In January 1972, 3,320 faculty members and administrators at 12 urban multicampus community college districts were asked to indicate their perceptions of the distribution of decision-making authority and influence among six organizational levels (the board of trustees, the district administration, the unit administration, deans, department chairmen, and faculty members) with regard to five broad organizational functions (professional personnel management, student personnel management, budgetary management, program development, and community services management). Respondents were also asked to indicate their perceptions of organizational effectiveness. A response rate of 60 percent was obtained. Conclusions indicate that: (1) these 12 institutions are not highly centralized and they differ primarily in the patterns of centralization/decentralization within their units rather than between units and the district office; (2) neither a highly centralized nor a highly decentralized distribution of authority is a primary determinant of effectiveness; and (3) there is a great increase in effectiveness if participation in decision-making is simultaneously increased for staff members at all hierarchical levels. Appendices include characteristics of the 12 institutios studied and graphs illustrating the patterns of organization, authority, and effectiveness discovered. (DC)