The autocratic or authoritarian leader may give orders to the group, while the laissez faire leader:

• A. Assigns a group member as the authoritarian.
• B. Has a hands-off policy and participates very little, with the group basically taking responsibility for itself.
• C. Has the most desirable style of leadership.
• D. Nearly always run open-ended groups.

Answer: (B)

Laissez-faire leadership is a hands-off approach in which the leader provides little structure or direction and the group largely steers itself. The leader participates very little, leaving most planning, decision making, and problem solving to group members, who take on more responsibility. This approach can work well when the group is mature, self-motivated, and capable of organizing its own process, but it can lead to a lack of direction if members need guidance. The other options don’t fit because assigning an authoritarian shifts control to someone else rather than adopting a hands-off stance, claiming it’s the most desirable is a value judgment not a definition, and running open-ended groups is about flexibility of content rather than the leader’s level of involvement.