Follower Voice : Influence on Leader Behaviour

Leadership theories purport that leaders influence followers to take action they would not take alone. These theories are largely leader-centric and view the relationship from a unidirectional perspective. This paper examines that relationship from a follower-centric perspective to determine the extent that followers influence leader behavior and decision-making. One way followers may influence leaders is through voice exertion. In this paper, factors such as voice exertion levels and the presence of experience, knowledge, and achievement are analyzed using a mixed methods research approach and a systematic literature review of 27 research studies. The objective is to determine whether followers exert more voice and influence over leaders as these factors grow over time.This study reveals that followers tend to influence leaders more than traditional leadership theories acknowledge. Follower voice exertion and follower influence on leader behavior and decision-making is greater when the actors acquire and increase their experience and knowledge