State-of-the-science review of leader-follower dyads research

Despite its importance in multilevel research, the dyad level of analysis has been known as the most poorly understood level. Suggestions have been made recently in terms of levels alignment issues and methodologies to enhance the understanding of dyadic phenomena. Given recent remedies for dyads research and that the leader-follower dyad is generally considered the key dyad in organizations, we conducted a comprehensive review of the current state of leader-follower dyads research to assess what we know and how much we know about leader-follower dyads research conducted at the dyad level. Specifically, we summarized empirical studies that focused on leader-follower dyads that used data collected on the same variables from both dyadic partners. This review involved coding studies of these “pure” leader-follower dyads based on several dyadic theories (e.g., vertical dyad linkage, individualized leadership, leader-member exchange, leader-follower congruence) and multiple analytic methods (e.g., multilevel modeling, polynomial regression, WABA) that dealt with leader-follower dyads directly. Based on the results, this review generated a nomological network of constructs for understanding leader-follower dyads and to provide suggestions for future leader-follower dyads research.