Are You Caught in “Groupthink”? What it is & How and Why to Avoid It
by www.Sedona.com
Groupthink can happen to anyone, from a group of moms watching over their children to a government panel watching out for the country. What happens is this: the group, which is full of otherwise logical, intelligent adults, ends up making poor, irrational decisions. This happens because members of the group become more concerned with keeping the group intact than with expressing a contradictory opinion, criticizing someone’s idea, or suggesting an alternative.
As a result, groupthink, which was coined by psychologist Irving Janis in the 1970s, often results in faulty, sometimes disastrous decisions. Rather than thinking for themselves, people who get caught up in groupthink fail to do the following:
- Examine the downsides to the group’s decision
- Search for adequate information
- Keep an unbiased opinion
- Search for alternative options
- Seek out expert opinions
- Be critical of other group members’ opinions
The Eight Symptoms of Groupthink
You have likely experienced groupthink on some level, perhaps during a meeting at work or even in a discussion with your family. Yet, some groups are particularly vulnerable to this type of flawed thinking. According to Janis, a group may be at risk of groupthink if they have:
- A strong, persuasive leader
- A high level of group cohesion
- Intense outside pressure to make a good decision
Typically, however, once you are engaged in groupthink you will not even realize it. So what are some signs that you may be blindly accepting the majority opinion of a group you belong to? Janis defined eight main symptoms of groupthink that you should be aware of:
1. Illusion of Invulnerability: Members ignore obvious danger, take extreme risk, and are overly optimistic.
2. Collective Rationalization: Members discredit and explain away warning contrary to group thinking.
3. Illusion of Morality: Members believe their decisions are morally correct, ignoring the ethical consequences of their decisions.
4. Excessive Stereotyping: The group constructs negative sterotypes of rivals outside the group.
5. Pressure for Conformity: Members pressure any in the group who express arguments against the group's stereotypes, illusions, or commitments, viewing such opposition as disloyalty.
6. Self-Censorship: Members withhold their dissenting views and counter-arguments.
7. Illusion of Unanimity: Members perceive falsely that everyone agrees with the group's decision; silence is seen as consent.
8. Mindguards: Some members appoint themselves to the role of protecting the group from adverse information that might threaten group complacency.
Groupthink Stems From Insecurities
To some extent, groupthink results from a climate of fear and a desire to stay cohesive. In this regard, having strong members of the group encourage members to share any objections, doubts, or alternatives to the decision at hand can be very beneficial.
Likewise, setting up certain decision-making standards, such as always consulting an outside expert or having certain members play “devil’s advocate,” can help to stop groupthink from occurring. However, on a deeper level groupthink can be squelched on an individual basis because this form of thinking is the direct or indirect result of low self-esteem.
“Most of us have such insecurity about our own knowingness and self worth that we feel we can get it from outside of ourselves by belonging to, or thinking with, a larger group of people that we feel either knows more or has more value than we do,” says Hale Dwoskin, CEO and director of training of Sedona Training Associates.
However, seeking to boost your own self-worth by gaining the acceptance and recognition of others is destined to fail.
“When you look outside of yourself for the answer you will always be disappointed, because all goodness is created from within yourself and you are your own best teacher and friend if you allow this to be,” Dwoskin says.
“The best way to start to think for yourself,” he continues, “is to let go of your need for external validation and the need to be told what to do.”
Keep in mind that your desire to “belong” to the group at any expense is just a feeling that you can let go of. The Sedona Method is a simple tool you can use to release these types of negative, self-sabotaging beliefs from your life.
“As you release these core tendencies you will naturally find yourself trusting your own intuitive knowingness and feeling whole and complete within yourself,” Dwoskin says.
Sources
Psychologists for Social Responsibility
Mindtools.com
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