QUESTION ONE $[40]$

Read the extract below and answer the questions that follow:

The construction industry is one of the economic sectors worst affected by occupational injuries,

severe and fatal ones. More than $20\%$ of the$3841$ European occupational fatalities in $2015$ occurred

within construction $($Eurostat$2017$a$).$ Recent research into occupational safety indicate that the way

leadership is executed may be imperative for how occupational risks are managed and

occupational safety advanced, across economic sectors $.$ Transformational leadership has been

identified as a promising component of effective safety leadership. Transformational leadership

involves individualised consideration, intellectual stimulation, inspirational motivation and

idealized influence; it is understood to engage employees without the use of power and to

emphasize developing the mutual interests of managers and employees. Passive$/$avoidant

leadership, on the other hand, has been identified as a component of poor safety leadership $.$

Although transformational and passive$/$avoidant leaderships generally have been found influential

for the level of occupational safety, contingency leadership theory and situational leadership

research indicate that the constituents and effects of leadership practices are dependent on

contextual factors $.$ What constitutes transformational and passive$/$avoidant leadership varies, for

example, between different occupational sectors and across different hierarchical positions. Contextspecific knowledge related to how transformational and passive$/$avoidant leadership is enacted by

managers in the construction industry can generate better understanding of how contemporary

findings in leadership research may be applied in real$-$life managerial work. Furthermore, managerial

leadership practice seems to differ depending on national cultural context. Scrutinising how

transformational and passive$/$avoidant leadership is enacted by managers in the construction

industry in Sweden and Denmark, two countries with comparably low occupational injury rates

$($Eurostat$2017$b$),$ may provide examples of how construction site safety can be augmented through

efficient safety leadership. Construction site managers hold important roles in the construction

industry. These managers occupy a middle management position operating across organizational

boundaries, requiring coordination of many interacting employees, subcontractors, and external

organizations. On a day$-$to$-$day basis, construction site managers implement leadership at the

operational as well as the strategic level concluded that central performance variables in

construction projects were more closely related to site managers $$personal leadership abilities than

to project characteristics such as building type, complexity$/$size and project duration.

Furthermore, studies have found that the transformational leadership practices of construction site

managers seem to be important for construction site safety performance, in terms of occupational

injuries, safety$-$related work behaviour among employees, and construction site safety climate. In

addition, passive$/$avoidant leadership practices of construction site managers seem to be negative

for construction site safety climate The classification of leadership behaviours as transformational or

passive$/$avoidant is largely theoretical, based on employees$$ global assessments of perceived

leadership behaviours obtained through questionnaires.

Questions:

$1\mathrm{.}1$Transformational leadership has been identified as a promising component of effective

safety leadership$$

Critically discuss transformational leadership in a project management context. $(20)$

$1\mathrm{.}1.$ Evaluate the following statement:

$...$transformational leadership practices of construction site managers seem to be important

for construction site safety performance, in terms of occupational injuries, safety$-$related

work behaviour among employees, and construction site safety climate.$(10)$

$1\mathrm{.}3$ Substantiate your agreement or disagreement with the following statement:

$...$central performance variables in construction projects were more closely related to site

managers $$personal leadership abilities than to project characteristics...$(10)$