Joe Sullivan and Mark Holland, members of the top management at EuAir, an European airlines, were preparing for a meeting to discuss strategies to combat the recent rise in fuel prices. Before the meeting began, Joe and Mark were discussing how oil prices significantly impact the health of the world economy. Joe spoke of how higher oil prices since 1999, partly the result of OPEC supply management policies, contributed to the global economic downturn in 2000-2001. Mark agreed but added that the right kind of strategy can help them overcome and even profitably use this opportunity for hiking fares. Which of the following statements, if true, would denote the occurrence of groupshift in Joe's opinions during the meeting?
A) Joe proposed that the company should invite price quotes from new suppliers to reduce their dependence on their current fuel suppliers.
B) Joe determined that the best strategy would be to slash prices and minimize all fringes that are used for customer service.
C) Joe convinced the top management team to decrease the capacity of the flights.
D) Joe recommended that the prices for business class fares be increased as they represent a less price sensitive group of customers.
E) Joe claimed that aviation fuel was their second largest expense and this was the time to contemplate obtaining a few futures contracts with suppliers.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Groupshift refers to the tendency of group members to make decisions that are more extreme than the initial inclination of its members. Joe's initial discussion with Mark was about the negative impact of rising oil prices, but if during the meeting he proposed slashing prices and minimizing customer service, it would indicate a shift to a more extreme position than initially discussed.

Joe Sullivan and Mark Holland, Members of the Top Management