GROUPTHINK 2
Discussion
An African-American of controversial and powerful non-fiction and short stories by
the name Richard Nathaniel Wright once said that people hate since they fear, and they fear
since they feel that the utmost feelings are being outraged and assaulted. Such people do not
understand why they fear. They are symbolized as powerless pawns which have been
exposed to a blind play of the social forces. The conditions of the occurrence of a groupthink
are well understood. The above illustration best explains groupthink and the forces behind the
rational journey of its discovery. Another social psychologist, Irving Janis illustrated
groupthink as a type of thinking which individuals engage in when they participate in a
cohesive in-group which overrules an appraisal of the alternative courses of action. Despite
the involvement of restricting options, the groupthink is not intentionally and actively
pursued. Groupthink psychological aspect of reducing the opposition in the hopes of
increasing cohesion, quickly reaching a decision, and reducing tension (Argosy, 2014).
According to Irving, groupthink happens when a group makes decisions which are
faulty due to the pressures of the groups which lead to the deterioration of moral judgement,
mental efficiency, and reality testing. The features of groups and their circumstances can
make members to coordinate and set agreements which each other rather than critically
evaluate and generate positions and viewpoints which lead to poor decisions.
I agree with the strategy used by Fred. This strategy is a more common practice in the
US business. Despite setting rules at the beginning of the business meeting, they also let all
the members understand that their opinions are equally important and counts. Every member
of the meeting is free to deliver any message provided that it is not demeaning, offensive, or
insulting. The above is productive to the business.
