What is groupthink?
Groupthink is what happens when a highly cohesive group becomes so focused on reaching and keeping agreement that it stops realistically appraising alternatives and makes a faulty decision. Social psychologist Irving Janis developed the idea in his 1972 book *Victims of Groupthink*, borrowing the "-think" ending from George Orwell’s *1984*.
- Meaning
- Pressure for consensus overrides critical thinking
- Proposed by
- Irving Janis (1972)
- Conditions
- High cohesion, insulation, directive leader, time pressure
- Remedies
- Devil’s advocate, outside experts, anonymous input
The classic case: the Bay of Pigs
How could a room full of brilliant people make such a bad call? In 1961 the Kennedy administration approved a plan to land about 1,400 Cuban exiles at the Bay of Pigs in Cuba. The invasion collapsed within three days. Janis noted that advisers who had doubts stayed quiet rather than disrupt the apparent consensus.
Janis also analyzed the U.S. failure to prepare for Pearl Harbor and the escalation of the Vietnam War. Later researchers frequently examined the 1986 decision to launch the space shuttle *Challenger* through the same lens.
Conditions that breed groupthink
| Condition | Description |
|---|---|
| High cohesion | Members like one another and value the group highly |
| Structural faults | Insulation from outsiders, a directive leader, no clear procedures |
| Situational pressure | External threat, time pressure, low morale after recent failures |
Eight symptoms of groupthink
- Illusion of invulnerability: excessive optimism that "we can’t fail"
- Belief in the group’s morality: certainty that the group’s cause is right
- Collective rationalization: explaining away warning signs
- Stereotyped views of outsiders: seeing rivals as weak or foolish
- Self-censorship: members keep doubts to themselves
- Illusion of unanimity: silence is taken as agreement
- Direct pressure on dissenters: "Don’t rock the boat"
- Self-appointed mindguards: members shield the leader from unwelcome information
Research and criticism
Reviewing 25 years of research, Esser (1998) concluded that case studies generally supported the theory, while laboratory experiments produced mixed results. Several studies suggest that closed leadership and the lack of decision procedures matter more than cohesion itself. Individual yielding to a majority is also seen in the Asch conformity experiments.
How to prevent groupthink
- Leaders speak last. Stating a preference first shrinks the range of opinions.
- Assign a devil’s advocate. Rotate the role of arguing the other side.
- Collect anonymous input. In a class project or team meeting, gather views through a quick online poll first.
- Bring in outsiders. Ask someone outside the team to critique the plan.
- Hold a second-chance meeting. Give people a chance to voice remaining doubts after a decision.
Frequently asked questions
- What is groupthink?
- It is a pattern in which a cohesive group, striving for unanimity, fails to consider alternatives critically and reaches a poor decision.
- What is a famous example of groupthink?
- The 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion, analyzed by Irving Janis, is the best-known example.
- How can groupthink be prevented?
- Have leaders share their views last, assign a devil’s advocate, gather anonymous input and invite outside critique.
References
- Janis, I. L. (1972). Victims of groupthink: A psychological study of foreign-policy decisions and fiascoes. Houghton Mifflin.
- Esser, J. K. (1998). Alive and well after 25 years: A review of groupthink research. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 73(2–3), 116–141.