What is Democratic Leadership Style? Here is the Definition, Characteristics, Advantages and Disadvantages

One of the common leadership styles in organizations is the democratic leadership style. If you know the definition of democracy, you are ready to understand how to apply the democratic leadership style.

Democratic leadership is the way a boss, manager, or company leader guides his team members with a democratic approach. This leadership style involves team members in facing the tasks assigned.

To understand more deeply what is meant by democratic leadership, including its characteristics, advantages, and disadvantages, let's explore the review.

Definition of Democratic Leadership Style

Basically, the democratic leadership style has substantial similarities to the principles of democratic politics.

Democratic leadership emphasizes equal distribution of power among all parties. So, there is no single dominance in the decision-making process.

This style creates an environment without hierarchy, where leaders encourage their team members to actively participate in decision-making. The voice of each member is valued and considered equally important.

In this context, ideas can be exchanged without fear of judgment, because active discussion is highly encouraged.

The role of the leader is to provide guidance and control over the direction of the discussion.

However, it is important to remember that not all decisions must always be taken collectively.

This still depends on the role and responsibilities of each individual, where the final decision may remain the authority of the leader.

A leader can gain additional trust from team members to make certain decisions.

The democratic leadership style is also known by other terms. It can be called participative leadership, shared leadership, open-book management, participative decision-making and democratic management style.

Characteristics of Democratic Leadership Style

According to the theory proposed by an organizational psychologist, Kurt Lewin, there are three core elements that show the characteristics of this leadership style, namely:

• The leader expects the team to report on the progress of their tasks.
• The leader expects team members to express their best beliefs and skills in completing tasks without the need for continuous supervision.
• The leader also expects the team to involve others in the decision-making process and not make decisions alone.

In addition to these three elements, there are other main characteristics of democratic leadership, such as:

• Encouraging team members to share ideas and opinions, while the leader still has the final decision.
• The active involvement of team members in the decision-making process, increases the sense of ownership of the final result.
• An effective democratic leader is able to build trust and respect among team members. They encourage genuine participation, based on shared morals and values.

A good leader is also open to different views and does not suppress dissenting voices.

Therefore, traits such as honesty, intelligence, courage, creativity, competence and a sense of fairness are considered important for democratic leaders.

Advantages of Democratic Leadership Style

According to research, democratic leadership has been proven to be one of the most effective leadership styles. Some of the advantages revealed include:

Increased productivity

A democratic leadership style has a significant positive impact on team member productivity.

By involving team members in the decision-making process, a sense of responsibility and high motivation is created.

Team members feel that they have made a meaningful contribution to the common goal, which in turn increases their dedication to the work.

Increased morale

A sense of involvement and fairness in decision-making strengthens the bonds between team members which ultimately creates a positive work atmosphere.

Involving them in the decision-making process provides a sense of ownership that also affects the final result, so that team morale increases significantly.

Team members not only feel like task executors, but also as influential contributors to the direction and policies taken.

Encouraging creativity

With the encouragement to share ideas and opinions, team members feel more motivated to contribute with fresh and new ideas.

This creativity is not only useful for creating innovative solutions, but also for facing the challenges of change that are more adaptive.

Involving re-evaluation

Democratic leadership also creates opportunities to involve feedback assessment between leaders and team members.

This process allows for a constructive exchange of views and evaluation of individual and group performance.

Involving re-evaluation helps in identifying strengths and areas of development, and also allows each team member to continue to grow.

Disadvantages of Democratic Leadership Style

Complex communication

The decision-making process becomes complicated when team members are unable to communicate effectively.

Complexity occurs due to the difficulty in conveying ideas, concepts or problems clearly and in a structured manner.

Overlapping ideas and opinions

In groups with many members and different voices, the risk of overlapping ideas and opinions increases.

This occurs when team members present similar or contradictory ideas without considering previous input.

Limited problem-solving skills

The lack of ability of team members, including the leader, in solving problems can hinder the decision-making process.

These limitations can include a lack of understanding of the problem at hand, a lack of analytical skills or a lack of creativity in finding solutions.

Examples of the Application of Democratic Leadership

To understand the democratic leadership style more clearly, you can understand examples of its application in the workplace.

For example, you are a team leader who is working on a project with a team. At one point, the project experiences obstacles that require a solution.

As a democratic team leader, you will start a discussion with team members to find the best solution to the problem at hand. You will listen to all team members' opinions, making sure everyone has the opportunity to express their thoughts.

After the discussion, you will make a decision based on the results of the conversation. The decision is then conveyed to the team, along with gratitude for their participation in finding a solution.

 

Basically, understanding this leadership style allows leaders to make informed decisions in various organizational contexts.

To become a respected leader with a democratic leadership style, personal and professional development is a must.

You can join the short Self Leadership Training program from Prasmul Eli which offers an understanding of the following:

• Understand yourself and others
• Stress and energy triggers
• Interpersonal conflict
• Connected communication
• Team personality types
• Personality types in decision making

This series of learning allows you to learn new things and advance your abilities. Register for the class now here!