We have new and used copies available, in 2 editions. Psychological studies of policy decisions and fiascoes in 1982, the concept of groupthink was used to explain many other faulty decisions in history. Buy victims of groupthink updated second edition by janis, irving lester isbn. In many ways, the worlds infectiousdisease specialists and political leaders succumbed to a similar kind of groupthink in the critical months before the wuhan coronavirus erupted into a global. Janis defines groupthink as a psychological drive for consensus at any cost that suppresses dissent and appraisal of alternatives in cohesive decisionmaking groups.
Janis publication is consistently being the very best close friend for investing little time in your workplace, night time, bus, as well as everywhere. Without giving away a fantastic book that discusses the theory of groupthink and recounts the issues related to it during two of the most significant failures in us military history, ie the bay of pigs and pearl harbor. A psychological study of foreign policy decisions and fiascoes. A mode of thinking that people engage in when they are deeply involved in a cohesive group, when the members strivings for unanimity override their motivation to realistically appraise alternative courses of action. A psychological study of foreign policy decisions and fiascoes by irving l. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Janis identifies the causes and fateful consequences of groupthink, the process that takes over when decisionmaking bodies agree for the sake of agreeing to abandon their critical judgment. A psychological study of foreignpolicy decisions and fiascoes, which focused on the psychological mechanism behind foreign policy decisions such as the pearl harbor bombing, the vietnam war, and the bay of pigs invasion.
Victims of groupthink by irving lester janis, unknown. Nov 17, 2017 for him, groupthink indicated the deterioration in mental efficiency, reality testing, and moral judgments as a result of group pressures towards conformity, unanimity and so on. These results, however, do not represent particularly strong support for the groupthink model given that such factors would seem likely to produce defective decisionmaking even in the total absence of groupthink reactions. Managing groups and teamsgroupthink wikibooks, open books. The perils of groupthink in the boardroom leading governance. A psychological study of foreignpolicy decisions and fiascoes, by irving l. We enjoy independent thought, they suffer from groupthink. After the publication of janis book victims of groupthink in 1972, and a revised edition with the title groupthink.
His findings came from research into why a team reaches an excellent decision one time, and a disastrous one the next. A fantastic book that discusses the theory of groupthink and recounts the issues related to it during two of the most significant failures in us military history, i e the bay of pigs and pearl harbor. Apr 21, 2017 groupthink, pack mentality, the relative anonymity of social media, and other modern phenomena all seem to work together like a team of hookworms. As well as being a classic of social psychology, janis book is essential reading for anyone who has ever had to make a decision under pressure, especially people in management positions or politicians. Later sections in the book provide advice for people in similar positions on how to avoid being a victim of group think. Janis showed how this phenomenon contributed to some of the major u. Janis gave the following definition of groupthink gt. Janiss groupthink quick reference groupthink was made famous by irving janis in his book victims of groupthink. The annals of the american academy of political and social science 1973 407. The next pair reflect the tunnel vision members use to view the problem. Groupthink occurs in groups when individual thinking or individual creativity is lost or subverted to stay within the comfort zone of the consensus view. Numerous and frequentlyupdated resource results are available from this search.
As well as being a classic of social psychology, janis book is essential reading for anyone who has ever had to make a decision under pressure, especially people in. Janis summarizes this attitude as everything is going to work out all right because we are a special group. A psychological study of foreignpolicy decisions and fiascoes by janis, irving lester. Janis background in social sciences paved the way for his groupthink theory. In 1972, janis published his book victims of groupthink. Grant provides the classic definition of groupthink as the tendency to seek consensus instead of fostering dissent p. J29 1982 the physical object pagination xii, 349 p. In groupthink in his classic 1972 study, victims of groupthink. In groupthink, his final book, the late, eminent journalist and bestselling author christopher booker seeks to identify the hidden key to understanding much that is disturbing about the world today. A fantastic book that discusses the theory of groupthink and employs, as case study, two of the most significant failures in us military history, ie the bay of pigs and pearl harbor. I read this book as an undergrad in international relations years ago, and i feel as if i have thought about it daily since january 20, 2017. Fortunately, he had a propensity for selfsubversion.
