Conformity and Group Decisions

Social groups vary in size, purpose, and goals. While some groups form spontaneously, such as a group of friends, others form for a specific purpose. A common group function is that of making decisions to which the group is bound. This paper will examine the group decision-making process and the role of personal conformity leading to the decisions made. It will also discuss the impact of consensus-based decisions on a group as a whole, on …

…decision. This is especially important for decisions that affect people outside the group and particularly decisions that have a personal impact. It is even more important for the individual to look deeper into why they went along with a decision they were not comfortable with from the start. The individual must evaluate their personal convictions against remaining a member of a group and ask if the received reward outweighs the possibility of a negative outcome.