How Can Groups Make Better Decisions?

A common presumption is that groups perform better than individuals in making decisions, which is why they are so often called on to do so. Yet, we all know that groups, at times, make very poor decisions that can have costly consequences, not only for the members, but also for others affected by their decisions once implemented. This inconsistency between what appears to be a reasonable presumption and what, in practice, all too frequently occurs has long been an interest of Professor Dennis Gouran and the driving for behind a twenty-five year, ongoing project involving the role of communication in assuring that decision-making groups live up to their potential and arrive at sound choices in matters of more than trivial significance to those involved in the process and those affected. To date, the project has produced considerable evidence that communication plays a vital role in assuring that the members of decision-making groups address various aspects of their tasks in ways that make it more likely that they will choose wisely and appropriately. The project has also resulted in the emergence of a major theory called “The Functional Theory of Communication in Decision-Making and Problem-Solving Groups.” For more details of the status of the project, one may wish to consult the documents below.

Gouran, D. S. (2003). Communication skills for group decision making. In J. O. Greene & B. R. Burleson (Eds.), The handbook of communication and interaction skills (pp. 835-870). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

Gouran, D. S. (2003). Leadership as the art of counteractive influence in decision making and problem-solving groups. In R. Y. Hirokawa, R. S. Cathcart, L. A. Samovar, & L. D. Henman (Eds.), Small group communication theory & practice: An anthology (8th ed., pp. 27-38). Los Angeles: Roxbury.

Gouran, D. S. (2003). Reflections on the type of question as a determinant of the form of interaction in decision-making and problem-solving groups. Communication Quarterly, 51, 11-125.

Gouran, D. S. (2005). Shifting the frame for viewing rational choice in decision-making and problem-solving groups. In C. A. Willard (Ed.), Critical problems in argumentation: Selected papers from the thirteenth NCA/AFA Conference on Argumentation (pp. 194-202). Washington, DC: National Communication Association.

Gouran, D. S., & Hirokawa, R. Y. (2003). Effective decision making and problem solving in groups: A functional perspective. In R. Y. Hirokawa, R. S. Cathcart, L. A. Samovar, & L. D. Henman (Eds.), Small group communication theory & practice: An anthology (8th ed., pp. 172-183). Los Angeles: Roxbury.

Gouran, D. S., & Hirokawa, R. Y. (2005). Facilitating communication in group decision-making discussions. In S. Schuman (Ed.), The IAF handook of group facilitation (pp. 351-360). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.