Janis identifies the causes and fateful consequences of groupthink, the process that takes over when. The authors believe that a certain amount of groupthink can be beneficial in small groups. The groupthink syndrome is a psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group environment, in which theres an overpowering need for reaching consensus which results in snap judgments and decisionmaking without proper research. Trump, and the punditrys scary groupthink realclearpolitics. His book your creative power was published in 1948. He attempted to determine why groups, oftenconsisting of individuals with exceptional intellect and talent, made irrational decisions. Desiree loria, junior communication studies major at azusa pacific university. This will go much better if youve read the book already, dear. A psychological study of foreignpolicy decisions and fiascoes. A psychological study of foreignpolicy decisions and fiascos 1972 and his revised edition in 1982. As a controlled experiment, he looks at two reputed.
Some conclude groupthink is no better than a myth, while others believe it is a brilliant construct. A group dynamics approach to explain aspects of american foreign. Prices including delivery for victims of groupthink by irving l. How to recognize the dangers of groupthink a backstage. Nov 25, 2015 to fix group idea generation, then, be aware of when you are trying to diverge and when you are trying to converge.
A psychological study of foreignpolicy decisions and fiascoes by irving l janis online at alibris. To make intelligent decisions, one needs to seriously consult with people outside the core groupthink group, and otherwise touch base with the reality outside the group. Psychological studies of policy decisions and fiascoes in 1982, the concept of groupthink was used by whom. With reference to the ideas of a yale professor who fi. In fact, most of the evidence cited in this book supports the idea that group thinking, like thinking in general, goes awry when there is a failure to evaluate all the available evidence for relevance and. Groups experiencing groupthink do not consider all alternatives and they desire unanimity at the expense of quality decis. A psychological study of foreignpolicy decisions and fiascos. A psychological study of foreignpolicy decisions and fiascoes irving lester janis houghton, mifflin, 1972 policy sciences 277 pages. A read is counted each time someone views a publication summary such as the title, abstract, and list of authors, clicks on a figure, or views or downloads the fulltext. A psychological study of foreignpolicy decisions and fiascoes by irving lester janis author. Janis was an american research psychologist who studied at yale university and was a professor at the university of california, berkeley.
The problemsolving process that prevents groupthink. Janis coined the term groupthink after the newspeak vocabulary used in george orwells book 1984. We censor ourselves to avoid conflict within our team. The illusion of invulnerability the new york times. This is one of the key characteristics of groupthink. Testing limitations, and their mixed experimental results, lead to a wide diversity of perspectives regarding the model.
Oclcs webjunction has pulled together information and resources to assist library staff as they consider how to handle coronavirus. But for our present purpose, we can draw out from his work three characteristics of policy. Groupthink is a concept that was identified by irving janis a forefather in the study of group dynamics in 1972 that refers to faulty decisionmaking in a group. Why do individually wise, able, informed, and dedicated foreign policy decision makers sometimes make some absolutely disastrous. We fail to speak up or offer an alternative idea in group meetings and discussion simply because we want to. A psychological study of foreign policy decisions and fiascoes, he addressed the social dynamics operating in the. I was on a group design project, 10 years after reading this book, when i suddenly realized groupthink had taken control. Reliable information about the coronavirus covid19 is available from the world health organization current situation, international travel.
