Seibel, Megan M.Kaufman, Eric K.Cletzer, D. AdamElliott-Engel, Jeremy2023-04-252023-04-2520231935-2611http://hdl.handle.net/10919/114775While adaptive leadership is a useful framework for leadership practitioners, there is limited empirical research supporting its conceptual tools and tactics. Kirton’s adaption-innovation (A-I) theory contends individuals have innate problem-solving style preferences for more or less structure. In this conceptual paper, we examine the theoretical underpinnings of adaptive leadership and A-I theory within the context of complex problem solving. We connect A-I theory to concepts from adaptive leadership to connect a more rigorous and empirically supported theory to a popular practice. We go further to explore how a leaders’ A-I style informs a leader's maintenance of an adaptive leadership holding environment (HE), particularly with regard to facilitating a productive zone of disequilibrium (PZD).application/pdfenCreative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 InternationalArticle - Refereed2023-04-25https://doi.org/10.1002/jls.21841Kaufman, Eric [0000-0001-8009-0066]Seibel, Megan [0000-0003-1287-316X]