Groupthink
🇳🇴GruppetenkningDefinition
Groupthink is the tendency of groups to prioritize consensus and harmony over critical evaluation, leading to poor decision-making as alternatives and risks are insufficiently explored.
Real-world example
In leadership teams, groupthink can result in strategic decisions being made without real debate, as members avoid challenging the dominant view. Many organizational failures stem from early warning signs being ignored because the group had already aligned.
Supplementary perspective
Groupthink is amplified by hierarchy, strong group cohesion, and low psychological safety. It overlaps with authority bias and the bandwagon effect.
Practical advice
Recognize
- —Notice a lack of critical questions.
- —Watch for unusually fast agreement.
Counteract
- —Assign a devil's advocate.
- —Break groups into subgroups to explore alternatives.
Ethical use
- —Use cohesion for execution only after robust debate.
- —Reward dissent during early decision stages.