UNIVERSITY OF GHANA 

 

LEADERSHIP THROUGH THE SPECTACLES OF GENDER: 

DOES IT PREDICT FOLLOWERS’ STRESS LEVELS? EVIDENCE 

FROM ECOBANK 

  

BY  

  

BERNICE ADJEI   

(10272897)  

  

 

 

THIS THESIS IS SUBMITTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF GHANA,  

LEGON, IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR 

THE AWARD OF MPHIL HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT  

DEGREE.  

  

  

JUNE, 2015 

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DECLARATION 

I, Bernice Adjei, the author of this thesis do hereby solemnly declare that, this work is the 

result of my own research and has not been presented either in part or whole by anyone in 

this or any other University for any academic award. All references used in the work have 

been duly acknowledged.  

  

  

…………………………….                                                      ……………………  

BERNICE ADJEI                                                                   DATE  

(10272897)  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

 

  

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CERTIFICATION 

I hereby certify that this thesis was supervised in accordance with the procedures laid 

down by Graduate School, University of Ghana.  

  

……………………………………………..                                             ………………….  

DR. KWASI DARTEY-BAAH                                                                        DATE  

            SUPERVISOR  

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DEDICATION 

To my parents, siblings and Mr. Asiama Agyekum Kojo. 

  

    

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

 

 

  

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 

First and foremost, my heartfelt appreciation goes to the almighty God for his protection 

and mercies throughout my MPhil studies. I also express my profound gratitude to my 

supervisor, Dr. Kwasi Dartey Baah for his immeasurable commitment, concern and 

dedication to this research. In fact, it is his efforts that have brought me this far. I also 

thank all the Lecturers at the OHRM department, especially Dr. Anku- Tsede and Mr 

Ametorwo for their constant presence at presentations to make contributions to our work.  

I will take this opportunity to thank my parents Mr. and Mrs. Adjei for their unwavering 

dedication and financial support throughout my MPhil studies, as well as my siblings; 

Daniel Adjei, Jennifer Nsiah, Henrietta Adjei, and Louisa Adjei. 

Finally, my sincerest gratitude also goes to my fiancée, Kojo Asiama Agyekum for his 

support and encouragement through the difficult moments of my study. I am also grateful 

to my friends and course mates; Kwabena Asare, Benjamin Mekpor, Believe Quarquoo, 

and Akudugu Mbawin, for sparing time off their busy schedules to assist me in this 

research. To all employees at Ecobank who participated in this study especially Jennifer 

who liaised with me to the other branches, I say thank you. God richly bless you all and 

replenish all your efforts.  

  

  

  

  

  

  

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TABLE OF CONTENTS 

Content                Page 

DECLARATION ................................................................................................................... i 

CERTIFICATION ................................................................................................................. ii 

DEDICATION .....................................................................................................................iii 

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ................................................................................................... iv 

TABLE OF CONTENTS ...................................................................................................... v 

LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................... ix 

LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................... x 

ABSTRACT ......................................................................................................................... xi 

 

CHAPTER ONE ................................................................................................................... 1 

INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................. 1 

1.1 Background ..................................................................................................................... 1 

1.2 Research Problem ............................................................................................................ 3 

1.3 Purpose of the Study ....................................................................................................... 6 

1.4 Research Objectives ........................................................................................................ 6 

1.5 Research Questions ......................................................................................................... 7 

1.6 Research Hypotheses ....................................................................................................... 7 

1.7 Scope of the study ........................................................................................................... 8 

1.8 Significance of the study ................................................................................................. 9 

1.9 Chapter Disposition ......................................................................................................... 9 

 

CHAPTER TWO ................................................................................................................. 11 

LITERATURE REVIEW .................................................................................................... 11 

2.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 11 

2.2 Theoretical Background ................................................................................................ 11 

2.2.1 Leadership Style ......................................................................................................... 11 

2.2.1.1 Transactional Leadership ........................................................................................ 15 

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2.2.1.2 Transformational Leadership .................................................................................. 17 

2.2.2 Stress .......................................................................................................................... 19 

2.2.2.1 Person–Environment (PE) Fit Theory ..................................................................... 20 

2.2.3 Gender ........................................................................................................................ 22 

2.2.3.1 Biological Theory (BT) ........................................................................................... 23 

2.3 Empirical Review .......................................................................................................... 24 

2.3.1 Transactional leadership style versus Transformational leadership style .................. 24 

2.3.2 Leadership style and gender ....................................................................................... 26 

2.3.3 Transactional Leadership Style and Stress ................................................................. 27 

2.3.4 Transformational Leadership Style and Stress ........................................................... 29 

2.3.5 Job Stress and Gender of Employee ........................................................................... 31 

2.3.6 Leadership Style, Gender and Employee Job Stress .................................................. 32 

 

CHAPTER THREE ............................................................................................................. 34 

METHODOLOGY .............................................................................................................. 34 

3.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 34 

3.2 Research Paradigm ........................................................................................................ 34 

3.3 Research Approach ....................................................................................................... 35 

3.4 Research Design ............................................................................................................ 35 

3.5 Source of Data ............................................................................................................... 36 

3.6 Target Population .......................................................................................................... 36 

3.7 Sample Size ................................................................................................................... 36 

3.8 Sampling Procedure ...................................................................................................... 36 

3.9 Research Instrument ...................................................................................................... 37 

3.10 Data Collection Management ...................................................................................... 38 

3.11 Pilot Study ................................................................................................................... 38 

3.12 Data Analysis .............................................................................................................. 39 

3.13 Ethical Issues ............................................................................................................... 39 

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CHAPTER FOUR ............................................................................................................... 41 

DATA PRESENTATION, ANALYSES AND INTERPRETATION ............................... 41 

4.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 41 

4.2 Background information ............................................................................................... 41 

4.2.1 Sex of Respondents .................................................................................................... 41 

4.2.2 Age of Respondents ................................................................................................... 42 

4.2.3 Marital Status of Respondents .................................................................................... 43 

4.2.4 Educational Qualification of Respondents ................................................................. 43 

4.2.5 Tenure of Respondents ............................................................................................... 44 

4.2.6 Job Title of respondents ............................................................................................. 45 

4.3 Test for Normality ......................................................................................................... 46 

4.4 Testing Research Hypothesis ........................................................................................ 47 

4.4.1 Hypothesis One .......................................................................................................... 47 

4.4.2 Hypothesis Two .......................................................................................................... 47 

4.4.3 Hypothesis Three ........................................................................................................ 50 

4.4.4 Hypothesis Four ......................................................................................................... 52 

4.4.5 Hypothesis five ........................................................................................................... 53 

4.4.6 Hypothesis Six ............................................................................................................ 55 

 

CHAPTER FIVE ................................................................................................................. 57 

DISUSSION OF FINDINGS .............................................................................................. 57 

5.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 57 

5.2 Research Objective one ................................................................................................. 57 

5.3 Research Objective Two ............................................................................................... 58 

5.4 Research Objective Three ............................................................................................. 61 

5.5 Research Objective four ................................................................................................ 63 

5.6 Research Objective Five ................................................................................................ 64 

5.7 Research Objective Six ................................................................................................. 65 

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5.8: Conceptual Framework after Analysis ......................................................................... 66 

 

CHAPTER SIX ................................................................................................................... 68 

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ............. 68 

6.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 68 

6.2 Summary of Study ......................................................................................................... 68 

6.3 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 70 

6.4 Recommendations ......................................................................................................... 70 

6.5 Limitations .................................................................................................................... 71 

6.6 Directions for Future Research ..................................................................................... 71 

 

REFERENCES .................................................................................................................... 73 

APPENDICES ..................................................................................................................... 87 

APPENDIX A: QUESTIONAAIRE ................................................................................... 87 

APPENDIX B: FORMULA FOR SAMPLE SIZE ............................................................. 92 

APPENDIX C: RELIABILITY ANALYSIS FOR PILOT STUDY .................................. 93 

APPENDIX D: ASSUMPTIONS ....................................................................................... 94 

 

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LIST OF TABLES 

Table 3.1: Results for Reliability Analysis ......................................................................... 39 

Table 4.1: Sex ...................................................................................................................... 41 

Table 4.2: Age ..................................................................................................................... 42 

Table 4.3:  Marital Status .................................................................................................... 43 

Table 4.4: Educational Qualification .................................................................................. 43 

Table 4.5: Tenure ................................................................................................................ 44 

Table 4.6: Job Title .............................................................................................................. 45 

Table 4.7: Gender of Supervisor ......................................................................................... 45 

Table 4.8: Descriptive Statistics of all the Variables .......................................................... 46 

