PathGoal Theory of Leadership

Pathgoal theory was initially developed by Robert House to explain workplace leadership. The theory builds heavily on two theories of work motivation: goal setting and expectancy theory. Goal-setting theory suggests that an effective way to motivate people is to set challenging but realistic goals and to offer rewards for goal accomplishment. Expectancy theory explains why people work hard to attain work goals. People will engage in behaviors that lead to goal attainment if they believe that (a) goal attainment leads to something they value (e.g., increase in pay, status, promotion) and (b) the behaviors they engage in have a high chance (expectancy) of leading to the goal. If people do not value the reward for goal attainment or believe that their behavior is unlikely to ...