Empirical Followership Research Since the Publication of the Formal Theory of Followership by Uhl-Bien et al. (2014) — A Systematic Review

Abstract

Since Uhl-Bien et al. (2014) presented their Formal Theory of Followership (FTF), followership research has been perceived as an emerging field. However, recent primary studies and reviews show that there is currently no consensus on what followership is and what it is not. To address this lack of clarity and using the lens of Uhl-Bien’s et al. (2014) seminal work, we conducted a systematic review of empirical followership research. To advance followership research, we refine and further develop the criteria for what can and what cannot be classified as a followership study in accordance with the theory. Based on these criteria, we analyze the different approaches to followership that Uhl-Bien et al. (2014) proposed, the methodological approaches, the different measures used, and the studied variables of 89 studies that we included in our systematic review. As a result, we show how empirical followership research has developed since 2014, what has been neglected, and what can be learned from the reviewed studies. Our analysis reveals that FTF provides a valuable theoretical framework to integrate a wide variety of research that contributes to a better understanding of the role of followers and following in leadership. While we find a clear trend toward more pertinent research activity, empirical followership research develops more strongly in terms of number of publications rather than in their quality.