Recall that in one condition of the experiment conducted by Stasser and Titus (1985) about Student Senate president candidates, all group members had access to the same information, and that in another condition, members had unique information that other group members didn't know. In the second (unshared information) condition, the group made a worse decision than in the first (shared information) condition. This occurred because groups __________.
A) focus discussion on the information that all members know
B) often ignore dissenting opinions
C) seldom can agree on who is most expert
D) avoid differences of opinion, given conformity pressures

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Groups tend to focus discussion on information that all members know, which can lead to a neglect of unique, potentially important information that only some members have. This phenomenon, known as the shared information bias, explains why groups made worse decisions in the condition where members had unique information.

Recall That in One Condition of the Experiment Conducted by Stasser