The research described here was directed toward furthering our understanding of the antecedents of leadership emergence in groups. In particular, it sought to identify important personality characteristics associated with this phenomenon. Kenny and Zaccaro (1983) have recently speculated that individuals who emerge as leaders may be able to perceive the needs of the group and pattern their own behavior accordingly. Past research strongly supports the notion that individuals who are high in the personality dimension of self-monitoring possess skills corresponding to both these characteristics. The present research examined the effects of self-monitoring on leadership emergence in a study of natural groups. The expectation that high self-monitoring would be associated with leadership emergence was strongly supported for male participants. The implications of these results for increasing our knowledge of the nature of self-monitoring and leadership were discussed.
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