Table 4. 9: Descriptive Statistics ......................................................................................... 47 

Table 4.10: Group Statistics ................................................................................................ 47 

Table 4. 11: Independent Samples T-Test ........................................................................... 48 

Table 4. 12: Group Statistics ............................................................................................... 49 

Table 4.13: Independent Samples T-Test ............................................................................ 49 

Table 4. 14: ANOVA .......................................................................................................... 50 

Table 4.15: Coefficients ...................................................................................................... 50 

Table 4.16: ANOVA ........................................................................................................... 51 

Table 4.17: Coefficients ...................................................................................................... 51 

Table 4.18: Group Statistics ................................................................................................ 52 

Table 4.19: Independent Samples T-Test ............................................................................ 52 

Table 4.20:  ANOVA .......................................................................................................... 53 

Table 4.21: ANOVA ........................................................................................................... 53 

Table 4.22: Coefficients ...................................................................................................... 54 

Table 4. 23: Coefficients ..................................................................................................... 54 

Table 4.24: ANOVA ........................................................................................................... 55 

Table 4.25: ANOVA ........................................................................................................... 55 

Table 4.26: Coefficients ...................................................................................................... 56 

Table 4.27: Coefficients ...................................................................................................... 56 

 

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file:///F:/PROGRESS%20BERNICE%20ADJEI'S%20MPHIL%20THESIS1.doc%23_Toc377402152
file:///F:/PROGRESS%20BERNICE%20ADJEI'S%20MPHIL%20THESIS1.doc%23_Toc377402156


 

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LIST OF FIGURES 

Figure 2.1:Conceptual framework ....................................................................................... 32 

 

Figure 5.1: Conceptual Framework after Analysis ............................................................. 66 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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ABSTRACT 

The purpose of the study was to investigate leadership styles (transactional and 

transformational) among male and female managers and how these leadership styles 

influenced stress at the workplace. The study adopted the quantitative research approach 

and used questionnaires in the collection of data. Purposive and simple random sampling 

techniques were used to collect data from Ecobank Ghana (Accra Zone), which was 

selected as the population target. Out of 285 questionnaires administered, 207 were 

retrieved representing 72.63%. The study’s findings showed that, transformational 

leadership style was dominant among managers of Ecobank. Also, the results of the study 

showed that female managers did not practice more transformational leadership style than 

males; likewise, male leaders did not practice more transactional leadership style than 

female leaders. Furthermore, the study findings revealed that, in line with the hypothesis, 

transactional leadership style had a significant positive relationship with employee job 

stress; similarly, transformational leadership style also had a significant positive 

relationship with stress as against the hypothesized significant negative relationship. 

Again, the findings revealed that female employees did not experience more job stress 

than their male colleagues. More so, this study’s findings revealed that female 

transformational leaders cause employee job stress. Finally, it was found that male 

transactional leaders also cause employees stress, but there was no relationship established 

between transactional leadership style and stress. The study thus recommended that, 

managers should consider the use of both transformational and transactional leadership 

style in the organization. It was also recommended that, social activities like sports and 

corporate hangouts should be organized frequently to help in managing stress. 

Additionally courses on time management for staff is also recommended since effective 

time management techniques are essential means to managing stress.  

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1 

  

CHAPTER ONE 

INTRODUCTION 

1.1 Background  

Leadership is an ineluctable phenomenon that holds a lot of importance to any 

organizational entity. It is actually the pivot around which organizational goals revolve 

(Kreitner & Kinicki, 2004). According to Wintson and Patterson (2006), “a leader is one 

or more people who selects, equips, trains, and influences one or more follower(s) who 

have diverse gifts, abilities, and skills and focuses the follower(s) to the organization’s 

mission and objectives causing the follower(s) to willingly and enthusiastically expend 

spiritual, emotional, and physical energy in a concerted coordinated effort to achieve the 

organizational mission and objectives” (p. 7). This expatiated definition underscores the 

importance of the leader in the well-being of any organization. Bolden (2004) indicates 

that the essence of leadership to any organization cannot be overemphasized because the 

survival of organizations, employee welfare, organization’s performance; inside and 

outside, all depends on the kind of leader spearheading the activities of the organization.  

  

The concept of leadership has attracted attention from researchers whose in-depth studies 

and analysis have led to the revelation and discovery of different types of leadership 

styles. For instance, in a study conducted by Munir, Malik, Iftikhar, Nasir and Chahal 

(2012), emphasis was laid on the differences of autocratic and democratic styles of 

leadership. Meanwhile other authors like Rowld and Schlotz (2009) and Druskat (1994) 

used the terms transactional and transformational to refer to the different types of 

leadership styles. Dulewicz and Higgs (2005) opined that, in recent times, among several 

leadership styles that have been identified by different authors, transactional and 

transformational leadership styles dominate the study of leadership styles. For the purpose 

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of this study transactional and transformational leadership styles are going to be 

emphasized.  

 

Over the decades there has been an interesting development to the concept of leadership in 

the form of change in gender at the workplace. According to Revees and Baden (2000), 

“gender refers to the socially determined ideas and practices of what it is to be female or 

male”(p.3). Until recently the idea of leadership was conceptualized as a male subject, 

nonetheless there has been a continuous increase in the number of women in leadership 

positions in organizations today. This development has captured the interest of 

organizational researchers to delve more into the female leadership role (Daley & Naff, 

1998; Coper, 1997). The paucity of women at the workplace some years ago is not the 

situation today. Although, the number of men at the work place continues to exceed that of 

women, there has been a gradual but significant improvement in the number of women at 

the workplace over the years. In UK and Ireland for instance, the percentage of women in 

the work force is more than forty five (45). In addition, the percentage of women who are 

in the helm of affairs in large companies across the world has also been projected around 

60 percent, which is a conspicuous indication of the female prominence at the work place  

(Ackah, Heaton & McWhinney, 1999; Owen &Tandor, 1993).  

  

This evolution of females in organizational set up has catapulted an even more interesting 

twist to the leadership debate; where focus is placed on the differences and similarities that 

might possibly exist among males and females in their adoption of leadership styles 

(transactional and transformational) at the workplace. In a study conducted by Oshagbemi 

and Gill (2003), it was established that there are some clear differences and similarities 

among male and female leadership styles. The study for example revealed that, unlike 

males, female managers do less delegation. There also existed a statistical difference in the 

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inspirational motivation for males and females. Rosner (1990) posits that women are 

naturally inclined to transformational leadership style which is as a result of socialization 

and career paths.   

 

More often than not, the importance of leadership to an organization is stressed in most 

studies, but there are some negative outcomes of leadership as well (Rowold & Schlotz, 

2009). Stress for instance has been one of the major concerns of organizations and even 

governments, which researchers suspect is an outcome of a particular leadership style 

adopted at the work setting (Ryska, 2004). Narrowing to gender, Valentin and Godkin 

(2000) assert that, the gender of a supervisor undoubtedly influences the perceptions a 

subordinate forms about his or her job. An inference can thus be made to the fact that, at 

any given crucial time of an organization, the leadership style adopted by a male or female 

manager has a significant impact on employee stress. The workplace of most financial 

institutions around the globe is characterized by high levels of stress, which has even led 

to certain rigorous implementation of policies on stress testing in Europe and US since 

2009, which has remained compulsory (Sharman, Lee, Renshon, Oveis, Gross& Lerner, 

2012). This has thus propelled the study to investigate the extent to which gender 

differences and similarities exist in leadership styles and the implications of these on 

employee job stress in the banking industry  

  

1.2 Research Problem  

Numerous studies have been carried out on gender and leadership styles, but it appears 

little has been done to investigate these variables against stress among employees. Gender 

and leadership have for instance been studied in relation to managers behaviour 

(Oshagbemi & Gill, 2003), diversity and working styles (Rigg & Sparrow, 1994), and 

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perceived job design (Valentine & Godkin, 2000). A survey by The National Institute for 

Occupational Safety and Health (2005) reveals that, per annum, nations and organizations 

lose billions of dollars in the form of lost productivity, healthcare expenses and stress 

related law suits. This indicates that the issue of stress cannot be taken for granted. As 

Valentine and Godkin have already accentuated, how an individual perceives his or her 

work largely depends on a supervisor’s gender. One may then ask; can the gender of a 

leader cause stress at the work place among employees? This study takes a closer look at 

stress, paying attention to how it can occur depending on the gender and leadership style 

of the leader.  

