The kind of behavior or action which is good leadership in the one situation or in one group is not good leadership in another situation or in a different group. Different types of leadership get varying results in different situations. Each of the types, autocratic, free rein and democratic, has its advantages. Each has a different source of authority and a different communications set-up Under the right conditions the democratic method gets the best results, but most groups would benefit at sometime from a combination of the three or even by the exclusive use of one or the other types. This does not imply dictatorship or wilful self-satisfaction of the leader at the expense of the followers, but merely a method whereby the leader retains full responsibility for the group's work.
Autocratic leadership produces mostly an obedient group attitude.
This method, however, can be advisable when the group is under a great deal of pressure to accomplish some immediate objectives. This does not imply an absence of leadership in which the group is left without any direction, but rather a situation in which a major share of responsibility has been delegated by the leader to other members. The attitude of the group that usually emerges with this method is one of increased initiative. This does not imply putting all decisions to a vote, but rather it suggests a way in which the leader draws ideas and suggestions from the group by discussion and consultation. In this way, he serves as a sort of moderator but still the final decision has to be made, in many cases, by him.