GROUP COHESIVENESS AND QUALITY OF DECISION-MAKING - AN INTEGRATION OFTESTS OF THE GROUPTHINK HYPOTHESIS

This article reports the results of a mete-analytic integration of the effects of group cohesiveness on quality of decision making in groups . Overall, there was no significant effect of cohesiveness on the qual ity of group decisions. However more cohesive groups rendered poorer q uality decisions when additional antecedent conditions of groupthink w ere present (directive leadership). In addition, the component of cohe siveness that appears to be critical for the emergence of groupthink i s interpersonal attraction: Cohesiveness impaired decision quality mor e as the operationalization of cohesiveness entailed more interpersona l attraction, and less as the operationalization entailed more commitm ent to task or group pride. Finally, more cohesive groups did render p oorer quality decisions as group size increased Discussion considers t he implications of these results for future research the relation betw een cohesiveness and quality of decision making in particular, and on groupthink in general.