  

Some studies have looked at the differences between female and male leadership styles 

and have found that most males are likely to use transactional leadership style while 

females are prone to the transformational leadership style (Patel & Building, 2003; 

Reuvers, Engen, Vinkenburg, Evered,2008; Rosner, 1990). Nonetheless there are limited 

studies on how a transactional or transformational male leadership style or transactional or 

transformational female leadership style influences stress. This study therefore looks at 

how these specific leadership styles of males and females influence employee job stress in 

the banking industry.  

  

More so, many researchers have focused on stress in the developed countries like USA  

(Lovelace, Manz & Alves, 2007), Germany (Rowold & Schlotz, 2009), Switzerland 

(Hanschel & Monnin, 2000) and UK (Oshagbemi & Gill, 2003).  DeRose (1999), in her 

explanation of “contextualism”, brings to the fore that, similar occurrences may yield 

different results at different places. It is in this light that results of stress studies from the 

Western world may not directly be extrapolated to the African context. In Ghana for 

example, the unemployment rate coerces people to stick to their jobs no matter how 

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stressful the work place is. The Overseas Development Institute (2011) confirms in a 

research undertaken in Ghana, Mozambique and Vietnam, that, even though most 

employees in these countries are exposed to bad working conditions, they are compelled to 

stay with their jobs because of the unemployment issues pertaining to these countries. The 

working conditions in the developing countries are different from that of the developed 

countries, so is the case of stress. Baskaran (2004) in his study on occupational stress 

experienced by lecturers on higher learning institutions also explains that, stress has 

become a prevalent issue in both developed and developing world. However, in a study by 

Houtman and Jettinghoff (2007) to raise awareness of work related stress in developing 

countries, it was revealed that apart from Latin America, limited studies have been carried 

out on stress in most developing countries. According to Puplampu (2010), the role 

corporate leadership plays in organizational functionality and national development as a 

whole is profound. However corporate leadership in Africa is under-study. The question 

now becomes; why hasn’t much attention been paid to stress in developing countries?  A 

sense of direction is thus provided for this study to be undertaken in Ghana, a developing 

country.  

  

Also, there has not been conclusive evidence to strongly support the existence of gender 

differences in leadership styles. Through the early 80s to the 90s, most researchers like 

Bass (1991) supported the debate of nonexistence of gender difference in leadership styles. 

However, a work by Rosener (1990) puts this assertion to question and even Bass (1996) 

begun to question the very argument he had made earlier in contradiction to the latter 

debate. Nonetheless, Burke and Collins (2001), citing Grant (1988) and Loden (1985), 

avers that, irrespective of the researches that have been done to show the existence of 

gender differences in leadership style, these conclusions still remain doubtful since they 

were premised on a limited number of studies. This study therefore attempts to examine 

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gender differences in leadership styles so as to contribute to the debate and help reach a 

solid conclusion for further studies and discussions. The study further investigates the 

influence of these leadership styles on employee stress in the banking industry.  

    

1.3 Purpose of the Study  

The purpose of the study is to investigate leadership styles (transactional and 

transformational) among male and female managers and how they influence stress at the 

work place.   

  

1.4 Research Objectives  

The main objective of this study is to examine leadership styles adopted by males and 

females and their influence on stress. Specifically the study sought;  

i.       To determine the dominant style of leadership among managers of Ecobank.   

ii. To explore the prevalent style of leadership among male and female managers in 

Ecobank.  

iii. To determine the leadership style that leads to lesser employees’ job stress.   

iv. To determine the level of job stress among male and female employees in 

Ecobank. 

v. To investigate whether females who adopt transformational leadership reduce 

employees’ job stress than males who adopt transformational leadership.  

vi. To determine whether males who adopt transactional leadership cause employees’ 

job stress than females who adopt transactional leadership.  

  

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 1.5 Research Questions    

In line with the research objectives, the under listed questions are asked;  

i.        What leadership style is dominant among managers of Ecobank?  

ii. What leadership style is most practiced by male and female managers in 

Ecobank?  

iii. What leadership style decreases employees’ job stress in Ecobank?  

iv. What is the level of job stress among male and female employees in Ecobank?  

v. Do females who adopt transformational leadership style reduce employees’ job 

stress more than males who adopt transformational leadership style?  

vi. Do males who adopt transactional leadership style cause employees’ job stress 

more than females who adopt transactional leadership style?  

  

1.6 Research Hypotheses  

H1: Transformational leadership style has greater dominance among managers’ leadership 

styles of Ecobank.   

H2a: Female managers practice more transformational leadership style than male 

managers.   

H2b: Male leaders practice more transactional leadership style than female leaders.   

H3a: Transactional leadership style will lead to employee job stress.  

H3b: Transformational leaders will not lead to employee job stress.  

  

H4: Female employees experience more job stress than their male counterparts.   

H5: Females who adopt transformational leadership style decrease employees’ job stress 

more than males who adopt transformational leadership style.   

H6: Males who adopt transactional leadership style cause employees’ job stress more than 

females who adopt transactional leadership style.  

 

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1.7 Scope of the study  

Ecobank has become a well-known bank among several countries in the world. Its official 

name is Ecobank Transnational Inc. (ETI), but it is also known as Ecobank Transnational.  

It is a pan-African banking conglomerate, with banking operations in 36 African countries. 

It is the leading independent regional banking group in West Africa and Africa, which 

serves wholesale and retail customers. It also maintains subsidiaries in Eastern Africa, as 

well as in Southern Africa. ETI has representative offices in Angola, China, Dubai, 

France, South Africa and the United Kingdom. The dual objective of Ecobank 

Transnational Incorporated (ETI) is to build a world-class pan-African bank and to 

contribute to the economic and financial integration and development of the African 

continent. A brief history of ETI suggests that it was a Public Limited Liability Company, 

which was established as a bank holding company in 1985 under a private sector initiative 

spearheaded by the Federation of West African Chambers of Commerce and Industry, 

with the support of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). In the 

early 1980s the banking industry in West Africa was dominated by foreign and state 

owned banks. There were hardly any commercial banks in West Africa owned and 

managed by the African private sector. ETI was founded with the objective of filling this 

vacuum.  

  

The shares of Ecobank Transnational Inc., the parent company of Ecobank, are traded on 

three West African stock exchanges, namely: the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE), the 

Nigeria Stock Exchange (NSE) and the BRVM stock exchange in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. 

Narrowing down, Ecobank Ghana (EBG) was incorporated on January 9, 1989 as a Private 

Limited Liability Company under the Companies Code to engage in the business of 

banking. EBG was initially licensed to operate as a merchant bank by the Bank of Ghana 

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecobank_Transnational
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecobank_Transnational
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banking
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banking
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conglomerate_%28company%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conglomerate_%28company%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Africa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Africa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Africa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Africa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angola
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angola
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dubai
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dubai
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_Community_of_West_African_States
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_Community_of_West_African_States
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Africa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Africa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghana_Stock_Exchange
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghana_Stock_Exchange
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria_Stock_Exchange
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria_Stock_Exchange
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abidjan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abidjan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivory_Coast
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivory_Coast
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivory_Coast


 

9  

  

on November 10, 1989. It commenced business on February 19, 1990. EBG has grown 

consistently over the years to become one of the leading banks in Ghana and a well-

recognized brand in the Ghanaian banking industry. EBG acquired a universal banking 

license in 2003 and has since expanded its geographical reach and broadened its scope of 

financial services. EBG currently has three wholly-owned subsidiaries, which offer a 

variety of non-banking financial services to complement EBG’s broad range of banking 

services. The subsidiaries are Ecobank Investment Managers Ltd, Ecobank Stockbrokers 

Ltd and Ecobank Leasing Company Ltd. Ecobank Ghana has been instrumental in the 

financial affairs of Ghana. One notable development is the financing of Ghana's sole Oil 

Refinery at Tema a city east of the capital city of Ghana in 2009. Ecobank Ghana is the 

third biggest bank in Ghana.    

  

1.8 Significance of the study  

The benefits of this study are in two folds, that is, for future research and practice. The 

study delves into gender and leadership styles and how it influences stress. Apart from 

adding to scholarly works in the areas of leadership styles, gender and stress, it is also 

envisaged to serve as a source of muse for further studies on these areas in other parts of 

the world. Also, the corollary of the study is believed to serve as a guide to players in the 

banking industry; managers, employees, customers among others, concerning not only 

how different styles of leadership induce stress among subordinates but how it could be 

handled.  

  

1.9 Chapter Disposition  

This study is organized into six chapters. Chapter one introduces the study, thus showing 

details in components like the research background, problem statement, research 

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objectives, research questions, research significance, and research scope and. Chapter two 

contains relevant literature on the subject under study. Chapter three presents 

methodology, which is made up of the study population, sample, data collection, data 

processing and data analysis. Chapter four contains the detailed account of the analysed 

data, while chapter five contains the discussion of the data. Chapter six contains summary 

of the study, conclusions, recommendations and suggestions for future research.  

