Groupthink: Psychological Studies of Policy Decisions and FiascoesGroupthink - the psychological drive for consensus at any cost that suppresses disagreement and prevents the appraisal of alternatives in cohesive decision-making groups. In the first edition (Victims of groupthink), Iriving L. Janis showed how this phenomenon contributed to some of the major U.S. foreign policy fiascos of recent decades: the Korean War stalemate, the escalation of the Vietnam War, the failure to be prepared for the attack on Pearl Harbor, and the Bay of Pigs blunder. He also examined cases, such as the handling of the Cuban Missile Crisis and the formulation of the Marshall Plan, where groupthink was avoided. Here, in this revised and expanded edition, Janis applies his hypothesis to the Watergate cover-up, portraying in detail how groupthink helped to put the participants on a disastrous couurse and keep them there. In addition, he presents some fresh ideas on how and why groupthink occurs and offers suggestions for avoiding it. |
From inside the book
Results 1-3 of 68
Page 136
... judgment has been attacked by a number of political critics . They claim that Kennedy unnecessarily created a ... judgments to which they were exposed , even when the information or judgments did not support the course of action they ini ...
... judgment has been attacked by a number of political critics . They claim that Kennedy unnecessarily created a ... judgments to which they were exposed , even when the information or judgments did not support the course of action they ini ...
Page 171
... judgment is . Marshall's way of handling the assignment may have been characteristic of his personal style of ... judgments and to avoid exerting pressure to obtain compliance with their ini- tial preferences . Avoiding insulation by ...
... judgment is . Marshall's way of handling the assignment may have been characteristic of his personal style of ... judgments and to avoid exerting pressure to obtain compliance with their ini- tial preferences . Avoiding insulation by ...
Page 307
... judgment is wrong , he is at a disadvantage at that late date in trying to persuade the members otherwise , unless he glar- ingly uses his power , which might impair his relations with his advisers and even create a permanent rift with ...
... judgment is wrong , he is at a disadvantage at that late date in trying to persuade the members otherwise , unless he glar- ingly uses his power , which might impair his relations with his advisers and even create a permanent rift with ...
Contents
Why So Many Miscalculations? | 2 |
The Bay of Pigs | 14 |
The Wrong | 48 |
Copyright | |
7 other sections not shown
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
Acheson administration Admiral Kimmel advisers advisory group Allen Dulles alternative American assumptions attack avoid Bay of Pigs bombing Castro Chiefs of Staff Chinese cohesive group Communist concurrence-seeking consensus course of action critical Cuba Cuban missile crisis danger Dean Defense deliberations discussion effect Ehrlichman enemy evidence Executive Committee expected fiasco group dynamics groupthink hypothesis groupthink syndrome groupthink tendencies Haldeman Hawaii Ibid in-group inner circle invasion plan Japanese Johnson Joint Chiefs judgment Kennan Kennedy's Korean War leader MacArthur's major Marshall Plan McNamara meetings military moral naval Navy group Nixon norms North Korea North Vietnam officers participants Pearl Harbor Pentagon Papers policy-making group political present President Kennedy President's pressures problem procedures psychological questions responsible risks Robert Kennedy role Rusk Schlesinger Secretary shared social Sorensen Soviet Union stereotypes stress symptoms of groupthink thinking threat tion transcripts Truman Vietnam Vietnam War warning Watergate cover-up White House group Wohlstetter