Poor Decisions at Waco Essay

     There are eight symptoms of groupthink. The first symptom is when all or most of the group view themselves as invincible which

Groupthink can be defined as a psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group of people in which the desire for harmony or conformity in the group results in irrational decision-making. In 1971, twenty-four psychologically stable men took part in a trial known as The Stanford Prison Experiment. The purpose of the experiment was to prove that an individual’s perception of their own power is heavily influenced by social context and societal expectations of their role. The men involved in the experiment were assigned either the role of a prisoner or a guard to represent positions in society, both with power and without. More specifically, the conductors of The Stanford Prison Experiment focused on analyzing the different behavioral

The Groupthink symptom, Rationale, is described as when victims of Groupthink ignore warnings: they also collectively construct rationalizations in order to discount warnings and other forms of negative feedback that, taken seriously, might lead the group members to reconsider their assumptions each time they recommit themselves to past decisions. An illustration of this symptom is first presented in Act 1 of The Crucible when Reverend Parris tries warn Abigail. Parris discloses, “ Now look you, child, your punishment will come in it’s time. But if

This case, as well as the previous two, are prime examples of how detrimental groupthink can have on the effect of your career or the lives of several others. It may not always be easy to recognize the dangers or altercations groupthink may have, which is why you should always appoint ‘mind guards’ to contradict the decisions made within a group setting. It is always beneficial to seek an outside source for their opinion, as it may be just the idea that the group has

More specifically, whenever a group making policy displays most of the symptoms of Groupthink then "we can expect to find that the group also displays symptoms of defective decision-making. Seven such examples are as Janis states:

Apparent through watching the entirety of the film, “Waco-Rules of Engagement”, extreme measures were enacted upon ‘The Branch Davidians’ – religious followers of David Koresh, by the ATF. By

The term groupthink in this report is defined as, the social psychological phenomenon that results in groups during pressure situations. This social psychology theory is broken down into eight signs. Illusion of invulnerability, Collective rationalization, Belief in inherent morality, Stereotyped views of out-groups, Direct pressure on dissenters, Self-censorship, Illusion of unanimity, Self-appointed “mindguards”. According to research conducted by Irving Janis, there are three conditions to groupthink. The first, "high group cohesiveness" which is the direction for a group to be in unity while working towards a goal, or to satisfy the emotional needs of its members. Secondly, the structural faults such as insulation of the group, lack

1. There are many apparent symptoms of groupthink that are describe within the text. The signs that are clearly mentioned in the text are signs of closed-mindedness and group pressure. Signs of overconfidence are also demonstrated in the text although it may not be clearly stated as so. The members who signed up for the Spiritual Warrior retreat clearly had an “illusion for invulnerability” and a “belief in the inherit morality of the group”.

Groupthink theory often occurs without the group’s realization. Irving Janis formed 8 different symptoms that indicate groupthink. The first of these symptoms is illusions of vulnerability. This occurs when members of the group are overly optimistic and believe that nothing negative will arise from their decision. Janis describes it as taking great risks and acquiring the attitude of “everything is going to be OK, because we are a special group”. Secondly we have belief in inherent morality. This symptom is characterized as the groups thought that they could do no wrong. They believe that they have high morality, that they are right in all situations and they ignore the ethical consequences that could arise because of their decisions. As the third

A topic this week that stood out to me from week 5 readings was in Chapter 9, Foundations of Group Behavior. Chapter 9 is all about group. What I found interesting and new to read upon was about groupthink. I did not know that groupthink is related to norms. I found out that groupthink is considered to be related to norms because it describes situations in which “group pressures for conformity deter that group from critically appraising unusual, minority, or unpopular views” (Robbins, Organizational Behavior 16th). Groupthink is associated with faulty decisions due to mental/moral efficiency. This subject made it interesting to me because I have a degree in historical and political studies. I think back to the time I learned about the Vietnam

Kirst-Ashman describes a group as an entity of two or more individuals that are gathered for a cause (2011). Relying on group members to solve a challenge is not synonymous with absence of opinions and peer reviewed facts. Merging of minds should constitute sharing of ideas and a desire to reach common goals. In my humble opinion, the following groups are more at risk of resulting in groupthink.

Furthermore, groupthink and group polarization also occurred in the movie. Groupthink is the tendency for members to reach solidarity, and the group often avoids questions that could lead to disputes (Iurchevici, 2016). In order for groupthink to occur, the group must be highly cohesive, in a group structure, and in a stressful situation (Kassin et al., 2013). All three of these were present in the movie, as the members of the group

The information following will be divided into six sections, each dedicated to a different part of groupthink. The reason is to clearly show the different causes and effect of groupthink in

“Groupthink” is a term coined by Yale research psychologist Irving Janis to describe a process by which a group can make poor or irrational

Groupthink occurs when a group make wrong decisions as the pressures of group lead to deterioration of “mental efficiency, reality testing, and moral judgment”. There are several symptoms of groupthink. The issues to be resolved for Enron are collective rationalization, stereotypes