This paper reports results of an empirical investigation of the groupthink theoreticalframework presented in Janis'second edition of Groupthink. Factor analysis was used to develop scales to measure the aspects of groupthink proposed by Janis (1982). Results supported some, but not all, of the symptoms and defects postulated by Janis. Next, a path analytic procedure was utilized to test the implied causal ordering of the Groupthink model (Janis, 1982, p. 244). This study provides limited support for the causal sequence specified in the model. However, the relationship between groupthink-induced decision defects and outcomes were not as strong as Janis suggests. These results prompt the authors to agree with Courtright (1978) that many intervening and/or moderating factors not included in the Janis framework influence decision outcomes.
This paper reviews the decision situation surrounding the decision to launch the space shuttle Challenger in January 1986 in the light of the groupthink hypothesis. A revised framework is presented that proposes time and leadership style as moderators of the manner in which group characteristics lead to groupthink symptoms.
This article reviews the research on groupthink and analyzes the results and identifies areas of inconsistency. Based on these analyses and integration of research on the effects of time pressure on group decision making, a revised groupthink framework is presented. The revised framework alters the role of the leader, adjusts the linkages between groupthink antecedents and symptoms, and focuses attention on the importance of time pressure and methodical decision-making procedures on the prevention of groupthink. The revised framework attempts to correct a fundamental flaw of Janis' (1983) model - that is, to explain why within the same group, groupthink can occur during one decision-making situation and not another.
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