Final answer:
The statement is false; transactional leaders are not primarily change agents but rather focus on performance-based rewards and punishments. Transformational leaders are the actual change agents, inspiring and developing followers.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that transactional leaders are mainly change agents is false. Transactional leadership is based on a system of rewards and punishments that are contingent upon performance.
On the other hand, transformational leaders are those who act as change agents, inspiring and motivating followers to achieve extraordinary outcomes and, in the process, developing their own leadership capacity.
They help followers grow and develop into leaders by responding to individual followers' needs and by aligning the objectives and goals of the individual followers, the leader, the group, and the larger organization.
Research, such as that by Eagly, Johannesen-Schmidt, & van Engen (2003), shows that transformational leadership approaches are more effective than transactional approaches, although individual leaders typically exhibit elements of both approaches.