I appreciate teachers that have authority but also that are appreciative of opinions that the students have.
Autocratic: When the teacher gives homework that he/she thinks is the best possible work for us to improve on our academics.
Democratic: When at the end of the year the teacher has a vote on whether we do a quiz or watch a movie.
Empowering: When the teacher has the students do presentations on their findings in class, thus, teaching the other students these findings.

I like to lead using a mixture of autocratic and empowerment styles, this gives me the authority to lead the group in some things that are important to me but also it gives others to lead in things that they specialize in.

I feel the most comfortable when a leader is using the democratic method because I feel I can contribute but at the same time everyone else can, thus creating a student body that accommodates everyones needs.

The culture of a place has great effect on the governing body's style of leadership, for example, if a society is reckless and out of control, a more autocratic style of leadership is needed to calm things down.