       

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CHAPTER TWO 

LITERATURE REVIEW 

2.1 Introduction  

This chapter examines literature on the concept of leadership, gender and employee stress. 

The review also examines theoretical frameworks like transactional and transformational 

leadership styles, the biological theory of gender and the person-environment fit theory. 

Also empirical evidence on transactional and transformational leadership style and stress 

has been reviewed.   

  

2.2 Theoretical Background  

2.2.1 Leadership Style  

A myriad of ideas from literature suggest that the concept of leadership has travelled 

among different spheres of people and age to modern day organizational leadership. 

Leadership is considered one of the most important aspects of management, and evidently 

prominent countries like Britain, France, the United States of America, and India have 

thrived on the creeds of good leadership in our globalized world (Weihrich, Cannice, and 

Koontz, 2008).  

 

Leadership in Africa and Ghana in particular has not been considered to be in great shape. 

Admittedly leadership has been reported to be the cause of the mishaps in the economy. 

According to Walumbwa, Avolio and Aryee (2011) the African continent unarguably is 

one of the well-endowed continents with natural resources, yet, due to poor leadership and 

mismanagement it is still home to majority of the world’s poor population. To unlock 

workforce potential and implement strategic goals of organizations for effective economic 

performance, are all dependent on the inevitable and fundamental concept of leadership. 

Most often than not African leaders wield power through the imposition pattern and are 

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often with limited experience. Ebegbulem (2012) used Nigeria as case studies to research 

into the state of Arica after colonialism and it was unravelled that, after the hope and 

prospects that starred at African countries after independence, the inept of leadership and 

corruption has marred this hope. 

   

 Different authors and philosophers such as Plato, Socrates, Hobbes and others have over 

hundreds of years made efforts to bring into perspective and understanding, the very 

nature and meaning of leadership for both academic and organizational purposes (Bolden, 

2004). Mostly, leadership is seen as a way of influencing others to achieve a set target or 

goal. At the work place, a leader influences the behaviour and characteristics of workers 

and even indirectly determines their outcome performance; hence the need for an 

understanding of what leadership is (Robbins and Coulter, 2007). In agreement to this, 

Yukl (2006) defines leadership as “the process of influencing others to understand and 

agree about what needs to be done and how to do it, and the process of facilitating 

individual and  collective efforts to accomplish shared objectives” (p. 8). Winston and 

Patterson (2006) share in this idea and insightfully give a panorama of who a leader is. 

According to them, “A leader is one or more people who selects, equips, trains, and 

influences one or more follower(s) who have diverse gifts, abilities, and skills and focuses 

the follower(s) to the organization’s mission and objectives causing the follower(s) to 

willingly and enthusiastically expend spiritual, emotional, and physical energy in a 

concerted coordinated effort to achieve the organizational mission and objectives” (p.7).   

  

In earnest, a leader should be one who exhibits great dexterity, and also possesses 

characteristics and believes that orients him to lead others. This indicates that a leader 

should be one who is able to equip and develop himself – lead himself to be able to lead 

others to achieve a set goal (Kuh, kinzie, Buckely, Bridges & Hayek, 2006). Goffee and 

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Jones (2006) confirm in their statement that, effective leadership requires “being yourself, 

with skill”. This obviously takes the explanation of leadership to the realms of personal 

leadership. Jay (2010) defined personal leadership as the ability to define a direction for 

your leadership and life, and to move in that direction with consistency and clarity. Hess 

(2012) posits that for a desired goal to be achieved, every leader should be able to 

understand him or herself and coordinate his or her own affairs, because the beliefs of a 

leader are embedded in how he or she reacts to certain situations as well as a determinant 

of how well followers can be influenced towards achieving set goals.    

  

The concept of leadership and leadership styles can be traced to as far back as the time of 

civilization and even beyond. In fact organizational leadership has not been spared of this 

evolution (Stone & Patterson, 2005). From the political arena, political philosophers like 

Thomas Hobbes and John Locke have contributed immensely to the origin and 

comprehension of leadership. In 1651, Thomas Hobbes of Malmesbury in his book The 

Leviathan suggested an all empowering and sovereign leader (The leviathan) as a panacea 

to what he describes as war of all against all originating from the state of nature. Hobbes 

(1651) explained that, self-preservation was the first law of nature for man in the state of 

nature, which coupled with limited resources, will generate war of all against all, making 

the life of man solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short. As a solution to this, he proposes a 

social contract between The Leviathan (leader) and the people in society (followers): 

where The Leviathan wields utmost sovereignty and power in order to provide the needs 

of his people. Indirectly, Hobbes proffered to society that, an autocratic style of leadership 

was the way to go in order to achieve the best interest of society. On the contrary, John 

Locke proposed another social contract theory based on Hobbes’s Leviathan, but 

suggested that, the people must be made to have a say in the issues that matter and affect 

them, and, even have the right to elect their own leader(s) (Charles, 2011). Locke, also to 

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an impressive degree propagated democracy as the surest way to aid in protecting the best 

interest of followers.   

Stone and Patterson (2005), sequentially gives a parade of the coming into being of the 

leadership theories that seem common in contemporary settings. They recount that, the 

industrial revolution (between 1840 and 1870) which caused a paradigm shift from an 

agrarian economy to an industrial one consequently contributed to a change in the 

leadership dynamics of the time in most organizations.  Later, the classical management 

theory and scientific management theory, with staunch advocates like Henri Fayol and 

F.W. Mooney also gained grounds and gave a different wave to the understanding of 

leadership. There was then a shift from the classical and scientific management theories to 

that kind of leadership that concerned itself with behavioural factors. During the late 

1960’s there was the emergence of transactional leadership theory and then later, the 

transformational leadership theory. Goffe and Jones (2006) also introduced to the debate 

the trait versus process argument. They posit that, some leaders have innate abilities to 

become leaders right at birth whiles others have to go through the process of acquiring 

knowledge to become leaders.  

  

In recent times, researchers have been able to collate these ideas into popular operational 

leadership theories or styles. Burke and Collins (2001) categorize leadership styles into 

three, namely transformational leadership style, contingent reward management and 

management by exception leadership. Oshagbemi and Ocholi (2005) in their study to 

investigate the extent to which managers from various UK industries could be 

meaningfully grouped on the basis of the leadership styles and behavioural psatterns which 

they exhibited in the performance of their jobs, came up with different leadership styles 

that organizational leaders exhibit in the course of discharging their responsibilities. They 

were directive leadership, consultative leadership, participative leadership, delegative 

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leadership, laissez-faire, management-by-exception, contingent reward, individualized 

consideration, intellectual stimulation, inspirational motivation, and idealized influence. 

Nonetheless, transactional and transformational leadership are going to be the focus of this 

study. This is because more recently the preeminent approach to studying leadership has 

been based on the model of Transformational and Transactional leadership which was 

developed by Bass in 1985 and operationalized by Bass and Avolio in 1995 (Dutewicz & 

Higgs, 2004).  

    

2.2.1.1 Transactional Leadership  

The inception of the concept of transactional leadership style can be credited to Max 

Weber, as he was the first to mention it in his book Socio-economic Considerations of the 

Organization. Authors like Bernard Bass and James McGregor Burns, after several years 

of the death of Weber, adopted and built on his idea, thereby making the concept popular 

and accepted which also encouraged further developments of leadership in the new era. 

The usage of the concept was premiered during the post Second World War until 

somewhere in the 70’s. This was due to the fact that the business economy in the USA 

enjoyed a level of stability which made managers reluctant to change. The leadership of 

organizations was influenced since the wielded power of leaders was not one that was 

supposed to be directed towards change, rather one that maintained the status quo, and 

enforced the traditional ways of doing things (Nikezic, Puric& Puric, 2012).  

  

Burns (1978) explains that transactional leadership is about the exchange of something 

valued that is initiated by one person (a leader) to make contacts with others (followers). 

Bass (1990) reiterated this thought as he averred that transactional leadership is 

characterized by an implicit relationship where both the leader and the follower see each 

other as a means to achieve desired outcomes. The principles of transactional leadership 

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style revolve around fundamental management processes of organizing, controlling and 

short-term planning. Transactional leaders derive their source of legitimate power and 

authority from the laid down procedures and rules in the organization and operates on the 

premises of rewards and punishment where leaders fish out for wrongs and rights of 

followers and reward them accordingly. Mostly the concentration or yardstick is 

performance achievement. Followers are rewarded when they have attained the desired 

level of performance and punished in the vice versa scenario. In these instances the 

motivation and creativity of followers are stifled as they are obliged to follow strict 

processes and respect the instructions of the leader. The interests and needs of followers 

are not the concern of the leader; all attention is on how to reach the set target (Xiaoxia, 

Xiaoxia & Jing, 2006; Nikezic, Puric & Puric, 2012).  

