Page 139 - E2 Integrated Workbook STUDENT 2018

Building, leading and managing teams

2.2 Problems with groups

Unfortunately groups can also have negative as well as positive effects:

 Conformity. Individuals can be persuaded by group pressures to
agree with decisions which are obviously wrong, and which the
person must know to be wrong.

 The Abilene paradox. This is a famous case, which demonstrates
that the group can end up with an outcome that none of the
members wanted.

 ‘Risky shift’ or group polarisation. This is the tendency for
groups to take decisions which are riskier than any that the
individual members would take on their own.

 Groupthink. This occurs within deeply cohesive groups where the
members try to minimise conflict and reach consensus without
critically testing, analysing, and evaluating ideas.

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