Title: 11.5 Decision Making in Groups – Principles of Management
Headings: 11.5 Decision Making in Groups
11.5 Decision Making in Groups
Learning Objectives
When It Comes to Decision Making, Are Two Heads Better Than One?
Groupthink
Recommendations for Avoiding Groupthink
Groups Should:
Individuals Should:
Group Leaders Should:
Tools and Techniques for Making Better Decisions
Key Takeaway
Exercises
References

Content: Despite its popularity within organizations, group decision making suffers from a number of disadvantages. We know that groups rarely outperform their best member (Miner, 1984). While groups have the potential to arrive at an effective decision, they often suffer from process losses. For example, groups may suffer from coordination problems. Anyone who has worked with a team of individuals on a project can attest to the difficulty of coordinating members’ work or even coordinating everyone’s presence in a team meeting. Furthermore, groups can suffer from social loafing, or the tendency of some members to put forth less effort while working within a group. Groups may also suffer from groupthink, the tendency to avoid critical evaluation of ideas the group favors. Finally, group decision making takes a longer time compared with individual decision making, given that all members need to discuss their thoughts regarding different alternatives. Thus, whether an individual or a group decision is preferable will depend on the specifics of the situation. For example, if there is an emergency and a decision needs to be made quickly, individual decision making might be preferred.