There are many interesting paradoxes and stereotypes about how we think, make decisions, beliefs, etc. Thus, two interesting aspects of our thinking are group thinking and Abilene Paradox. They have a similar principle of work; both aspects are related to our reflection in the context of a group of people and influence the choice. However, the essential difference is that group-thinking is the effect according to which a group of people cannot make an adequate decision trying to minimize conflict within the group (Carson, 2006). In other words, the members of the group try to reach a consensus without sufficiently evaluating the alternatives, thereby leading to an inferior result. At the same time, the Abilene Paradox is formulated by the possibility of a group of people to make a decision that would contradict every member’s point of view. However, no one would object to avoiding conflict with the group.
In my opinion, it is easier to fall into the Abilene Paradox since people may avoid group thinking by suggesting at least a slight alternative. If I see the signs of group thinking in the team, I would suggest a monetary reward for the most successful alternative, thus, motivating the participants to speak up. Talking about my experience in a group, I would mention my project team, which was the most effective. This is due to the fact that in this group, either conversational turn-taking both ostentatious listening was applied. Thereby, I felt a burst of motivation and self-confidence before speaking, although I saw those people for the first time. Besides, such feelings were reported by every participant of our team, which led to the most effective work.
Reference
Carson, B. (2006). Avoiding Abilene: Breaking out of groupthink. Carson Consultants.