Groupthink

Janis L. Irving developed a significant theory of group decision making that he called groupthink. Groupthink is an idea in which a group makes faulty decisions due to group pressures that lead to a deterioration of “mental efficiency, reality testing, and moral judgment.” Group members have to the extent of devaluing other people and valuing the group as their highest and only priority. These groups suppress any personal doubts, beliefs, or judgments and follow group’s leader suggestions. As a…

Communication Theories Communication is the process of exchanging information and is the way in which humans can relate. It is the way in which we as individuals understand one another. Information is exchanged verbally and through symbols, signs, and behaviors and may vary between cultures and people. For this reason, communication with new people or people from different cultures can be difficult. This is where communication theory comes in. Communication theory is the study of how individuals…

Groupthink is a phenomenon in which the norm for consensus overrides the realistic appraisal of alternative courses of action (Robbins, 2002, p. 304). The drive for concurrence becomes more important than the thorough and honest evaluation of alternatives;…

least the reputation for President Carter would have been a more peaceful manner. I believe Iran releasing the hostages on inauguration day was to mock Carter. Carter and his administration could have made better leadership decisions. Groupthink Engaging in Groupthink can be phenomenal when working as a team rather than an individual to come up with a plan to reach a goal; however, results in one or two members making a decision that could result in a…

Cults use the psychological methods normative social influence, groupthink and foot-in-the-door to manipulate individuals and control their thoughts as seen in the cults Jonestown and The Branch Davidians. Cults are defined as an ideology of religious worship and adherence directed toward a particular figure or object. Cults are everywhere. Some are normal and widely accepted. Others are isolationist and hide from investigation. Some cause great suffering while others appear very helpful and…

Basically the group feels it is invincible and can do no wrong which often leads to excessive optimism and the taking of severe risks. There was evidence of this when the Bush Administration did not weigh out the factors of a postwar Iraq nor draw up any kind of feasible policy in accordance to likely emergence of an insurgency. They believed once the war was over it would just be a matter of a quick hand-off. General Shinseki, the former Army Chief of Staff, had proposed several hundred…

innovation when done properly. The first article is “The Rise of the New Groupthink” by author Susan Cain, she is addressing groupthink among extraverts and introverts. Cains purpose in writing this article is to speak about how most of us work in teams for managers, who unfortunately admire people skills above all. She goes on to say that collaborations are in and as for lone workers that are out. The second article is “Groupthink: The brainstorming myth” by author Jonah Lehrer, whose purpose…

the group members as well as having group members dedicated to the decision because of their involvement of the overall process, and the understanding of group members because of their participation in making the decision. Disadvantages include groupthink, the pressure group members may experience in order to fit in, or go along with everyone else, group polarization, where there may be one member who dominate the decision making process and other members, and because a group makes decisions at…

Humanity is known to signify empathy, sympathy, and overall kind interpersonal interactions. It is often associated with and used to characterize humans; however, humans have committed various atrocities that bring to question their humaneness; therefore, there is a lack of confidence within a human’s capability to be humane, and it is still not completely known as to why this occurs. However, according to Richard Flanagan, renowned author of The Narrow Road to the Deep North, humanity in and of…

decision of the engineers changed when the NASA's level III manager told the chief engineer to ""take off his engineering hat and put on his management cap”, showing that the goals of the group were put first ahead of the safety. Based on avoiding the groupthink, the disaster could have been avoided if the group looked outside opinions from people with different backgrounds when they realized that certain safety considerations needed to be made. The decision to lunch should have had clear rules…