Help Me Find A Book On Why Groups Can Be Bad

November 2, 2008 7:37 PM

Everyone knows the positive effects of working in groups, but I read about this book that talked about the negative effects of working in groups. I don't remember the title, I don't remember the author. Does anyone have an idea on what this book would be?
posted by defben to society & culture (9 comments total)

The Abilene Paradox?
posted by MarkAnd at 7:39 PM on November 2, 2008

I think you are looking for a book about "groupthink". I don't know what specific titles are good, but that's a concept you'll be interested in.
posted by allen8219 at 7:59 PM on November 2, 2008

Groupthink : psychological studies of policy decisions and fiascoes, by Irving Janis (1982)?
posted by AAAA at 8:04 PM on November 2, 2008

Just to qualify that answer, so it doesn't seem like such a stab in the dark: Irving Janis, as I understand it, was the sole originator of groupthink as a theory. So if you were interested in the topic, he might be a good place to start, even if his book wasn't the one.
posted by AAAA at 8:11 PM on November 2, 2008

There is an older book called "The Mythical Man-Month" that talks about why adding more people to a project makes it take longer.
posted by metahawk at 8:53 PM on November 2, 2008

Nietzsche wrote a lot about group mentalities. I definitely recommend looking into his work if you haven't already.
posted by OccamsRazor at 9:49 PM on November 2, 2008

A classic on groupthink and the dangers of large groups and mass movements would be Eric Hoffer's The True Believer.
posted by Gerard Sorme at 11:33 PM on November 2, 2008

Was it The Fiefdom Syndrome: The Turf Battles That Undermine Careers and Companies - And How to Overcome Them?
posted by onepapertiger at 6:17 AM on November 3, 2008

The Wisdom of Crowds, although obviously an endorsement of groups, contains several classic examples of groups working in a dysfunctional way (groupthink, etc.) by way of explaining how to avoid those issues.
posted by mattholomew at 10:51 AM on November 3, 2008