LO6 - Team Decision Making

• Team Decision-Making Constraints​

  1. Time constraints.​
  2. Evaluation apprehension.​
  3. Peer pressure to conform.​
  4. Overconfidence (inflated team efficacy).​
• production blocking


  A time constraint in team decision making due to the procedural requirement that only one person may speak at a time.
• Evaluation apprehension


  Occurs when individuals are reluctant to mention ideas

  that seem silly because they believe that others in the

  decision-making team are silently evaluating them.
• team efficacy 


  The collective belief among team members of the team’s capability to successfully complete a task.
• psychological safety


  A shared belief that it is safe to engage in interpersonal

  risk-taking; specifically, that presenting unusual ideas, constructively disagreeing with the majority, and experimenting with new work behaviours will not result in co-workers posing a threat to one’s self-concept, status, or career.
• brainstorming


  A freewheeling, face-to-face meeting where team members aren’t allowed to criticize but are encouraged

  to speak freely, generate as many ideas as possible, and

  build on the ideas of others.
• General Guidelines for Team Decisions​


  1. Checks/balances avoid individual dominance.​
  2. Maintain optimal team size.​
  3. Encourage team confidence but not overconfidence.​
  4. Team norms encourage critical thinking.​
  5. Support psychological safety.​
  6. Use team structures that encourage creativity.​

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• Four brainstorming rules:​

  • Speak freely.​
  • Don’t criticize others or their ideas.​
  • Provide as many ideas as possible.​
  • Build on others’ ideas.
• Brainstorming is successful in field studies and creative firms.
• Success is measured by the most creative idea, NOT number of ideas.
• Brainstorming limitations.​

  • Production blocking.​
  • Fixation/conformity effect.
• brainwriting

  A variation of brainstorming whereby participants

  write (rather than speak about) and share their ideas.
• Brainwriting


  Less production blocking than brainstorming.
• electronic brainstorming


  A form of brainwriting that relies on networked computers

  for submitting and sharing creative ideas.
• Electronic Brainstorming


  Reduces production blocking, evaluation apprehension, conformity.
• Electronic Brainstorming


  Brainwriting with technology.
• nominal group technique

  A variation of brainwriting consisting of three stages:

  • participants (1) silently and independently document their ideas
  • (2) collectively describe these ideas to the other team members without critique, and then (3) silently and independently evaluate the ideas presented.
• conflict

  The process in which one party perceives that its

  interests are being opposed or negatively affected by

  another party.