Groups and Teams
What are the biases associated with the common knowledge effect?
- Anchor on initial preference - Confirmation bias: Stress info in line with preference; don't tend to reveal/acknowledge other info - Commitment & Consistency: Publicly defend their stated positions
What are 2 social reasons for the common knowledge effect?
- Shared info elicits encouragement and validation from others; encourages its repetition - Social costs of revealing unique information (perceived incompetence; liking)
What are the consequences of the common knowledge effect?
-Fail to recognize unique information and leverage expertise of their members - Can lead to suboptimal decisions - Groups are typically no more accurate than the average of the member judgment
How do you get the most out of groups?
-group construction: who is on the group and how many people are in the group -group conflict: how the group deals with disagreements and what the disagreements are about
What are weaknesses of groups?
1. Common Knowledge Effect 2. Conformity 3. Social Loafing 4. Group Polarization
What is the common knowledge effect?
Common Knowledge Effect: Groups tend to focus on what everyone knows and ignore specialized information - Shared info is likely to be mentioned early on and repeatedly discussed - Less likely to introduce or discuss unshared info, in part because of motivation to reach group consensus
What are 3 ways of building better teams through diversity?
Functional: specialized training, work roles, etc. Demographic: age, race, gender, nationality, etc. Personality: extraversion etc.
What is a consequence of conformity?
Groupthink
What is group polarization?
In groups, people tend to take more extreme decisions and pursue riskier courses of action
What are relationship conflicts? What is a disadvantage?
Interpersonal disagreements disadvantage: reduced team effectiveness
What is a self-selection team? What is a disadvantage?
People often gravitate to people who are like themselves; managers often put similar others in teams -more susceptible to groupthink, conformity
What is task conflict? What are 2 benefits?
Task conflict: Disagreements about the task • Moderate levels boost performance • Fosters information and opinion exchange
What is one consequence of conformity and social loafing?
The bystander effect
What is social loafing?
The tendency for people to put less effort into a task when they are in a group than when they are alone
What is group think?
The tendency of highly cohesive groups to value consensus at the price of decision quality
What is the bystander effect?
a person needing help is less likely to get help the more other people are present
What are three advantages of diverse groups?
• Generate a more comprehensive view of a problem • More creative and innovative solutions • Broader set of skills and network of contacts to draw from
When is groupthink likely to occur?
• Group members are very similar • Isolated from outsiders • Charismatic and opinionated team leader • The team is under stress
When is social loafing likely?
• In large teams where individual output is hard to identify • When the team is judged as a whole
How do you combat social loafing?
• Make each team member's contribution more noticeable 1) Inputs identifiable Brainstorming task: putting name on idea increased quantity of ideas 26% 2) Clear roles • Use social proof Showing average neighborhood energy rates decreased energy use • Bolster importance of team membership
How can you weaken conformity?
• Presence of an ally - The presence of a true partner, reduces conformity by 80% - Any dissent drastically reduces the normative pressures to conform
List 2 ways of preventing task conflicts from turning into relationship conflicts?
• Task conflict is less likely to turn personal when teams trust each other, don't fear backlash • Invest in good relationships early—they can cushion against conflict and facilitate information sharing
What are 3 disadvantages of large groups?
• coordination loss without increased information gain • greater likelihood of social loafing • greater pressure for conformity
What are 4 challenges of diverse groups?
• less committed and satisfied • more likely to leave team • more likely to dislike team members • more likely to fight...
What are 3 ways of avoiding groupthink?
● Assign a devil's advocate to uncover every negative possibility ● Bring in outsiders to introduce new perspectives ● Construct more diverse groups
Why does social loafing occur?
● Decreased personal accountability ● People are unsure if their effort will lead to performance. ● Don't want to be the one person who does all the work
How do you combat the common knowledge effect?
● Get information on the table before people vote or commit to a preference ● Frame the task as problem-solving rather than a judgment or personal preference - Promotes info sharing ● Cultivate a norm of constructive disagreement - Pre-discussion disagreement increases likelihood of unique information being shared - Even one dissenter can help...
What are 3 advantages of groups over individuals?
● Greater pool of knowledge: A group can bring much more information and experience on a decisions ● Different perspectives: Individuals with varied experience and interests help the group see decision situations and problem from different angles ● Greater comprehension: Give and take of group discussion can deepen individual comprehension
What are 3 conditions that strengthen conformity?
● Group size: As the number of people increases so does conformity up to a point... - Conformity increases up to 3 or 4 people in a group - After 3 or 4, the amount of additional influence was negligible • Incompetent and insecure members are more likely to conform • Group's status and attractiveness: If it's a group you want to be a part of - you're more likely to conform
Why does conformity occur in groups?
● Normative social influence: Desire to fit in with the group - Fear of looking silly, being rejected by the rest of the group ● Informational social influence: Utilizing others as a source of information
