Final answer:
Groupthink is the modification of opinions within a group to match what individuals believe is the group consensus, often leading to poor decision-making. Symptoms include self-censorship and an illusion of unanimity, while strategies like seeking external input and private voting can mitigate its effects.
Step-by-step explanation:
Groupthink is a psychological phenomenon where the desire for group consensus overrides people's common sense desire to present alternatives, critique a position, or express an unpopular opinion. Essentially, groupthink is the tendency for groups to reach decisions without accurately assessing all the information since individual members tend to go along with ideas they think the others support. This often leads to irrational or dysfunctional decision-making outcomes, where individual members modify their opinions to align with what they perceive to be the group consensus.
There are several symptoms of groupthink, such as the illusion of invulnerability, collective rationalization, self-censorship, and an illusion of unanimity. This phenomenon is further exacerbated by group polarization, which refers to the strengthening of the group's prevailing opinions after discussing a viewpoint. To combat groupthink, strategies like seeking outside opinions, private voting, and development of a contingency plan are essential. These strategies help in maintaining a balance between group cohesion and critical thinking for better decision-making.