Thursday, January 15, 2009
Chapter 8: Groupthink
The idea of groupthink is a deadly problem. This problem, which occurs when group members simply agree with ideas instead of evaluating, has had past of creating some of the biggest mistakes in history. Most notably used by the Nazi's in the Wannsee conference, when they made their infamous final solution to kill all of the Jewish people in Europe. Of the fifteen men at the conference none pointed out what a horrible idea this would be. All of these men were intelligent people, they may have been afraid or just extreme in their opinions. Nevertheless, this is one example that shows us how important it is to express our opinions and evaluate the groups choices. Especially at times when we are in fear, it seems even more important to bring light to an opposing view. After learning more about, I have been making an effort to change my sometimes passive ways, to create more dialogue about group decisions in my classes and experiences beyond.
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I agree with you about the negative consequences of groupthink. I see it happening all the time in many of the jobs I have had in my life. People either don't care about there work or are afraid of there superiors(sometimes rightfully so). I believe it is up to higher ranking people in the organization to create a organzational culture that promotes people bring forth the best idea and speak there mind about ideas while in a group. Your example of the Nazi's is a good one of the problem with group think!
ReplyDeleteI cannot agree more. Personally, I believe that when groupthink occurs, people are simply keeping their opinions to themselves because they are afraid of expressing their point of view or they fear what other people may think. As you have noted, it is important for everyone to express their opinions and evaluate them all, not simply agree with the first person’s opinion. Imagine, what could have been prevented if those people who did oppose the holocaust would have spoken up? I have head stories about people who opposed the holocaust and were in the German armed forces, yet they never spoke up in fear of contradicting the notion that the Jewish people were to blame for Germany’s misfortune.
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