and criticisms submitted by the

workers is a part that must be accepted as a logical

consequence in the process of improving

performance in the development of academic quality

at UII Yogyakarta. This indicates that the leadership

in UII Yogyakarta already has attributes of

intellectual stimulation characteristics.

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Implementation of Transformational Leadership Aspect of "Inspirational Motivation" - Behavior in Leadership of Higher Education

Academic Development

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