  

Odumeru and Ifeanyi (2013) emphasized that transactional leaders do not concern 

themselves with the new order of things; they are very conservative and prefer to operate 

in a particular laid down fashion. In their explanation of transactional leadership style to 

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, it was realized that mostly, attention is paid to the 

physiological needs than any other level of need. This was the case because transactional 

leaders are only concerned with the basics and nothing else. They identified three basic 

assumptions that underpinned this type of leadership style; employees get their source of 

motivation from rewards and punishments, followers are supposed to listen to instructions 

and directives from leaders and to respect and implement every directive to the latter 

during the production process, and throughout the manufacturing process followers are 

controlled by leaders and they are not self-motivated. They make use of contingent reward 

(also known as contingent positive reinforcement) or contingent penalization (also known 

as contingent negative reinforcement), contingent rewards (such as praise), contingent 

punishments (such as suspensions) and management-by-exception.  

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To throw more light on this, Bass and Avolio (1994) named Contingent Reward, 

Management-by-Exception and Laissez-Faire as the three main components of 

transactional leadership style. They explained that contingent reward gives the degree to 

which leaders recognize the task accomplishment of followers as against what is expected 

of them per the instructions of the leader which usually leads to the reward of followers. In 

the case of Management-by-exception, leaders tell their subordinate’s their job 

requirements and are satisfied with standard performance. Here, leaders operate on the “if 

it isn’t broken, don’t fix it” philosophy. Laissez-Faire as the name suggests assesses if 

leaders expect little from others and are willing to let subordinates or followers operate as 

per their own whims and caprices.   

  

 2.2.1.2 Transformational Leadership    

Transformational leadership theory has attracted the attention and captivated the interest of 

many researchers and authors in the field of organizational leadership over the previous 

decades. This theory was developed by Burns (1978) and later enhanced by Bass (1985, 

1998) and others (Bennis & Nanus, 1985; Tichy & Devanna, 1986). The underlining 

principle of transformational leadership theory is the leader’s ability to motivate the 

follower to accomplish more than what the follower planned to accomplish (Krishnan, 

2005). Burns (1978) described transformational leadership as a means of boosting the 

morale of followers toward their work by stimulating their higher ideals and moral values. 

According to Givens (2008) transformational leaders inspire followers to complete more 

by concentrating on the follower’s values and helping the follower to align these values 

with that of the organization, by so doing transformational leaders must be able to define 

and enunciate a vision for their organizations, and the followers on the other hand must 

accept the credibility of the leader.   

  

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According to Tracey and Hinkin (1994) transformational leadership has been proven to 

significantly have an influence on certain outcome variables, like mission clarity, openness 

of communication  and follower’s perceptions of role clarity. In “The Transformational 

Leader Report”, Covey (2007) recounts how Abraham Maslow’s Theory of Human Needs 

was analysed in relation to transformational leadership. It was revealed that 

transformational leadership fits into the higher levels, as it requires a high level of self-

esteem and self-actualization to successfully be a certifiable leader. This is as a result of 

the fact that, the level to which followers’ needs are satisfied by a leader goes a long way 

to influence their level of performance at the workplace, and it takes a transformational 

leader who respects and appreciates the efforts of followers and accordingly finds it 

imperative to meet their needs as a way of motivation. Transformational leadership theory 

has been built on four components or elements namely; Charisma or idealized influence, 

inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualize consideration, which 

has been termed as “The Four I’s”. The Charismatic or Idealized influence characterizes 

respect and trust that are built on a more solid ground of ethics and morals. These results 

from the charismatic leaders’ display of certain attributes like taking stands, showing 

concern for the emotional and physical needs of followers, sharing risk, exhibiting 

unequivocal values and acting them out to the latter and serving as a role model to the 

follower. These would lead to a subsequent admiration by the follower for the leader. The 

inspirational motivation is the second component or dimension which practically seeks to 

inspire the follower toward the organizational goals. The leader should be able to 

communicate the organizational goals clearly vis-à-vis clearly communicating the 

requisite skills that would be needed to enhance the achievement of organizational goals. 

Supposedly, the leader must be enthusiastic and optimistic about the goals so as to carry 

the followers along the same line of enthusiasm and optimism. The third dimension is 

intellectual stimulation. Leaders, who demonstrate this, tend to encourage creativity 

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among their followers. This is mostly done in a direct participation method, where the 

leader solicits for novel ideas and creative problem solutions, challenges assumptions and 

take risks, room is thus provided for followers to think outside the box rather than 

restricting themselves to lay down procedures which allows to identify with the overall 

mission, vision and goals of the organization. Last but not least dimension is the 

individualized consideration.  This is reflected by leaders who have respect for individual 

difference and thus treats every follower uniquely by paying attention to their growth 

needs and achievement. This boosts the self-esteem of followers and naturally encourages 

them to achieve more. (Bass & Avolio, 1994; Covey, 200; Hall, Johnson, Wysocki & 

Kepner, 2012). According to Northouse (2001), the transformational leader theory is of no 

doubt one of the best leadership styles any leader can adopt for successful results, 

however, this theory is equally weak in the sense that leadership is treated as more of a 

personality trait than a behaviour that can be learnt and also possesses the likelihood of 

power abuse. A leader must make a conscious effort to understand the dimensions of the 

transformational leadership, only then can it be put into effective use.  It should be noted 

that the effectiveness of a leader determines the success level of any organization, and this 

effectiveness is what the transformational leadership style offers, hence a choice for 

leaders (Cohen, 1999).  

  

2.2.2 Stress  

According to Sutherland and Copper (1990), the term stress is gaining popularity among 

employees in different countries. It has become a serious issue over the years and it 

generates its definitions contextually. According to Stoppler (2011), stress contains both 

external and internal factors. The external factors comprise the physical atmosphere such 

as challenges, difficulties, and expectations that are confronted by people on a day-to-day 

basis. Internal factors confirm the body's ability to retort to, and cope with, the external 

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stress-inducing factors. Internal factors that influence the power to handle stress consist of 

nutritional standing, overall health and fitness levels, emotional well-being, and also the 

quantity of sleep and rest that a person gets.  

  

Gill, Flaschner and Bhitani (2010), defined stress as “a mental and physical condition, 

which directly and negatively affects an individual’s productivity, effectiveness, personal 

health, and quality of work” (p. 2). Stress has been noted as one of the major causes of 

early retirement on medical grounds, heart diseases, absenteeism, lawsuits, compensation 

seeking and many others. Mostly it is caused by role conflicts and demand, imbalance 

between demands and personal resources, workload, overtime among others (Kinman & 

Jones, 2001; Wincent & Ortquist, 2009; Rowol & Schlotz, 2009). To throw more light on 

how stress is going to be used in this study, the Person –Environment theory is used to 

clearly define it.  

  

  

2.2.2.1 Person–Environment (PE) Fit Theory  

This theory emanates from the works of Lewin (1935) and Murray (1938). In 1982, 

French, Caplan, and Harrison expatiated on Lewin and Murray’s work; however Edwards 

and Cooper (1990) gave an encyclopaedic account of what this theory seeks to 

communicate. According to Lewin, the interaction between the person and environment is 

fundamental in comprehending the affective, behavioural and cognitive responses of 

employees.  The basic assumption that underlines the P-E fit theory is that the general 

well-being of employees is congruent to how well they are able to acclimatize to the work 

setting or environment which can either lead to stress or not (Dawis & Lofquist, 1984). 

The assumption has been categorized into two; first, the extent to which there is a fit 

between the abilities of the employee and the demands from the work place; second, the 

degree to which the physical needs and psychosocial needs match with resources 

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available. The former is referred to as the demands-ability fit, whiles the latter is referred 

to as the needs-supply fit.  

  

This study, employs the underlying assumption of the P-E fit theory to help expound the 

fact that the proper management of the working environment of employees by managers 

can influence how employees fare in an organization, and in this study, how managers 

address the concerns the employee have in  their working environment can cause stress to 

them or not. Chandrasekar (2011) emphasizes that a workplace environment that is set in 

place impacts employee engagement, morale, and productivity either positively or 

negatively. It is therefore common to know that new programs have been introduced to the 

work environment to address lifestyle changes, work/life balance, health and fitness. He 

however confirms that, all this is made possible by the commitment and dint of hard work 

of managers. In other words, what goes into the work environment to either determine 

stress or not is incumbent on the leaders and the style of leadership they adopt to go about 

the management of the employees’ working environment.   

