User:Lsauberman/sandbox

= Groupthink =

Groupthink and The Origins
Groupthink is a concept where when making a decision, plan or idea, you create it as a group which limits other participants freedoms of creativity and takes away the individual responsibility. This phenomenon makes it difficult to decipher what an organization is from the idea of groupthink. Groupthink limits the amount of creative freedom and limits the amount of information that can be significant to you (Keebler, 2015). Groupthink was a term first coined in 1972 by Irving Janis in his book “Victims of Groupthink: A Psychological Study of Foreign- Policy Decisions and Fiascoes.” Janis was a research psychologist at Yale University and then later was a professor at University of California, Berkley. The Bay of Pigs was the event that sparked this idea and then gave Janis the question as to why Kennedy and his administration/advisors approve such a horrible plan (Rajakumar, 2018).

Research
There have been different forms of research conducted on groupthink. When there have been poor group decisions made, it would be used as an example of groupthink, especially in history. A major part of the concept of groupthink is social identity and someone’s social identity could feel at-risk or even shattered when in a groupthink setting (Lee, 2019). One notable finding was from Ellis and Fisher who found four conditions that can make-up a “groupthink environment.” These four conditions are: mindless cohesion, pressuring nonconformists, failing to reward critical thinking, and lastly, a tendency to justify (Keebler, 2015).

Historical Events
Since groupthink usually results in negative outcomes, there have been numerous events of this occurring in our history. Some of these events have occurred before Irving Janis came up with the term, “groupthink.” Many notable historical events that can be put in the category of groupthink would be: Pearl Harbor bombing, the Bay of Pigs invasion, and more. All of these were devastating events in our history that were the consequences of groupthink (Schmidt, 2007). The bombing of Pearl Harbor is an example of groupthink since the senior officers did not take the message from D.C. seriously since they did not think the Japanese would dare attack the states. The Bay of Pigs invasion was planned by the Eisenhower administration, but was then accepted by the Kennedy administration. The new administration ignored the questions asked and accepted whatever information they already believed which is an example of groupthink being executed.

Symptoms of Groupthink
Groupthink can cause serious negative effects that can harm a person, community, country, and more. The “Father of Groupthink”, Janis, came up with eight different symptoms that can demonstrate if groupthink can or will occur. The eight symptoms are as follows: (1) false sense of invincibility among members, (2) mutual attempts to discredit other ideas, (3) undoubting belief in the group and the idea, (4) negative view on other groups, (5) pressure on members, (6) self-censorship, (7) the illusion of concurrency with the majority, and lastly (8) repression of other information that can contradict your original group idea. This is an important concept to understand since these are the warning signs of groupthink occurring. Understanding these signs can eliminate future disasters. (Rajakumar, 2018).

Why Does It Occur?
There are numerous reasons as to why groupthink may occur. Some examples would be the leadership, stress, group cohesiveness, and group isolation. Depending on the leadership being displayed in the group, groupthink may occur. If the leader of the group, whether it is self- appointed or assigned, gains complete control of said group, it can change the environment and cause the other members to submit and not state their own ideas, concerns, and problems. Stress can also cause groupthink because many times groupthink has occurred it has been during high pressure times and situations. Because of these situations, the group may try and reduce the stress by just giving into any answer that may seem the best fit at the time. It will seem like a positive to the group that there is now a solution, but it will usually be the wrong one with a high stress and little thought out situation. Cohesiveness in a group will cause interpersonal pressure that will have members begin to conform. This is another way that groupthink can occur since it takes away the members individual ideas since they start to conform with the seemingly best answer in the group. Lastly, groupthink may occur because of group isolation. A great example of this would be from the book Lord of the Flies by William Golding. In this book, a group of young boys are isolated together and you can see as time goes on and groupthink occurs and their little society collapses. The lack of diversity and people they are around causes an altered state of mind which can change what you believe can be a good idea. This is what will occur in other groups experiencing stress and problems. Isolation will also cause you to see only select options since there are no other outside information and ideas coming in. Only hearing from select people on an idea can change what you see as right.

Prevention
It is important to understand and practice ways that you can prevent groupthink from occurring. There are multiple ways to prevent groupthink. An important factor of preventing groupthink is reminding yourself that the loudest idea is not always the best decision. People who are louder in demonstrating their opinions and ideas are usually the ones who are the most successful in getting other to conform to it. Make sure there is no fear when discussing with your group. Intimidation and fear can cause members of the group to feel they have to lean a certain way or else there will be consequences. Some members may see conforming into an idea as a better option that any other negative alternative. (Brennan). Other ways to prevent this from happening in your own workspace, organization, or small group would to be add different components that can be including. Having an including and sharing environment can reduce the chances of groupthink occurring since you are encouraging everyone to have their own ideas and thoughts.