Jul 14, 2004 ah, secondguessers say, but what about groupthink. Victims of groupthink by irving lester janis, unknown edition, victims of. This book could easily be updated with the recent problems experienced in the middle east. Irving janis introduced the theory of groupthink in his classic study victims of groupthink in 1972. While a professor friend of mine recommended it with caveats that it had some factual biases, it is an excellent piece that explicates some of the problems in. Sep 05, 2015 had hirschman ended his book there, he would have won universal applause from his liberal allies for exposing conservative groupthink. Irving l janis janis identifies the causes and fateful consequences of groupthink, the process that takes over when decisionmaking bodies agree for the sake of agreeing to abandon their critical judgment. Nov 08, 2016 education groupthink its a shame that political polarization has infected the education debate. Irving lester janis developed a study on decision making based on human social behavior in which maintaining group cohesiveness and solidarity is felt more important than considering the facts in a realistic manner. In an unprecedented way, janis applied ideas from smallgroup analysis to the explanation of policy fiascoes. Peoples common sense and ability to perform problem solving, make good decisions, and raise unpopular views are overridden by the desire for group consensus. Psychological studies of policy decision and fiascoes. The author assesses decision making in several policy fiascoes including bay of pigs, pearl harbor, korean war, and vietnam to understand why that happened. The 2016 election, education and the perils of groupthink.
Janis victims of groupthink paul t hart1 introduction victims of groupthink. For example, early in the process of problemsolving, think carefully about the. Janis coined the term groupthink, and published his research in the 1972 book, groupthink. Quite simply groupthink, as yale psychology professor janis employs the term, is a defective decisionmaking process in which member conformity to the majority or a leader. Nov 04, 2016 groupthink occurs when a team or organization becomes so similar in their outlook that they lose the ability to be creative in their decision making. The groupthink syndrome puttin cologne on the rickshaw. What are some examples of the sociology term groupthink, that. How this is done is indirectly a concern of janis victims of groupthink, provocatively subtitled a psychological study of foreign policy decisions and fiascoes.
The first two stem from overconfidence in the groups prowess. Usually the individuals in the group have not been taught to think for themselves, and either fear dissenting, or dont know there is another way of thinking. Victims of groupthink a psychological study of foreign. Mar 29, 2007 groupthink is when everybody agrees on the same subject, without any question. Later on, the book was also adopted by students of organizational behavior.
Although, groupthink has historically been reserved for small groups, a society in which. Open library is an open, editable library catalog, building towards a web page for every book ever published. Skepticism toward other peoples claims is, of course, not a particularly noteworthy characteristic. A psychological study of foreign policy decisions and fiascos. Aug 25, 2016 the entire book was good, but the chapter that resonated the most with me was entitled rethinking groupthink. Groupthink principles and fundamentals in organizations. Janis identifies the causes and fateful consequences of groupthink, the process that takes over when decisionmaking bodies agree for the sake of agreeing to. Groupthink was made famous by irving janis in his book victims of groupthink. May 30, 2019 groupthink is a phenomenon developed in groups marked by the consensus of opinion without critical reasoning or evaluation of consequences or alternatives. A study of the phenomenon and dangers of groupthink. Dec 11, 2009 janis, in his book groupthink, defines the terms involved and presents examples.
Janiss book victims of groupthink described it as a deterioration of mental efficiency, reality testing and moral judgment that results from ingroup pressures. Before gulf war i, the consensus held that saddam was five to 10 years away from producing a nuclear bomb, but when we went in, we. In the first edition victims of groupthink, iriving l. Groupthink example, article, psychology etc dennis g. The first, traditionally labeled symptoms of groupthink, include illusions of invulnerability, collective rationalization, stereotypes of outgroups, selfcensorship, mind guards, and belief in the inherent morality of the group. Defines groupthink as a psychological drive for consensus at any cost that suppresses dissent and appraisal of alternatives in cohesive decision making groups. Since groupthink isnt anything new, it leads me to believe that we as humans are always seeking outlets for such behaviors and compulsions. I use the term groupthink as a quick and easy way to refer to the mode of thinking that persons engage in when concurrenceseeking becomes so dominant in a cohesive ingroup that it tends to override realistic appraisal of alternative courses in action. A psychological study of foreign policy decisions and fiascoes, by i l janis, revd by s alsop. After the publication of irving janis book victims of groupthink in 1972 and a revised edition with the title groupthink. Beyond groupthink is a text written by eric stern et al.
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