DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP: CHARACTERISTICS, ADVANTAGES, DISADVANTAGES - PSYCHOLOGY - 2025

The Democratic leadership, also known as participatory or compartivo leadership is a way to lead groups or teams in which the components of the same take an active role in decision - making processes. Despite being more effective in some situations than others, it can be applied to any setting with success.

In an environment where a democratic leadership style is used, everyone has the opportunity to participate. Ideas flow and are freely exchanged, while discussions and debates are encouraged. However, even though there is equal importance in the group, the leader is still there to guide and control the results.

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Various investigations have found that the democratic leadership style is one of the most effective. Used correctly, it can lead to increased productivity, better contributions from group members, and increased personal satisfaction for each of its members.

Still, there will be times when this leadership style is not the most appropriate. In this article we will study what are its main characteristics, as well as its most important advantages and disadvantages.

characteristics

How is the democratic leadership style different from other existing ways of leading a group? In this section we will see what its most important characteristics are, as well as some of the traits that a person who wants to adopt this way of leading a team must have.

Exchange of ideas

Contrary to what happens with other types of leadership, when a leader adopts the democratic style, he encourages the members of his team to express their opinion and try to find new solutions to common problems. The leader will try to listen to all these ideas, and will make his decision regarding the way to act taking them into account.

This situation is very different from the one that occurs when using other types of leadership, with which it is normal for the responsible person to make decisions for themselves and tell others what to do.

Thus, in the democratic leadership style, the opinions and ideas of subordinates are seen as useful and beneficial, rather than as a threat to the boss's way of thinking.

Existence of trust and respect among team members

For a situation to occur in which the democratic leadership style appears, it is necessary that the participants of the group trust each other and the boss.

For this, the leader has to be able to foster good relations between his subordinates, in addition to appearing as an honest person deserving of respect.

Without this mutual trust, the free exchange of ideas would simply not be possible. When a person feels that their opinions are not going to be taken seriously, they usually do not share them. For this reason, the leader must make sure that everyone is comfortable with the situation they are in.

Opening of mind

One of the most important characteristics that every democratic leader must possess is the ability to listen to ideas contrary to one's own without judging them.

The moment a boss implies that an opinion is invalid or does not deserve to be taken into account, the group's trust in him can be broken very easily.

For this reason, democratic leaders must be able to be open to criticism, ideas that a priori seem strange, and all kinds of opinions. This will encourage creativity of the solutions finally reached, and help to find better ways to solve the problems faced by the team.

decision-making capacity

All leaders, no matter what style they adopt, must be able to make decisions under pressure and lead in a group. However, when using a democratic approach, this skill is especially important.

In order to use this approach, a leader must be able to collect all the ideas from his team members, synthesize and examine them, and then choose the way forward and create an effective plan of action.

Fortunately, this skill can be learned by anyone who wants to introduce elements of this leadership style into their leadership.

Advantage

Why would anyone want to adopt the democratic leadership style? In this section we will see what are the main benefits of leading a group in this way.

Increased creativity

Democratic leaders are capable of creating environments in which creativity flows, as they encourage the exchange of opinions and innovation on the part of team members.

This is especially useful for groups working in industries such as design or marketing, but it can be beneficial for virtually any task.

Improved motivation

When team members feel that their opinions are being heard and taken into account, they usually feel more willing to work and do their best to produce positive results.

On the other hand, according to some studies, employees under the supervision of a democratic leader show more satisfaction in their work and claim to feel happier with the tasks they have to perform, even though these may seem unmotivating at first.

Better relationships between team members

Finally, when using the democratic leadership style, group participants generally feel that they have been heard and that they are working together toward a common goal.

This makes the relationships between them more positive, largely eliminating competitiveness and fostering camaraderie.

Disadvantages

However, not all characteristics of the democratic leadership style are positive. In some situations, using this approach may not be a good idea. Next we will see what are the main points against this way of carrying a team.

Lack of decision

At times, such as when in the midst of a crisis, democratic leaders can appear weak and indecisive.

When you need to make a quick and firm decision, it is often more helpful to have an authoritative leader who tells team members what to do to avoid complications.

The problem is that, due to the characteristics of democratic leaders, they are usually not well trained to take a more authoritarian role. Depending on the characteristics of the group and the situations it faces, this may make having such a leader not a good idea.

Big waste of time

Because a democratic leader listens to the opinions of all members of his team before making a decision, the process can become extremely long if there is a particularly lively debate or discussion.

This makes this way of managing a team more suitable for situations where there is a lot of time to act than for those where quick, firm and decisive action is required. For example, in highly competitive environments it may be necessary to use a stronger leadership style.

Making wrong decisions

When applying the democratic leadership style, the most important thing is that everyone's opinions are heard. However, this implies that even those people who are wrong or do not know what they are talking about will be taken into account.

The problem with this is that if the leader is not an expert in his field, he may give credence to ideas that are really bad but seem perfectly valid at first glance. This can lead to the appearance of all kinds of problems in the medium and long term.

To avoid this complication, the person who wants to adopt the democratic leadership style has to know in depth the field in which he is working.

Feeling of rejection

Leaders who follow this style encourage all people to express their ideas and opinions freely. However, although this is a good thing at first, when a person has expressed what they think, they usually have the expectation that their opinions will be heeded.

The problem is that not all members of a team can be right at the same time. Therefore, when an idea is rejected, the person who proposed it may feel undervalued or understood, which could lead to the appearance of resentment and lack of motivation.

Examples of democratic leaders

Despite not being a widely practiced leadership style, there are many people who have used it throughout history. In addition, more and more companies are trying to apply their concepts to the way they make decisions.

Some of the best known examples of democratic leadership are the following:

- Abraham Lincoln

- George Washington

- Jeff Bezos (founder of Amazon)

- Larry Page (co-founder of Google)

- Elon Musk (founder of Tesla, PayPal and SpaceX)

References

1. "What is democratic leadership?" in: Very Well Mind. Retrieved on: November 28, 2018 from Very Well Mind: verywellmind.com.
2. "Leadership Styles: Democratic Leadership Style" in: Leadership Toolbox. Retrieved on: November 28, 2018 from Leadership Toolbox: leadership-toolbox.com.
3. What Is Democratic (Participative) Leadership? - 5 Main Principles ”in: Status. Retrieved on: November 28, 2018 from Status: status.net.
4. "Advantages And Disadvantages Of Democratic Leadership" in: Team Work Definition. Retrieved on: November 28, 2018 from Team Work Definition: teamworkdefinition.com.
5. "Democratic leadership style" in: Defining Leadership. Retrieved on: November 28, 2018 from Defining Leadership: defining-leadership.com.