ADVANTAGES OF GROUP
DECISION MAKING:
Group decision
making provides two advantages over decisions made by individuals: synergy and
sharing of information. Synergy is the
idea that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. When a group make a decision collectively,
its judgment can be keener than that of any of its members. Through discussion, questioning, and
collaboration, group members can identify more complete and robust solutions ad
recommendations. The sharing of
information among group members is another advantage of the group decision
process. Group decisions take into
account a broader scope of information since each group member may contribute
unique information and expertise.
Sharing information can increase understanding, clarify issues, and
facilitate movement toward a collective decision.
DISADVANTAGES OF
GROUP DECISION MAKING:
DIFFUSION OF RESPONSIBILITY
One possible disadvantage of group
decision making is that it can create a diffusion of responsibility that
results in a lack of accountability for outcomes. In a sense, if everyone is responsible for a
decision, then no one is. Moreover,
group decision can make it easier for members to deny personal responsibility
and blame others for bad decisions.
LOWER EFFICIENCY
Group decisions can also be less
efficient than those made by an individual.
Group decisions can take additional time because there is the
requirement of participation, and coordination among group members. Without good facilitation and structure,
meetings can get bogged down in trivial details that may matter a lot to one
person but not to the others.
GROUPTHINK
One of the greatest inhibitors of
effective group decision making is groupthink.
Groupthink is a psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group of
people in which the desire for harmony or conformity results in an irrational
or dysfunctional decision-making outcome.
By isolating themselves from outside influences and actively suppressing
dissenting viewpoints in the interest of minimizing conflict, group members
reach a consensus decision without critical evaluation of alternative
viewpoints.
Loyalty to the
group requires individuals to avoid raising controversial issues or alternative
solutions, and there is a loss of individual creativity, uniqueness, and
independent thinking. The dysfunctional
group dynamics of the in group produces an illusion of invulnerablility (an
inflated certainty that the right decision has been made). Thus the in-group
significantly overrates its own decision-making abilities and significantly
underrates the abilities of its opponents (the out-group). Furthermore, groupthink can produce
dehumanizing actions against the out-group.
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