Biased information search in group decision making.

TLDR

People tend to seek supporting over conflicting information in decisions, and this bias can have both functional and dysfunctional effects in group contexts. The study examined whether biased information search occurs in group decision making across three experiments. Across three experiments, both individuals and groups preferred supporting information, with the bias being stronger in homogeneous groups; this effect was replicated among managers and was mediated by higher commitment and confidence in homogeneous groups.

Abstract

Research has shown that people prefer supporting to conflicting information when making decisions. Whether this biased information search also occurs in group decision making was examined in three experiments. Experiment 1 indicated that groups as well as individuals prefer supporting information and that the strength of this bias depends on the distribution of the group members' initial decision preferences. The more group members had chosen the same alternative prior to the group discussion (group homogeneity), the more strongly the group preferred information supporting that alternative. Experiment 2 replicated these results with managers. Experiment 3 showed that the differences between homogeneous and heterogeneous groups reflect group-level processes. Higher commitment and confidence in homogeneous groups mediated this effect. Functional and dysfunctional aspects of biased information seeking in group decision making are discussed.