Part 3 in the series by Wollongong psychologist Jo Lunn

Remember Katia and Henry, the neighbours who had enjoyed each other’s company and connected over a love of vegetable gardening. Katia and Henry still haven’t spoken since that day a few months ago when they disagreed over a local community issue. 

Katia found a new friend she met at work – Anna, whose upbringing was like Katia. Both their mums emigrated from the same area of Italy at young ages to Wollongong and their dads grew up locally.  As well as eating lunch together at work, they catch up fortnightly, cooking and eating their favourite Italian meals. Anna also went through a divorce a few years earlier. Katia feels that Anna understands what she is going through. Anna really enjoys Katia’s company and the connection that they have over having similar life experiences. 

Henry is still active with his online group and contacts his friend Kim regularly. It is a place where Henry feels people understand the important issues going on locally and in the world. Last Thursday while shopping, Henry ran into Daniel. He  used to work with Daniel at the hospital. Even though they worked in different departments they often had to consult over patients with complex health needs and they had enjoyed working together. They often came from different medical perspectives but could always come to a compromise about patient care. Daniel has asked Henry to join him for a golf game the following week.

In the last two articles, we have discussed the following topics.

How our brains are designed to keep us alive:

• by overestimating the level of threat – if I overestimate the level of threat, I am far more likely to survive the day than if I underestimate the level of threat;
• by connecting with other human beings – if we work as a team, we are far more likely to survive than if we are on our own;

We need to connect with other human beings for our biological, psychological and emotional wellbeing:

• Social isolation and loneliness have the same risk of a heart attack as smoking or obesity;
• Our brains have mirror neurons that help us tap into how others might be feeling to understand others' experiences;
• We get neurotransmitter rewards (feel goods) when we connect to other human beings and are more likely to be depressed and anxious if we don’t feel connected to others.

Our need to connect and work as a team means that we will conform with those around us. 

Conformity helps us set up general agreement on the basic rules of our society and how we work together to achieve common goals. For example, agreement that our leaders should be periodically elected, we have the right to live our lives and people should not be imprisoned without just cause and a legal trial, our children should have access to clean water and schooling, public funds are used to support access to services like transport, medical support, education and so on.

Working out the finer details of how these ideals are applied is a lot more complicated!

Groupthink goes way beyond conformity. The Cambridge Dictionary defines groupthink as the process in which bad decisions are made by a group because its members do not want to express opinions, suggest new ideas, etc. that others may disagree with.

Groupthink shuts down discussion of the rules, the way the group operates and instead demands complete acceptance of the group approach. The group is not made up of people who agree on a topic, rather the group becomes a person's identity.  The group promotes the ‘us and them’ message – agree with everything we say or you are against us. 

Group members don’t express doubts, concerns or views that disagree with the main group because they are not given space to do so. Instead, if they try, they are ignored, rejected, ridiculed or at worst excluded from the group for thinking differently.

So, heads up – if you want to connect with this kind of group – keep your doubts and concerns to yourself if you want to stay in it.

When nobody is voicing reflections on what the group is doing, there is a real risk of moral, ethical, practical issues being ignored and potentially the group moving away from the reason it was formed in the first place.   

How does groupthink occur?

It is more likely to happen when people are stressed and especially when they feel threatened and time pressured to make decisions.

Groupthink is a tactic that can be tapped into by politicians, movements, causes, cults and organisations for their own benefit – accumulating money and power. Groupthink is divisive and exclusionary. It might get people into power, make money or get something through parliament but ironically, from an effectiveness perspective, it will eventually fail or always be far less than what it could be.

Why? Because it is diverse thinking, working together and inclusion that has led to human success across the globe. 

The most successful humans have been the ones who respectfully explored and embraced new ideas, while accounting for traditional knowledge, and who adapted to their environment. Always reflecting on how and why they did things, constantly reviewing what’s working and what’s not, trying to improve how we do things and to improve our lives and the lives of those around us. This is when humans are at their best, calmest, healthiest and happiest, with true connection through acceptance of difference and learning from each other.

Even though people engage with groupthink to reduce their anxiety about a threat and to connect to others, essentially their anxiety only grows as the group continues to emphasise the ‘us and them’ model. And you’re not really connected to people who will reject, criticise or ridicule you for expressing your legitimate concerns because the relationship is superficial and precarious.

Think about the groups you are part of. Your direct family, close friends, social groups, work teams, community groups or movements, political affiliations, hobby or interest groups.

Can you speak openly about what concerns you in the group, are you able to discuss how to make it work better? Is the group open to changing how things are done if it means better outcomes for its members, cause or goals? What does it feel like to be honest with someone about your thoughts and experiences rather than keep up a front? If you could change something or express a concern, what would it be and how might you go about raising it to your family, friends and the groups you are part of?  Do you think your feedback would be accepted?

The next article will ask, 'How do we find a way to talk about an issue if our views are so different?'

Read the 'Don't Eat Me' Brain series

Part 1: Inside the ‘don’t eat me’ brain: Why we’re hardwired for connection

Part 2: Groupthink: The dark side of our need to connect

Part 3: Groupthink: What is it and how can I avoid it?

Part 4: Taking our brains back: How to avoid traps targeting profit and power for others

Part 5: Does it pass the CRAAP Test: A guide to spotting misinformation

References

• Groupthink, Psychology Today
• How Do We Turn Down the Heat in U.S. Politics?, Greater Good Magazine, July 2024
• How Toxic Language Leads to Political Violence, Greater Good Magazine, July 2024
• Getting Serious About Diversity: Enough Already with the Business Case, Harvard Business Review, December 2020