As defined by The Essential Guide to Group Communication text, leadership is “the exercise of interpersonal influence toward the attainment of goals.” Four typical leadership styles are as follows: authoritarian, consultative, participative, and laissez-faire. Authoritarian leaders control group activities without any input from other members. The leader simply tells the group what is going to happen, thus frequently causing lower commitment to the task at hand. Second is the consultative leader; this leader makes decisions based on the thoughts of the other members. Many group members tend to get frustrated with this type of leadership because they feel their input is overlooked. The next leadership style is participative. This type of leader works with the other members to reach decisions through guidance, not control. The last style of leadership is laissez-faire leadership. This is when a group does not necessarily have an identifiable leader.
The above four leadership styles each have their benefits and consequences. However, as we all were taught from a young age, sharing is key!! Sharing leadership in small groups happens spontaneously; a leader will emerge other than the known leader. This is the best way to work in groups because the more skilled members in a certain aspect step up and lead the group in certain tasks.
I completely agree that sharing leadership is the best way to accomplish a task. Some may be good with numbers who could lead the team in achieving financial stability, while another may be good with communicating and could lead the team in giving a presentation. While this may be the best way to accomplish something, what if people do not step up to lead? Or when there is a time limit to when things need to be done. This is when an authoritarian leader might be necessary. Even though no one likes being told what to do and how to do it, it is a part of life and at the end of the day, people want to see results regardless of how a group came to accomplish it.
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