I'm obviously missing a few (and some are ambiguous), so feel free to argue and make additions.
Collective consciousness: Functional individuals with minimal sense of self (at least, less than humans) --group survival is prioritized over self-preservation. These beings could be fully self-actualized or nothing more than drones. Intelligent beings removed from this environment will simply redefine their collective to "adopt" any outsiders who provide for them.
(Ants, meerkats, xenomorphs, Gand, Sharkticons)
Gestalt consciousness: Interlinked individuals. May not be individually intelligent, but physically linked and thus able to approximate intelligent behaviour as long as they're connected (by transmitting signals from individual to individual).
(Tubifex colonies, Mgalekgolo, Geth, Replicator blocks)
Decentralized hive-mind: Self-contained life-forms are psychically/pheromonally/technologically connected forming a single mind, without a central guiding intelligence. A "true" collective mind, occupying multiple (expendable) bodies. A drone removed from this collective will be significantly impaired and unable to function.
(LGMs, the Orz, scub coral, the Extraterrestrial Living-metal Shapeshifters, the Emilies, the Swarm, the Vajra, the Borg as presented in TNG)
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| A decentralized hive-mind; each node is functionally identical. |
Centralized hive-mind: A (sapient) central consciousness has emerged (embodied in a specially-adapted body; a Queen or Brain), directing the "drones" that make up the bulk of the collective. This allows greater intelligence (by concentrating decision-making in a specialized node), but at the cost of potentially leaving the collective crippled if the Leader is killed (until a new Leader can be produced). Drones may be capable of self-actualizing (to become a new Leader if the old one dies), or may be entirely mindless.
(the Six Paths of Pain, the Flood, Poleepkwa, the Ood, Cybermen, Andromeda, the Borg as presented in First Contact)
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| A centralized hive-mind; a single leader controls multiple drones. |
Centralized or Decentralized Synaptic hive-mind: The collective (which may or may not be embodied in a particular host) directs "synapses" or relays, which further direct various levels of specialized drones, which are not themselves linked to the collective. This extends the mind's reach (and decentralizes command functions to speed up reaction time), but means that losing a single synapse can sever an entire arm of the collective. Not all drones will be capable of operating independently if disconnected; some may revert to sub-sapient or vegetative states.
(Tyranids, the Zerg [under Overmind], Borg as presented in Voyager [the ship-mounted Vinculum/Central Plexus --arguably, the ships themselves-- serve as synapse relays])
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| Decentralized (left) and centralized (right) synaptic hive-minds; each synapse controls its own army of drones, and makes decisions either by consensus or under orders from a central leader. |
Differentiated hive-mind: Intelligent synapses are left to operate independently (directing drones), with the central consciousness (if it exists) providing only partial direction. This would work well in situations where the collective may be out of reach due to distance, interference, or potential death of the Leader. Drawbacks include potential conflict between different branches (if two synapses cannot establish precedence).
(Zerg [under Kerrigan], Rachni & Reapers, Killiks, the Data Integration Thought Entity [Yuki Nagato tells us it's divided into several conflicting factions], Heinlein's Bugs, Formics [functioning as an alliance of separate hives])
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| A differentiated hive-mind; each synapse is only tenuously linked to the collective, and can operate independently as needed. |
Hierarchical hive-mind: A synaptic hive-mind, in which a central consciousness has "override" power over independent synapses (and can thus "focus" its attention on any specific drone as needed). This allows the collective to distribute processing power across multiple brains, so the Leader doesn't have to do everything, though it also leaves the collective vulnerable to inattention or distraction. This also requires that each drone have enough onboard processing power to "carry" the Queen and carry out independent commands.
(the Regis' Invid [interestingly, the Regent's half of the race (as seen in the Sentinels novel series) showed no signs of a hive mind at all; the Regent himself had to verbally deliver orders and receive updates, and was completely unaware of Tesla's betrayal --possibly the Regis' hive-mind is a result of her own experiments in guided evolution.])
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| A hierarchical hive-mind; the central controller can bypass the synapse and take direct control of (or see through the eyes of) a single drone. |
Remote hive-mind: Different branches of the collective operate largely independently (as individuals), though they share an "open" link to the collective --essentially functioning as an "always-on" internet connection. The death of any member will draw the attention of the collective, as all members are aware of each other. A being removed from this type of collective will be weakened, but will still be able to function.
(Tribe of Silver, Eywa, evolved [human-form] Replicators, Caeliar, the Internet)
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| A remote hive-mind; each node is in only tenuous contact with each other. |
Synodic hive-mind: Individuals can completely detach and reconnect with the collective at will; the central consciousness is itself a coalition of multiple fully-actualized minds, rather than an individual (though a specific Leader may emerge by consensus). Beings severed from this collective will be able to function normally even when separated --in fact, that may be the whole point of their separation.
(the Taelon Commonality, the Great Link, Jedi battle-meld, the Consensus of Parts)
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| A synodic hive-mind; shown here with a single node disconnected to act as an individual. |
(Originally posted over at Ex Isle, diagrams (c) Mark A. Brown, 2015)
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