Better decisions together
Groupthink, dissent and team conflict.
- Level
- Bitesize
- Learning time
- 1 hour 15 minutes
- Where
- Team Development
- Price
- £39
When you step up to a higher level, what you paid in the last 12 months for lower-level courses inside the bigger course comes off its price, in proportion to how much of each is inside it, whichever topic it's from. Courses at the same or a lower level don't give credit against each other. A Focus course or above always costs at least £15. Read the full terms
Certificate of Completion
Overview and Outcomes.
Overview
Capable, well-intentioned teams can still reach poor decisions together. This module explores Irving Janis's groupthink and its symptoms through the Bay of Pigs, clarifies decision rules from leader decides to consensus, and shows how structured dissent changed the outcome in the Cuban Missile Crisis. It adds Jerry Harvey's Abilene paradox and Gary Klein's premortem, and a simple habit: ask who is not sure. Some conflict is essential to good work and some slowly corrodes a team. This module uses Karen Jehn's task, relationship and process conflict, meta-analyses by De Dreu and Weingart and by de Wit and colleagues, Thomas and Kilmann's five modes and Behfar's research on well-functioning teams. The East Kent maternity investigation shows the cost of tribalism, and a five-step conversation offers a practical way in.
What you'll develop
In this Bitesize, you will develop the ability to:
- Identify Janis's symptoms of groupthink and explain why intelligence offers no protection against it.
- Choose and state a decision rule that fits the decision, from leader decides to consensus.
- Plan structured dissent into a decision, using a devil's advocate, subgroups, a premortem or the leader speaking last.
- Distinguish task, relationship and process conflict and explain what the meta-analyses say about each.
- Identify your default conflict mode and describe how well-functioning teams handle disagreement.
The Modules.
1 hour 15 minutes of learning.
- 08Deciding Together: Groupthink and DissentCapable, well-intentioned teams can still reach poor decisions together. This module explores Irving Janis's groupthink and its symptoms through the Bay of Pigs, clarifies decision rules from leader decides to consensus, and shows how structured dissent changed the outcome in the Cuban Missile Crisis. It adds Jerry Harvey's Abilene paradox and Gary Klein's premortem, and a simple habit: ask who is not sure.38 min
- 09Conflict in TeamsSome conflict is essential to good work and some slowly corrodes a team. This module uses Karen Jehn's task, relationship and process conflict, meta-analyses by De Dreu and Weingart and by de Wit and colleagues, Thomas and Kilmann's five modes and Behfar's research on well-functioning teams. The East Kent maternity investigation shows the cost of tribalism, and a five-step conversation offers a practical way in.39 min
Go deeper, and pay only the difference
- You are hereBitesize, 1 hour 15 minutes, £39
- Next stepFocus, Trust, voice and dynamics, 4 hours, £69. Already own the Bitesize? You pay £30.
- Explore, Forming the team, 5 hours 30 minutes, £129. Already own the Bitesize? You pay £90.
- The whole topicImmerse, The team that works, 11 hours, £249. Already own the Bitesize? You pay £210.
When you step up to a higher level, what you paid in the last 12 months for lower-level courses inside the bigger course comes off its price, in proportion to how much of each is inside it, whichever topic it's from. Courses at the same or a lower level don't give credit against each other. A Focus course or above always costs at least £15. Prices per person. Read the full terms
Also part of: More than the sum of its parts, Raising the team’s game
Other Bitesize in the Team Development topic
- What makes a teamTeam development: Tuckman and team effectiveness2 hours£39
- Clear purpose, right peopleTeam charters, goals, roles and composition1 hour 15 minutes£39
- Trust at the centreTrust and psychological safety in teams1 hour 15 minutes£39
- Beneath the surfaceTeam dynamics and the role of the team leader1 hour 15 minutes£39
- Teams that learnTeam coaching, reflexivity and debriefs1 hour 15 minutes£39
- Across distance and boundariesHybrid teams and multi-agency working1 hour 15 minutes£39