  

Recently, Yang, Che, and Spector (2008) in a study to examine the impact of job stressors 

on well-being from the perspective of P-E fit theory, using 288 case sample from six 

organizations found that, preferred career advancement and their second-order 

combinations jointly predicted job satisfaction, mental well-being, and turnover intention. 

Also, the actual and preferred quality of relationships at work and their second-order 

(curvilinear) combinations jointly predicted job satisfaction, mental and physical 

wellbeing, and turnover intention. This clearly draws attention to the point that, preferred 

career advancement and relationships at work are vital in the determination of job 

satisfaction, mental well-being and turnover intention; on the contrary lack of the two can 

cause stress. As has already been stressed by Chandrasekar, things like preferred career 

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advancement and relationships at work are made possible and efficient by the leader, 

signalling the role of the leader in ensuring the congruence that is needed between the 

person and the environment to prevent stress.  

  

2.2.3 Gender  

Over the years, the workplace that seems to have been dominated by men has taken a 

different shape as women have “broken through the ceiling” into the working 

environment, and the numbers have increased significantly. Organizational positions are 

now been contested by men and women. It has become imperative therefore, that 

discussions and studies about leadership are made through the spectacles of gender (Daley 

& Naff, 1998, Kent & Moss, 1994, Owen & Todor, 1993). Before the 1950’s the words 

“gender” and “sex” were used interchangeably until after the 1950’s to the 1960’s, when 

British and American psychiatrists and other medical personnel working on intersex and 

transsexual patients defined both distinctively. These terminologies and analysis have been 

adopted and used by gender and development approaches (Esplen & Jolly, 2014). 

According to World Health Organization (2001) “Gender refers to the economic, social 

and cultural attributes and opportunities associated with being male or female at a 

particular point in time”. Also, “Gender can be used to refer to the roles and 

responsibilities of men and women that are created in our families, our societies and our 

cultures. The concept of gender also includes the expectations held about the 

characteristics, aptitudes and likely behaviours of both women and men (femininity and 

masculinity)” (Kaufman, 1997).  

  

On the other hand, McLeod (2014) defines “Sex as the biological differences between 

males and females. For example, chromosomes (female XX, male XY), reproductive 

organs (ovaries, testes), hormones (oestrogen, testosterone” (p.3). These definitions 

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notwithstanding, Esplen and Jolly (2014) hold that, they are not encompassing, as there are 

some persons who do not perfectly fit into the biological or social categories of women 

and men like, the intersex, transgender, transsexual people and hijras. As a matter of fact, 

sex categories differ over time and across cultures and so cannot be fixed or universal. For 

instance, Gosine (2008) advocates that, in discussing gender, there are other sexualities 

and bodies that exist rather than the two acceptable definitions of males and females. This 

brings forth a new paradigm that allows people to explore their sexualities as they want 

and as such deserves respect and acceptance.  

  

However, in this study the meaning of gender refers to or is restricted to males and 

females, as that explanation sets the path for the study to ply. To help in comprehending 

the gender variable in this study and to help bring out the differences that exist between 

males and females, the biological theory would be employed.  

  

2.2.3.1 Biological Theory (BT)  

The Biological Theory was unravelled by Darwin (1859) on his pursuit of the natural 

selection theory as he travelled the world to observe animals. This was termed The 

Voyage of the Beagle from 1805 to 1836 (McLeod, 2007). McLeod (2007) recounts that; 

BT basically emphasizes a difference between men and women, and importantly confirms 

that the biological process actually gives rise to gender identity and role. According to the 

theory, there exists difference between men and women due to the differences in the 

development of their brains, which results from the chromosomal and hormonal 

differences.  

  

This study finds the need to replicate the spirit of the theory to explain the gender 

differences that may exist among leaders in the organization, hence the differences in the 

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leadership style they may choose and the different ways they may influence employee 

stress at the workplace. According to the theory, differences exist between men and 

women right from birth and this naturally brings a difference in their choices, 

communication, performance, results and decision among others. It is therefore realistic to 

speculate that the gender of a leader can influence the kind of leadership styles they adopt 

and how they affect the stress levels of the employee in the organization.   

 

Yukl (2012) asserts that leadership cannot be discussed without the introduction of gender. 

He believes that the gender of a leader can cause a difference. Polston- Murdoch (2013) 

equally shares in this assertion that males and females are different people hence they are 

influenced in their decision making, target of motivation, aspirations and even results. 

Polston- Murdoch (2013) further opined that, even the leadership style to be adopted is 

influenced by gender which consequently affects the setting of the workplace. Numerous 

studies have confirmed that males are prone to enacting task oriented behaviours, and 

exhibiting more directive and controlling decision styles, whiles their female counterparts 

were characterized by consideration, relationship-oriented behaviour, and participative 

decision styles (Eagly & Johnson, 1990; Helgeson, 1990; Rosener, 1990 Druskat, 1994;).  

 

 2.3 Empirical Review    

2.3.1 Transactional leadership style versus Transformational leadership style  

Transformational leadership style has become the new order and gradually causing a 

paradigm shift from transactional leadership style. Most managers or leaders of 

organizations in recent times are plying the route of transformational leadership style than 

that of transactional leadership style (Bass, 1990). Also, in a study conducted by Babaita, 

Sipos, Ispas, and Nagy (2010) on leadership, it was found that both employees and 

managers of organizations in recent times prefer transformational leadership style to 

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transactional leadership style. This was as a result of transformational leadership style’s 

concern for employee’s personal life and its impact on work as compared to the strict 

adherence to reward and punishment of transactional leadership style.  

  

In another study by Druskat (1994) on gender and leadership style, the study results 

showed that both female and male leaders exhibit more transformational leadership style 

than transactional leadership style, even though females were rated more significantly 

transformational than their male counterparts. The same study also found that subordinates 

preferred transformational leadership style to transactional leadership style.   

  

However, in contemporary times some authors have found that the two forms of leadership 

if put together can yield better results. In a current work by Dartey–Baah (2015), he 

argued that strategic thinking, emotional intelligence, adaptation/change orientation, 

learning, performance orientation and collective leadership qualities as captured under the 

resilient leadership theory are already considered under the transformational–transactional 

leadership theories. This only constitutes a repetition not needed in the search for the best 

leadership approach. To this effect he advocated for the use of transformational and 

transactional leadership styles together; what he termed “Transforsactional leadership 

style”. Akin to the findings of this study were the findings of a research by Odumeru and 

Ifeanyi (2013) to investigate transformational and transactional leadership theories. Their 

findings revealed that, there was a conceptual difference between transformational and 

transactional leadership styles, nonetheless, there were some elements in transactional 

leadership style that were also found in transformational leadership style.  

  

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2.3.2 Leadership style and gender  

The gender of a leader has raised a lot of interest among researchers who have sought to 

investigate the difference between male and female leadership style and the type of 

leadership style male and females are likely to adopt. Yukl (2012) opines that it will be 

like embarking on a suicide mission to discuss the issues of leadership without gender.   

  

Burke and Collins (2001) investigated gender differences in leadership style and 

management skills with 2800 respondents each, from both American Women’s Society of 

Certified Public Accountants ( AWSCPA) and American Institute of Certified Public 

Accountants (AICPA), and found that there was a difference between male and female 

leadership styles. They discovered that female leaders were more of transformational 

leaders as they used interactive management skills. In support of this finding, Rosenbusch 

and Townsend (2004) in their study to examine the development of transformational and 

transactional leadership skills among Generation X collegiate student organizational 

officers and members found that, there existed a difference in male and female leadership 

styles. They also observed in their findings that, female student leaders were more of 

transformational leaders than their male counterparts who tended to be more of 

transactional leaders.   

 

Rosener (1990) also concluded in her study that there was a difference between males and 

females and more often than not women tend to adopt the transformational leadership style 

as they place importance on interaction and participation among subordinates, whiles 

males adopt transactional leadership style.  Bass and Avolio (1992) also indicated in their 

study findings that men and women act differently in leadership positions which can 

largely be attributed to their proneness to promote the development of their subordinates. 

Whiles Druskat (1994) describes transformational leadership as a more feminine way of 

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leading, Xiaoxia, Xiaoxia and Jing (2006) postulate that, men naturally adopt the 

command and control style of leadership and are often achievement-oriented and directive 

leaders which according to Bass (1990) are characteristics of transactional leadership style.    

