Team work: not all it is cracked up to be?

• Author: Kavanagh, Shayne

Wiser: Getting Beyond Groupthink to Make Groups Smarter

Cass R. Sunstein and Reid Hastie

Harvard Business Review Press

2015, 272 pages, $27

It is a truism that teamwork is better than going it alone, but in Wiser: Getting Beyond Groupthink to Make Groups Smarter, Cass Sunstein and Reid Hastie cite an array of scientific evidence demonstrating that groups often perform worse than individuals when it comes to making decisions.

THE FOUR MAIN PITFALLS

Why do groups often make poor decisions? The authors identify four primary reasons.

1. Amplification of Errors. One of the supposed advantages of groups is that the group will correct the errors of individual members. The idea is that the other members of the group will catch the error and offer countervailing information. It turns out, however, that groups often amplify those errors instead. For example, psychologists have found that one of the leading errors in judgment that people make it is being overconfident--assuming they are doing better than they actually are or that they know more about a topic than they actually do. Group interactions often increase the members' collective confidence because speaking with each other provides a perceived confirmation of their position. For example, I might be overconfident in my prediction that sales tax revenues will be $20 million next year. If 1 go to a group meeting and my colleagues offer something that I perceive as confirmation (even if it is only their failure to object), then I become even more confident in my prediction.

2. The Cascade Effect. Another perceived advantage of groups is that of bringing diverse viewpoints to the table. However, groups are often subject to "cascade effects"--group members tend to follow the statements and actions of those who spoke before. This effect can be especially pronounced when higher-ranking individuals speak first, but the cascade effect happens even with people of similar rank because those who speak later don't want to be the "odd man out" by contradicting a view expressed earlier by another group member.

   To continue the example of the $20 million sales tax forecast, imagine you are the CFO and you announce your prediction at a meeting with the organization's budget analysts. How likely is it that the budget analysts will contradict your view in this meeting, even if they have access to information suggesting that a different forecast would be better? Far less likely than any good CFO would like, Sunstein...