The Leadership Styles
The Leadership Styles
Without leadership everyone would be working as individuals and many activities would be impossible. A leader bands people together to complete a common goal. In the Merriam Webster dictionary the word leadership is defined as: "1) the office or position of a leader, 2) capacity to lead, 3) the act or an instance of leading". The styles of leadership that other styles are based off of are the authoritarian, democratic, and laissez-faire.
The first style of leadership is called the authoritarian style. The characteristics of this leadership style are when an individual controls all the decisions with little or no input from the group. This type of leader is like a dictator in that he dictates all the decisions by the group and rarely trusts input from the group. This style is usually used when there is a strong leader, a quick decision is needed, a definite time limit, and there is a stressful situation such as a military conflict. Members of the group might prefer this style because it allows the group to concentrate on the task and not on how to do the task. Although this style of leadership may be useful at times there are several downfalls to this style. Since leaders who use this style do not consult there group on decisions they may be viewed as a dictator or as bossy, causing the group to dislike the leader which then hurts the overall performance of the group. While the authoritarian style has several downfalls, leaders can use this style wisely. The best time to use this style is when the leader is the most knowledgeable member of the group or is the only member that knows how to get more information on the situation. An example of when to use this style is in a combat situation when the combatant leader knows best. Using this style could be disastrous when used at the wrong time and with the wrong obstacles. The wrong time to use this style would be a situation such as repairing a vehicle or explosive devise in which the leader
Without leadership everyone would be working as individuals and many activities would be impossible. A leader bands people together to complete a common goal. In the Merriam Webster dictionary the word leadership is defined as: "1) the office or position of a leader, 2) capacity to lead, 3) the act or an instance of leading". The styles of leadership that other styles are based off of are the authoritarian, democratic, and laissez-faire.
The first style of leadership is called the authoritarian style. The characteristics of this leadership style are when an individual controls all the decisions with little or no input from the group. This type of leader is like a dictator in that he dictates all the decisions by the group and rarely trusts input from the group. This style is usually used when there is a strong leader, a quick decision is needed, a definite time limit, and there is a stressful situation such as a military conflict. Members of the group might prefer this style because it allows the group to concentrate on the task and not on how to do the task. Although this style of leadership may be useful at times there are several downfalls to this style. Since leaders who use this style do not consult there group on decisions they may be viewed as a dictator or as bossy, causing the group to dislike the leader which then hurts the overall performance of the group. While the authoritarian style has several downfalls, leaders can use this style wisely. The best time to use this style is when the leader is the most knowledgeable member of the group or is the only member that knows how to get more information on the situation. An example of when to use this style is in a combat situation when the combatant leader knows best. Using this style could be disastrous when used at the wrong time and with the wrong obstacles. The wrong time to use this style would be a situation such as repairing a vehicle or explosive devise in which the leader
References: Cherry, Kendra, "What Is Autocratic Leadership?" about.com Guide Cherry, Kendra, "What Is Democratic Leadership?" about.com Guide Cherry, Kendra, "What Is Laissez-Faire Leadership? " about.com http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leadership