Corrections_Today_Winter_2024-2025_Vol.86_No.4

OFFICE OF CORRECTIONAL HEALTH

Ask the Doc The psychology of trust in leadership By Dr. Dean Aufderheide

“Trust is the foundation of leadership.” — Colin Powell

?

Dear Dr. Dean, received training to be a supervisor, but I think I need to hone my leadership skills. I know it’s not a psychology question, but I really need your advice on what’s the best book on leadership for me? — Captain Q: I work in a large jail and was recently promoted to a Captain position. I

Rather than recom mending a “best book”, I suggest you look for a book that 1) recognizes leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group of

As former General Electric CEO Jack Welch said, “Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others.” My best wishes, and I trust you will find a leadership book that is best for you to help grow others. CT ENDNOTES Knight, R. (2024). 6 Common Leadership Styles — and How to Decide Which to Use When, Harvard Business Review. https://hbr. org/2024/04/6-common-leadership-styles-and how-to-decide-which-to-use-when. Accessed September 18, 2024. Sharma, M. and Jain, S. (2013). Leadership Management: Principles, Models and Theories. Global Journal of Management and Business Studies. Vol.3 (3): 309-318. Iarocci, J. (2024) https://serveleadnow.com/why are-there-so-many-leadership-books/. Accessed September 20, 2024. Simpson J. (2007) Psychological foundations of trust. Current Directions in Psychological Science 16:264–268.

Dear Captain, excellent question and I commend your motivation to improve your leadership skills. Actually, your question does have some relevance to psychology, but more on that later. There are an overwhelming number of books on leadership and navigating the maze of theories, models and styles can be confusing. With leadership mod els ranging from transactional and transformational to servantship and situational, and with styles from authoritative to coaching, there is no limit to the way leader ship can be described. And, with over 50,000 books available on Amazon with the word “leadership” in the title, over 1,200 paperback books published so far this year alone, and countless magazine articles and workshops, it is safe to say no one has cornered the market on a best leadership model.

individuals to achieve a common goal, and not just a collection of characteristics of an individual or based on situational circumstances; and 2) find a book that recognizes trust is the most important ingre dient in that process. Regardless of the book you buy, if it does not acknowledge trust as foundational in the process, I would keep looking. Now to why the psychology of trust is so important in leadership. Trust is in our DNA. Our brains are hard-wired to trust each other. It is the foundation for cooperation and the catalyst for collaboration. When trust is undermined, we become frus trated and less likely to work together. Research has also found that trust worthy people, especially leaders, tend to be transparent in their deci sion-making and motivation, listen to others’ input, and put the interests of others over their own self-interest.

Dr. Dean Aufderheide is a clinical and forensic

psychologist and a licensed chaplain. He is ACA’s Director of Mental Health and board certified in correctional psychology.

Corrections Today | Winter 2024-2025

110