Article August 23, 2004 Issue

MORAL COURAGE: THE ANTIDOTE TO 'GROUPTHINK'

Step out of the crowd and think for yourself

By Rosalie E. Dunbar

IN the 1980s, Irving L. Janis, a professor of psychology at Yale University, coined the term groupthink. It describes any situation in which a group of people either bond with each other so well that they are unwilling to question the group's collective decisions, or where outside forces (a deadline, a desire for a specific outcome) keep them from honestly exploring all the options and challenges (see box, p.12).

Under the influence of groupthink, a person with a legitimate concern may fail to raise a legitimate question, in order to maintain the group's comfort zone. Questions may be cut off by other team members, or even the team leader. The resulting decisions generally lead to undesirable results, sometimes even endangering lives.

For example, on February 1, 2003, because of damage to its heat shields, the space shuttle Columbia broke up before it could land, killing all the astronauts on board. The damage to the shields had been detected while Columbia was still in space. Before the ship returned to earth, NASA employees had raised the question of whether or not the damage would endanger the crew. But discussion of possible options was cut off when the team leader said, "I really don't think there is much we can do, so it's not really a factor during the flight because there is not much we can do about it" (James Surowiecki, The Wisdom of Crowds, p. 174. See book review on page 10).