No two groups will ever function in the same way while involved in the process of decision making. Some are proactive groups while there are other groups, which need a driving force or a facilitator to facilitate the process. There are several methods of group decision-making. Here are some of the common methods employed in the process of decision-making:
Authoritarian Style
The authoritarian style is like a dictatorship, in which the decision ultimately rests in the hands of one person. This style of decision-making is applicable in the presence of a powerful person who dictates the entire process of decision-making and has the final authority on the outcome. This style, although in use at various places, tends to have more disadvantages than advantages because the people whose opinions are disregarded might have negative feelings about the entire process. A variation of this method is the minority control method wherein the group discusses the issues but the power of decision-making rests not in the hands of one but a small group of people within the group.
Brainstorming
This group decision-making method is best when the decision-making has to be started from scratch, which means creating the various options and then weighing them. This is an excellent method for group decisions, which is very popular owing to the complete creative freedom it offers to all the participants. There can be a facilitator to facilitate the entire discussion just to ensure that the people don’t digress. The facilitator can merely help to start off the conversation, provide subtle hints and nudges when the participants get stuck and thus help to make effective and creative group decisions. The positive aspect of this method is that it values the opinion of every individual member and the final decision is reached by consensus.
Voting Based Method
This is a group decision-making process, which is convenient to use when the group