STEREOTYPES, NEGATIVITY BIAS, AND THE DISCUSSION OF UNSHARED INFORMATION IN DECISION-MAKING GROUPS

Previous research demonstrates that groups are more likely to discuss information shared by all group members than information known by only one group member (i.e., unshared information). It was hypothesized in this study that stereotypic expectancies and the negativity bias (i.e ., the tendency to use negative information more than positive informa tion) made groups less likely to overlook unshared information. Result s from Experiment I indicate that a stereotype was activated and resul ted in individuals rating a male applicant higher than a female applic ant for a masculine gender-typed position. No effects for stereotypic expectancies were found in the group decision-making task (Experiment 2), but the negativity bias was found to increase the discussion of bo th shared and unshared information. The implications for future resear ch are considered.