However, other studies have found an insignificant relationship between leadership style 

and gender and have concluded that there is no difference between male and female 

leadership style. Kent, Blair and Rudd (2010), in their study to determine gender 

differences in transformational leadership style among German men and women, 

concluded that there was no difference between males and females who adopt 

transformational leadership style. According to Xiaoxia, et al (2006), their empirical 

research to ascertain the influence of gender and culture on leadership styles of SMEs in 

China and Sweden show no influence of gender on leadership styles. In the same vein, a 

field study done on gender, context and leadership styles by Van Engen, Van der Leeden, 

and Willemsen (2001) confirmed their prediction that, there are no gender differences in 

leadership styles. Similarly, Bartol (1978) asserts that no differences existed between male 

and female leadership either they are described by subordinates or by themselves. The 

findings of Eagly and Johnson (1990) also contradicted the findings of studies that 

confirmed influence of gender on leadership style. In a meta-analysis to compare 

leadership styles of males and females, they concluded that little or no difference existed 

between males and females when it comes to leadership styles.  

  

2.3.3 Transactional Leadership Style and Stress  

Substantive research points out that transactional leadership style has been known to have 

an influence on stress of employees in the work environment of the organizations they 

work for (Ryska, 2004). Seltzer, Numeroff and Bass (1989) for instance, found 

management-by-exception, a component of transactional leadership style, to positively 

relate to stress. In like manner, a study conducted by Rowold and Schlotz (2009) in a 

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German government agency with a sample of 244 employees to explore the relationships 

between transformational, transactional and non-leadership styles and facets of chronic 

stress revealed that the management-by-exception - a sub component of transactional 

leadership style was positively related to the four chronic stress indicators. These included; 

excessive work and social demands, dissatisfaction with work and social recognition, 

performance pressure, and social conflicts. Albeit clear relationships have been shown 

between leadership style and stress in this study, the study results did not give proper 

understanding of why these relationships were so. This makes the study fall short of the 

underlying mechanisms that allows for twigging the observed relationships.    

 

Similarly, Zopiatis and Constanti (2010) examined the association between leadership 

styles and burnout among 500 hospitality managers in Cyprus. The findings, according to 

the researchers did not support the fact that transactional leadership (contingent rewards 

and management by exception – active) has a negative association with the burnout 

dimensions of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization as well as a positive association 

with personal accomplishment. The researchers in their own analysis adduced that such 

outcomes might have been possible due to the inability of the participants to fully 

understand the questions they were supposed to answer.   

  

Moreover, Yao, Fan, Guo and Li (2014) investigated 347 employees from across 20 firms 

on how employee behaviour is influenced by leadership and work stress with the 

moderating effects of transformational and transactional leadership styles on existing 

relationship between work stress and employee negative behaviour. Findings showed that 

transactional leadership has positive impacts on work stress and employee negative 

behaviour. This necessarily implied that the more leaders pay attention to results the more 

stressful their employees get as in the case of transactional leaders and their subordinates. 

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Their study however focused mainly on the impact of work stress and leadership on 

employee negative behaviour.  However, Bass (1990) postulated that, transactional leaders 

exercise a great deal of influence on groups under stress for the established reason of 

transactional leaders supplying the needs of members immediately notwithstanding the 

long term effectiveness of such an action could be questionable.  

  

2.3.4 Transformational Leadership Style and Stress  

According to Gill, Flaschner and Bhuntani (2010), transformational leadership has 

gradually become a preferred type of leadership style among organizational managers. It is 

also known to have an influence or relationship with stress and as such the surest strategy 

of handling most organizational issues like stress. Seltzer, Numerof and Bass (1989) 

acknowledged the presence of a relationship between transformational leadership and 

stress. They stressed that transformational leadership is associated with lower symptoms of 

burnout and achieve high levels of employee performance and satisfaction. In addition, 

Kanste, Kyngas and Nikkila (2007) also admit a relationship between transformational 

leadership style and employee stress.  

  

For example, in a study conducted among college students reading business management 

programs, it was revealed that improvement in perceived transformational leadership used 

by instructors results in reduction in student stress (Gill et al, 2010).The study which 

aimed at investigating the effects of transformational leadership on student educational 

satisfaction and student stress achieved its purpose by identifying the aforementioned 

results. Nonetheless, the results of the study are questionable taking into consideration the 

time it was conducted. The study was conducted during the last few months of the 

semester when students were seriously preparing for examination; a period that is naturally 

characterized by stress. On the contrary there could have been a significant impact on the 

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outcome if the study was conducted at the beginning of the semester when the students 

were more tranquil.  

  

Similarly, Skakon, Nielsen, Borg and Guzman (2010) found that the underlying principle 

of transformational leadership style; to pay attention to the needs of employees, resulted in 

lower work-related stress and higher well-being among employees. This result was arrived 

out of a review of published empirical research on the impact of leadership styles on 

employee stress and affective well-being. Forty-nine papers were used in the review and 

twenty of them focused on the influence of leadership styles on employee job stress. In 

line with the findings above, Dembeck (2014) embarked on an exploration on the 

relationship in higher education between leadership styles and modes of burnout of the 

employees. The Pearson product moment coefficient analysis reveals that employees 

exhibiting high levels of transformational leadership exhibit lower level of burnout with 

emphasis on transformational leadership correlating negatively with lower levels of 

burnout. Specifically, transformational leadership aids in reducing level of stress among 

employees. The authors identified limitations such as self-reported data that does not 

permit an all incorporated look at the situation. Nonetheless, their use of mixed methods 

unlike in the study of Skakon et al (2010) helps with an in depth understanding and 

knowledge on the variables that were examined.   

  

Furthermore, Rusell (2014) in a study to analyse the relationship between stress and 

burnout in high-risk occupations and how leadership moderates this relationship, 

conducted a survey among police officers. The study outcome divulged that, high levels of 

perceived transformational leadership mitigate the negative relationship between stress 

and burnout. It is however important to note that unlike Ghana with harsh working 

conditions that affect what employees even determine as stressful or not,  the literature 

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including that of Rusell (2014) is Western-centred where employees from such developed 

countries including the USA, UK, India, and Canada, are placed in a healthier and work 

friendly environment with its attended social support systems.   

      

2.3.5 Job Stress and Gender of Employee  

Several studies have identified difference in stress levels among male and female 

employees. According to Omolayo (2012) female employees experience more stress than 

their male counterparts. The study investigated the effect of gender and status on job stress 

among police officers in Ekti State of Nigeria with a random selection of 153 police 

officers. The study disclosed that female police officers experienced a higher significant 

stress level than their male colleagues.   

  

Similarly, in a report by Wirth (2001), as compared to males, females were significantly 

more likely to experience burnout, stress related illnesses or the desire to leave their jobs. 

The report attributed this finding to reasons like; women still having to take care of their 

homes in addition to their work, women finding themselves in high-stress occupations, 

women still occupying less senior jobs than men among other reasons. In like manner, 

Chaturvedi (2011) in a study to look at the difference in occupational role stress among 

employees working in private and government institutes in academic industry with a 

sample size of 180 found that female employees were more stressed than their male 

counterparts. In a study however by Roslan (2011), using a total of 154 bank employees 

showed that, there was no statistical difference in the level of work stress by demographic 

factors like gender.  

  

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2.3.6 Leadership Style, Gender and Employee Job Stress  

As stated in the problem there is limited studies on the influence the gender of a leader and 

transactional and transformational leadership style has on employee job stress. 

Nonetheless, in a research conducted by Valentine and Godkin (2000) to examine 

supervisor gender, leadership style and perceived job design, it was unearthed that a 

supervisor’s gender influences subordinates’ perceptions about their job. After examining 

7733 young working adults on relationship between supervisors’ gender and perceived job 

design it was found that the type of leadership style by a particular gender influenced a 

subordinates’ perception about his or her work.    

2.4. Conceptual framework  

The conceptual framework underpinning the work is shown in figure 2.1  

  

Figure 2.1: Conceptual framework  

 

  

      Source: Author (2015) 

 

The conceptual framework communicates the relationship between the variables under study. 

Judging from reviewed literature, it is hypothesised that the gender of a leader can influence 

      

  

  

  

    

  

  

  

Transactional  

Leadership style   

Employee  

Stress   

Transformational  

Leadership Style   

Leadership  

Styles   

Gender of a  

Leader 

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the choice of leadership style, (transactional or transformational leadership style). This in 

turn has an influence on the employees’ job stress. Specifically, the gender of a leader is 

speculated to have an influence on the choice of leadership style a leader adopts. Guided by 

literature, it is assumed that males are prone to the adoption of transactional leadership style, 

while females are to transformational leadership style. Also, the gender cum choice of 

leadership style of a leader is presumed to have a relationship with stress. Building on the 

foundation of reviewed literature, female transformational leaders are assumed to cause less 

employee job stress than their male counterparts who adopt transformational leadership style. 

