|
| |
Groupthink is when nations, societies, cultures, political parties, organizations, teams and other groups produce irrational strategies, decisions, rules, plans, actions and designs out of a desire to reduce social conflict with the group and create a sense of connectedness and belonging amongst members.
Unquestioned BeliefGroupthink begins in unquestioned belief whereby the group adopts ideas that it considers beyond challenge. Anyone who does challenge such ideas is quickly admonished.Closed-mindedness The group seeks to shelter itself from ideas that threaten the group's status quo. For example, members of the group may use filter bubbles to avoid dissenting ideas.
ConformityMembers of the group seek to conform to norms established by the group.GatekeepingSelf-appointed members of the group begin to police thought to root out ideas or behavior that conflicts with the group's norms.Members of the group carefully control their speech to avoid being accused of disagreeing with the group.
Social PressureAny non-conformity to group norms is met with social pressure.StereotypingThe opposition is stereotyped with labels. The slightest disagreement with the group can cause an individual to be labeled. Such labels may have extremely negative connotations within the group.Illusions of UnanimityMembers of the group begin to overestimate group unity as all opposition within the group is silenced.
Illusions of Power The perceived unity and righteousness of the group leads its members to overestimate the group's power. The group has isolated itself from the opposition and tends to underestimate their strength. The group may begin to take excessive risks.The group begins to lack creative capabilities as members fear criticism and are unlikely to champion brave ideas.
Decisions, plans and work products of the group may reflect social compromises as opposed to logic. Each individual member of the group may view work products as poor quality or irrational but may have little power or motivation to speak up.|
| Type | | | Definition | Groups that produce irrational strategies, decisions, rules, plans, actions and designs out of a desire to reduce social conflict within the group and create a sense of connectedness and belonging amongst members. | | Related Concepts | |
Cognitive Biases
This is the complete list of articles we have written about cognitive biases.
If you enjoyed this page, please consider bookmarking Simplicable.
ReferencesJanis, Irving Lester. Groupthink: Psychological studies of policy decisions and fiascoes. Vol. 349. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1982.
© 2010-2023 Simplicable. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction of materials found on this site, in any form, without explicit permission is prohibited.
View credits & copyrights or citation information for this page.
|
