Seminar paper from the year 2015 in the subject Leadership and Human Resource Management - Management Styles, grade: 1,0, University of Frankfurt (Main), language: English, abstract: The history of leadership research and leadership theory goes far back into the past. Ever since people have lived together in groups, there have been leaders and those who are led. The many different leadership styles have also been discussed and criticized since the 1950s. The question arises which style is the most efficient or the "right" style for leading people. For a company it is of great importance with which behavior their managers can influence or motivate the employees to the best possible performance and thus achieve the company's goals. Empirical studies show that the leadership style has a great influence on the work and well-being of leaders and employees and thus also on the economic success of the company. However, there is no one optimal leadership style as several studies and publications have already proven. Each of the styles can achieve both positive and negative results, depending on the situation and the individual employee. The leadership styles should be adapted according to the situation. In this paper, after defining the terms leadership and leadership style, on the one hand the classical leadership styles and on the other hand the transactional and the transformational leadership styles are explained and compared. Possible advantages and disadvantages as well as their influence on employee motivation, willingness to perform and leadership success will be shown. In addition, results of current studies will provide an insight into the state of research. Finally, the most important points are summarized and a concluding conclusion is drawn on the basis of the knowledge gained.