This is a good time to revisit the work of a Yale University psychologist who has been dead for nearly 20 years. Irving L. Janis became famous for this theory of ‘groupthink? which described the errors made by groups when taking collective decisions.
Integrity, Good People, Bad Choices and Life Lessons from the White House.
There is clearly evidence of Groupthink in the greed, corruption and incompetence rampant in Wall Street. The housing bubble was Groupthink in spades. Bernard Madoff relied on Groupthink to fuel his vicious scheme.
Examples of Groupthink in politics abound. It happens when a group is cohesive, isolated from conflicting opinions and where the leader is open and directive. According to psychologists, problem-solving and task-oriented groups are particularly susceptible.
A poignant example of what Groupthink can do to a decent individual in a promising career is the story of Egil ?Bud? Krogh who went to prison for his role in Watergate. He describes his experience in a book entitled Integrity, Good People, Bad Choices and Life Lessons from the White House.
When telling his story about the events of Watergate, Krogh who at 32 was key assistant to President Nixon, shows a photo taken in the Oval Offfice. There he was with the President, Kissinger, Haldeman, and Ehrlichman. It was at that meeting that fatal decisions were made setting Watergate in motion.
Krogh comments that it was a classic case of Groupthink in which he was given an assignment and never considered speaking up to question his powerful superiors. In his book, he comments:
?Why did this burglary happen? I am convinced that a collapse of integrity among those of us who conspired, ordered, and carried out this action was the principal cause.?
In an editorial in the Christian Science Monitor, Krogh writes, ?Those who accept the mantle of public service enter into a de facto covenant?a binding agreement?with those who are led, and the first tenet of that covenant is integrity. Public trust can be restored with a clearer understanding of that covenant.
Krogh, who might have avoided prison by claiming he was just following orders in the interest of national security, decided instead to plead guilty. For him it was a matter of integrity.
Krogh says public servants should ask three questions before taking action. Are decisions thought through to their second, third and fourth order consequences. Are decisions aligned with core values such as truth, fairness, respect, responsibility, and compassion. Finally decisions should benefit others and at the very least do no harm.