Decision Making

Question 1

Decision making is an integrated sequence of activities that involves:

Answer 1

• Gathering, interpreting, and exchanging information
• Creating and identifying alternative courses of action
• Choosing among alternatives
• Implementing a choice and monitoring its consequences

Question 2

Framing bias

Answer 2

People react to a particular choice in different ways depending on how it is presented

Ex. People tend to avoid risk when a positive frame is presented but seek risks when a negative frame is presented.

Question 2

Decision making biases that plague individual decision making

Answer 2

• framing bias
• overconfidence bias
• confirmation bias
• decision fatigue bias

Question 3

Overconfidence bias

Answer 3

Tendency for people to place unwarranted confidence in their judgements

Question 4

Confirmation bias

Answer 4

Tendency for people to consider evidence that supports their position, hypothesis, or desires and disregard or discount evidence that refutes their beliefs

Question 5

Group decision rules

Answer 5

Teams need a method by which to combine individuals decisions to yield a group decision

Question 6

Overall objectives of group decision rules

Answer 6

• to find the alternative that the greatest number of team members prefer
• to find the alternative the fewest members object to
• select the choice that maximizes team welfare

Question 7

Individual versus group decision making in demonstrable tasks

Answer 7

Groups perform better than independent individuals on a wide range of demonstrable tasks

Group performance increases over that of individuals as the demonstrability of the task increases

Question 8

Individual version group decision making in demonstrate leadership tasks

Answer 8

• groups perform better than interdependent individuals on a wide range of demonstrable task
• group performance increase over that of individuals as the demonstrability of the task increases
• more likely to give into the overconfidence bias, regardless of their actual accuracy
• more likely to exacerbate some shortcoming displayed by individuals

Question 9

Group to individual transfer

Answer 9

Phenomenon where individual group members become more accurate during group interaction

Question 10

Group decision rules:

Overall objectives of these rules:

Answer 10

Teams need a method by which to combine individuals decisions to yield a group decision

• to find the alternative that the greatest number of team members prefer
• to find the alternative the fewest members object to
• select the choice that maximizes team welfare

Question 11

Decision making pitfall 1

GROUPTHINK

Symptoms of groupthink

Answer 11

Occurs when team members place decision consensus above all other decision priorities

• overestimation of the group
• closed-mindedness
• pressures toward uniformity

Question 12

Causes of Groupthink

Answer 12

• incomplete survey of alternatives and objectives
• failure to reexamine alternatives and examine preferred choices
• selection bias
• poor information search
• failure to create contingency plans

Question 13

How to avoid groupthink

Answer 13

• monitor team size
• provide a face-saving mechanism for teams
• the risk technique
• invite different perspectives
• appoint a devil’s advocate
• structure discussion principles
• establish procedures for protecting alternative viewpoints
• identify a second solution
• beware of time pressure

Question 14

Decision making pitfall 2

Escalation of commitment

Answer 14

Under some conditions, teams will persist with a losing course of action, even in the face of clear evidence to the contrary

Question 15

Four key processes involved in the escalation of commitment cycle

Answer 15

Project, psychological, social, structural determinants

Question 16

To avoid escalation of commitment…

Answer 16

• set limits
• avoid the bystander effect
• avoid tunnel vision
• recognize sunk costs
• avoid bad mood
• external review of decision

Question 17

Decision making pitfall 3

Abilene Paradox

Answer 17

A form of pluralistic ignorance in which group members adopt a position because they feel other members desire it; team members don’t challenge one another because they want to avoid conflict or achieve consensus

Question 18

Self-limiting behavior

Answer 18

Person’s reluctance to air or defend viewpoints

Can lead to problems like the Abilene Paradox

Question 19

Causes of self-limiting behavior in teams

Answer 19

• presence of someone with expertise
• the presentation of a compelling argument
• lack of confidence in one’s ability to contribute
• group sees decision as meaningless

Question 20

Strategies to avoid Abilene Paradox

Answer 20

• Confront the issue in a team setting
• Conduct a private vote
• Minimize status difference
• Utilize the scientific method
• take responsibility for failure

Question 21

Decision making pitfall 4

Group Polarization

Answer 21

The tendency for group discussion to intensify group opinion, thus producing more extreme judgements that might be obtained by pooling individuals views separately

Question 22

Psychological explanation for group polarization

Answer 22

• the need to be right
• the need to be liked
• conformity pressure

Question 23

Decision making pitfall 5

Unethical decision making

Answer 23

Rational expectations model- people’s own motivations are to maximize ones own utility and self-interest
False consensus- tendency for people to believe their own views, when really they don’t
Vicarious licensing-people are more likely to express prejudiced and immoral attitudes when their group members past behavior has established non-prejudiced credentials
Desensitization

Question 24

How to prevent unethical decision making:

Answer 24

• Accountability for behavior
• Contemplation
• Eliminate conflicts of interest
• create cultures of integrity
• future self-orientation

Question 25

Summary of decision making

Answer 25

• Teams make important decisions, and not all of them will be good
• learning from failure is necessary but often difficult
• Developing and using decision making procedures is key for decision making teams
• All decisions involve a certain level of risk, but risk can be minimized
• There is a difference between principled and unethical decision making

Question 26

To promote Inquiry Orientation

Answer 26

• Set the stage -build climate of psychological safety, frame the group decision-making task as a collective learning process
• lead the discussion
• Review the process (how did you we do?)

Question 27

Two conditions forgetter group discussions are

Answer 27

An inquiry orientation
- frame decision-making task as collaborative learning process

Psychological safety
- individuals need to feel comfortable speaking up

And inquiry orientation in an environment of psychological safety leads to better decision making