Groupthink

     If you've ever been in a scenario where you've noticed large amount of people rooting for the wrong thing, and only a few people were rooting for the truth in a situation, then you've noticed a psychological phenomenon known as "groupthink". Coined in 1952, the term "groupthink" is characterized by a tendency for an individual to give up his or her own individual thought, conscience, and/or belief in order to compromise with a whole. Have you ever heard the saying, "the road to hell is paved with good intentions?" Well that applies here.

     In 1952, the first asch conformity experiments were conducted where they participants would sit in a group setting and given a task to perform, while a subject or subjects of an experiment would be unaware of what is going on. These experiments were for observing how individuals act in group settings. In the majority of all of the experiments, an individual would sacrifice his or her own conscience in order to conform to a group.

     While this may not sound like a "problem" of sorts, it is a problem on a massive scale, because in so many aspect of our lives, are as asked to make decisions as a whole. This also, can be a problem, because it leaves room for a population to be manipulated with complex and subtle means, such as television.

    To see what groupthink actually is, and how it can be used to manipulate a population, visit the video below.