On the contrary, male leaders who adopt transactional leadership style are surmised to cause 

employee job stress than their female counterparts. 

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CHAPTER THREE 

METHODOLOGY 

3.1 Introduction  

Emory and Cooper (1991) defined research as “an organized inquiry to provide 

information for the solution to a problem” (p. 1). In line with the above, this chapter 

describes the method adopted by this study to ascertain its research objectives. 

Specifically, the chapter justifies and explains the choice of the research design, sources of 

data, target population, sample size, sampling technique, sampling procedure, data 

collection instrument and data analysis for the study.  

 

3.2 Research Paradigm 

Every researcher is guided through the research procedure by certain believes, values and a 

view of the world. According to Guba (1990) this is mostly referred to as paradigms or 

philosophical assumptions which precedes the commencement of a study. Research 

paradigm is defined as “a set of beliefs values and techniques from the fundamental 

philosophical assumptions which define what valid research is and the appropriate 

methods that can be applied in that research” (Myers & Avison, 2002, p.5). The post-

positivism paradigm is selected for this study among several others like realism, 

constructivism, pragmatism and critical realism which have been established by literature. 

The post-positivist was selected as a result of the strong argument Creswell (2009) puts for 

its use. According to Creswell (2009), the post- positivist seeks to establish the cause of a 

particular outcome and also makes use of objectives, hypothesis and theories to explain the 

outcome of a phenomenon. This study thus uses research questions, research objectives, 

and theories like the biological theory, person- fit- environment theory to test and explain 

the purpose and outcome of this study.  

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3.3 Research Approach  

According to Creswell (2009), there are three main research approaches; quantitative, 

qualitative and mixed methods. The study employs the quantitative approach to test its 

objectives, a choice given inspiration by Cohen (1980), who posits that, quantitative 

research is a social research that employs empirical methods and empirical statements and 

as such, helps to give an in-depth explanation of variables in a study.   

  

3.4 Research Design  

 Wyk (2010) explains that, “research design is the overall plan for connecting the 

conceptual research problems to the pertinent (and achievable) empirical research. In other 

words, the research design articulates what data is required, what methods are going to be 

used to collect and analyse this data, and how all of this is going to answer the research 

question” (p. 5). This study used a descriptive, cross-sectional survey. According to 

Cohen, Manion and Morrison (2005), a cross-sectional survey gives a snapshot of a 

population at one point in time. The study used a cross-sectional survey because the 

sampled population was engaged once with a distributed questionnaire and were not 

engaged at any other time to ascertain information or data for this particular study.  

  

Neuman (2011), explains that, a descriptive research usually seeks answers to the “what” 

and “why” question, as it takes a systematic approach to describe a phenomenon or a 

problem. The study used the descriptive approach because it sought to give a detailed 

account and not just mere explanations of what impact gender can have on the relationship 

between leadership styles and stress levels of employees.  

  

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3.5 Source of Data  

The source of data for the study was purely primary data since data was collected for the 

purpose of this study. According to Hox and Boeije (2005) “Primary data are data that are 

collected for the specific research problem at hand, using procedures that fit the research 

problem best”. In this regard, the primary data was gathered with the help of structured 

close-ended questionnaires.  

  

3.6 Target Population  

The population for the study was employees from Ecobank Ghana who perform the core 

functions of the organization, in this regard; employees such as labourers, interns, national 

service persons, and contract workers were not included in the study.   

  

3.7 Sample Size  

The sample size for the study was computed using the sample size determination 

methodology and approach by Krejcie and Morgan (1970). The Accra zone of Ecobank 

with a population of about 1100 corresponded to a sample size 285. (Details of the sample 

size calculations contained in appendix B). Out of 285 questionnaires were sent, however 

due to the busy nature of the work of the respondents, 207 were retrieved which 

represented 72.63%.  

  

3.8 Sampling Procedure  

The sample procedure simply refers to the ways and means a representative number of the 

population under study is selected and how it helps to make an informed decision. The 

study therefore adopted the purposive sampling procedure to select the zone with the 

highest number of branches to be able to reach out to a number that was representative 

enough of the population under study. The lottery approach of the simple random 

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sampling technique was later used to select respondents from the selected zone who were 

ready to answer the questionnaires.   

  

3.9 Research Instrument  

The collection of data for the study was done with the use of questionnaire as the main 

instrument. Milne and Learning Technology Dissemination Initiative (2007) observe that 

questionnaire is one of the good instruments to collect data as it is fast and helps to gather 

information in a more standardized way, thus addressing the objectives of the study 

appropriately. The questionnaire for the study was a closed-ended one which was 

categorized into three sections; A, B and C. The section A dealt with the background 

information of respondents, whiles the section B addressed the kind of leadership style a 

manager adopts at the workplace from the respondents perspective, and section C sought 

respondents’ opinion on their stress levels at the workplace. The leadership styles were 

assessed with the use of the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire Form (MLQ-5X) 

developed by Avolio, Bass and Jung (1995). The MLQ5X is a standardized instrument 

which seeks to measure transformational, transactional and laissez-fair leadership 

behaviours. However, for the purpose of this study, the focus of assessment was on 

transformational and transactional leadership styles. This instrument consist of 36 items 

that are used on a five point likert scale with the following description (1= not at all, 2= 

once in a while, 3= sometimes, 4= fairly often, and 5= frequently). The reported reliability 

for the MLQ-5X, ranges from .74 to .94 (Sutherland, 2010; Burkett, 2011). Other 

researchers like Antonakis et al., (2003) also maintained that MLQ-5X is a valid test and 

has high construct validity.  

  

Job stress as a variable was measured using the job stress scale by Parker and Decotiis 

(1983). It has 13 items which are measured on two dimensions; time stress and anxiety. 

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The scale has coefficient alpha values which range from .71 to .82.  Responses are attained 

using a 5 points likert scale with the following description (1= strongly disagree, 2= 

moderately disagree, 3= neutral, 4=moderately disagree, and 5=strongly disagree).   

 

3.10 Data Collection Management  

The data collection commenced with an introductory letter from the Department of the 

Organization and Human Resource Management Department (OHRM) of the University 

of Ghana Business School on the authority of the Head of Department. This letter was sent 

to Ecobank Head Office to seek for permission to collect data from some of its branches. 

This permission was given and individuals from the identified branches for the data 

collection were informed and alerted on the researcher’s mission. They were then 

authorized to give the researcher assistance by way of ensuring corporation from other 

employees so as not to disrupt the day to day banking activities of the branches in 

question.  

 

3.11 Pilot Study  

A pilot study to test for the reliability of the research instrument was carried out. Twenty 

respondents were used for the pilot study and the results proved that the research 

instrument was duly reliable to be used for the study. (Refer to appendix c for reliability 

analysis for pilot study). Table 3.1 contains the results of the reliability test conducted to 

measure the consistency among the items that were used to measure each of the variables 

for the study.  

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     Table 3.1: Results for Reliability Analysis  

Variables  No. of items  Cronbach’s Alpha  

Transformational  19  .924  

Transactional  12  .730  

Job stress  13  .907  

Source: Field data (2015)  

According to Hair et al (2010), any variable that has a Cronbach’s alpha less than .60 is 

not good enough. On the other hand, any variable that has a Cronbach’s alpha of .70 is 

acceptable whiles ones greater than .80 are considered very good. From table 3.1, 

transformational leadership style has a Cronbach’s alpha of .924, transactional leadership 

has a Cronbach’s Alpha of .730 and Job stress has a Cronbach’s alpha of .907. These 

results clearly indicate that the three variables under study are reliable and internally 

consistence since none of their Cronbuch’s alpha is less than .60.  

  

3.12 Data Analysis  

The data was analysed with Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. The 

demographics were analysed with descriptive statistics while the hypotheses were 

analysed with regression model, independent t-test, and mean statistics.  

  

3.13 Ethical Issues  

It was ensured that ethical issues of confidentiality, anonymity and consent during the 

period of the data collection were adhered to. The consent of Ecobank and individual 

participants were sought appropriately before questionnaires were given out. The 

employees answered the questions without any coercion but at their convenience, as 

questionnaires were given to respondents and taken after weeks. Also the questionnaires 

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did not request for details of identity like individual names, thereby ensuring anonymity 

and confidentiality among participants. 

 

 

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C