MNGT 3810 - Chapter 10

the insight moment, when the solution to the problem becomes apparent

illumination

the step where the decision maker thinks about the problem consciously and gathers information

immersion

the step when the decision maker sets the problem aside and does not think about it for a while

incubation

the tendency of individuals to put in less effort when working in a group context

social loafing

cons of group decision making

takes longer, group dynamics such as groupthink can occur, and social loafing - harder to identify responsibility for decisions

steps in the rational decision-making model

1) identify the problem 2) establish decision criteria 3) weigh decision criteria 4) generate alternatives 5) evaluate the alternatives 6) choose the best alternative 7) implement the decision 8) evaluate the decision

_______________ is a group process of generating ideas that follows a set of guidelines, which includes no criticism of ideas and building on others' ideas.

Brainstorming

a group process that uses written responses to a series of questionnaires instead of physically bringing individuals together to make a decision

Delphi Technique

a technique designed to help with group decision making by ensuring that all members participate fully

Nominal Group Technique (NGT)

_______________ are unique and important and require conscious thinking, information gathering, and careful consideration of alternatives.

Nonprogrammed decisions

_______________ occurs when individuals overestimate their ability to predict future events.

Overconfidence bias

The availability of too much information and too many choices can lead to _______________, where more and more time is spent on gathering information and thinking about it, but no decisions actually get made.

analysis paralysis

a decision-making process where more and more time is spent on gathering information and thinking about it but no decisions actually get made

analysis paralysis

the tendency for individuals to rely too heavily on a single piece of information

anchoring and adjustment bias

a situation in which information that is more readily available is viewed as more likely to occur

availability bias

a set number of ideas a group must reach before they are done with brainstorming

idea quotas

Use the _______________ decision-making model when the minimum criteria are clear, you do not have or you are not willing to invest much time to make the decision, and/or you are not trying to maximize your outcome.

bounded rationality

a model that recognizes the limitations of decision-making processes. According to this model, individuals knowingly limit their options to a manageable set and choose the best alternative without conducting an exhaustive search for alternatives

bounded rationality model

a process of generating ideas that follows a set of guidelines, which includes no criticism of ideas during the process, the idea that no suggestion is too crazy, and building on other ideas (piggybacking)

brainstorming

a decision-making rule that groups may use when the goal is to gain support for an idea or plan of action; the ideas are discussed and proposals are modified until a unanimous decision is reached

consensus

a situation in which individuals make inaccurate attributions about the causes of events

correlation and causality bias

Use the _______________ decision-making model when solutions to the problem are not clear, new solutions need to be generated, and or you have time to immerse yourself in the issues.

creative

The first and most important step in innovation is _______________.

creativity

outsourcing a problem to a crowd

crowdsourcing

making choices among alternative courses of action, including inaction

decision making

automated responses used to make programmed decisions

decision rule

A tool that supports programmed decisions, a _______________ guides the decision maker to the correct choice and ensure consistency of decision making.

decision tree

diagrams where answers to yes or no questions lead decision makers to address additional questions until they reach the end of the tree

decision trees

someone who is assigned the role of challenging and questioning the group; this person may prevent the group from premature agreement

devil's advocate

pros of group decision making

diversity of ideas and can piggyback on others' ideas, greater commitment to ideas, and interaction can be fun and serves as a teambuilding task

when individuals continue on a failing course of action after information reveals this may be a poor path to follow

escalation of commitment bias

Group Decision Support Systems (GDSS) are interactive computer-based systems that combine communication and decision technologies. GDSS can improve the output of a group by making sure that _______________.

every idea is heard

True/False: Escalation of commitment bias describes when information that is more readily available is seen as more likely to occur.

false

cons of individual decision making

fewer ideas, identifying the best individual can be challenging, and possible to put off making decisions if left alone to do it

how different the ideas are from one another; if decision makers are able to generate several unique solutions to a problem, they are high on flexibility

flexibility

three dimensions of creativity

flexibility, fluency, and originality

the number of ideas a person is able to generate

fluency

the tendency of decision makers to be influenced by the way that problems are framed

framing bias

a situation in which good outcomes are attributed to personal characteristics, such as intelligence, but undesirable outcomes are attributed to external circumstances, such as weather

fundamental attribution error

interactive computer-based systems that are able to combine communication and decision technologies to help groups make better decisions

group decision support systems

A group pressure phenomenon that increases the risk of the group making flawed decisions by allowing reductions in mental efficiency, reality testing, and moral judgement is called _______________.

groupthink

the tendency to avoid critical evaluations of ideas the group favors

groupthink

the opposite of overconfidence bias, as it occurs when a person, looking at the past, judges that a mistake that was made should have been recognized as a mistake at the time

hindsight bias

Use the _______________ decision-making model when goals are unclear, there is time pressure and analysis paralysis would be costly, and or you have experience with the problem.

intuitive

Making a decision without conscious reasoning is called _______________.

intuitive decision making

arriving at decisions without conscious reasoning; the model argues that in a given situation, experts making decisions scan the environment for cues to recognize patterns

intuitive decision-making model

systems for managing knowledge in organizations, supporting creation, capture, storage, and dissemination of information

knowledge management systems

a decision-making rule where each member of the group is given a single vote and the option that receives the greatest number of votes is selected

majority rule

Decisions that are unique and important which require conscious thinking, information gathering, and careful consideration of alternatives are called _______________ decisions.

nonprogrammed

unique, nonroutine, and important decisions that require conscious thinking, information gathering, and careful consideration of alternatives

nonprogrammed decisions

how unique a person's ideas are

originality

when individuals overestimate their ability to predict future events

overconfidence bias

A _______________ is a way to imagine what might go wrong and avoid it before implementing the decision or having to make adjustments during implementation.

premortem

the step in which the need for problem solving becomes apparent

problem identification

Mundane decisions that usually do not take much time and are fairly straightforward are _______________ decisions.

programmed

choices that occur frequently enough that we develop an automated response to them

programmed decisions

Use the _______________ decision-making model when information on alternatives can be gathered and quantified, the decision is important, and/or you are trying to maximize your outcome.

rational

a decision-making model which describes the series of steps that decision makers should consider if their goal is to maximize their outcome

rational decision-making model

when individuals draw broad conclusions from small sets of observations instead of more reliable sources of information derived from large, randomly-drawn samples

sampling misunderstanding bias

accepting the first alternative that meets minimum criteria

satisfice

Stopping at the very first option that meets your minimally-accepted criteria, even though other options yet to be considered may be better, is known as _______________.

satisficing

True/False: In the bounded rationality model of decision making, individuals intentionally limit their options to a management set and choose the best alternative without conducting an exhaustive search for alternatives.

true

True/False: It is very important for managers to make good decisions because they are responsible for allocating their organization's scarce resources.

true

True/False: The rational decision making model should be used when information on alternatives can be gathered and quantified.

true

pros of individual decision making

typically faster than group decision making, best individual in a group usually outperforms the group, and accountability is easier to determine

the stage when the decision maker consciously verifies the feasibility of the solution and implements the decision

verification and application

a variation of brainstorming where the group focuses on ideas that are impossible and then imagines what would need to happen to make them possible

wildstorming