How do we overcome the possibility of groupthink?
Groupthink can be detrimental to group effectiveness. Groupthink can cause the most cohesive, talented and well-trained teams to fail. Groupthink occurs when cohesive teams become passive and value getting along more than they value critical thinking, asserting their opinions and the quality of their performance. There are three tactics that can help overcome groupthink.
Increasing Collective Intuition
Groups with excellent processes rely on live, up to the minute, facts about their current situation. Real-time information allows group members to collaborate on interconnected tasks and foresee problems and opportunities earlier.
Encouraging Productive Task Orientated Conflict
Groups who are comfortable enough to productively debate their positions increase their efficiency. Effective conflict avoids personal conflict and focusses the groups discussion on the problem-solving task. An effective method of encouraging productive conflict is to begin with multiple possible solutions for any problem-solving task and debate the most effective possibility. Another way to productively increase task conflict is to use frame breaking heuristics. Forecasting – imagining scenarios - is one heuristic that can that can lead to new ways of thinking. Frame breaking heuristics can involve group members in role play scenarios such as playing devil’s advocate. Using real-time information to discuss, debate and productively argue about an issue at hand legitimizes conflict.
Set the Pace
Set a pace that will steadily move the group forwards towards success. Use deadlines and milestones to develop a natural rhythm to drive the group members’ actions. Give group members the freedom to make choices, decisions and improvise during intense situations. Top management groups the use of consensus with qualification can rule important decisions effectively. Consensus with qualification is a two-step process where the group fist tries to solve a problem using a consensus but if no agreement is reached either the most involved group member or the leader makes the choice.
Effective groups balance conflict, cohesion, fun, efficiency for the highest performance quality. The three dynamics that can be used to reduce groupthink are keeping group members informed with real-time task-relevant information, encouraging task orientated conflict and setting the groups pace for success. The results for the above-mentioned tactics are more efficient groups producing the most innovative solutions.
References
Okhuysen, G., & Bechky, B., (2013). Handbook of Principles of Organizational: Indispensable Knowledge for Evidence-Based Management. Wiley 309-321.
