Final answer:
Contemporary leadership studies focus on the dynamic interaction between leaders and followers, known as 'followership', and how individual differences influence this relationship. Leadership styles like transactional and transformational leadership are central to this research, as is strengths-based management that focuses on maximizing a leader's personal strengths.
Step-by-step explanation:
One of the most contemporary approaches to studying leadership is the focus on the relationship with leaders from the perspective of a follower, also known as followership. Researchers are now examining the leader-follower relationship in both directions, to better understand the dynamics of this interaction. This includes recognizing that individuals are unique, and thus a single leadership-follower dynamic is not universally effective. Different individuals may have varying preferences for structure and feedback, impacting how they engage with leadership styles.
Among the leadership styles, transactional leadership and transformational leadership are significant concepts, where the former focuses on supervision, organization goals, rewards, and punishments, and the latter on charisma, inspiration, intellectual stimulation, and consideration. Transformational leadership has been found to be more effective overall (Eagly et al., 2003). However, the importance of leveraging a leader's strengths, as cited by Donald Clifton's research on strengths-based management, is also a key area of focus in contemporary leadership studies.