The Role of Expertise and Expressiveness in Decision-Making Groups

Abstract

The contributions of the most expert and the most communicative members of decision-making groups were examined to determine their relative influence on group decision-making. Utilizing the desert survival task, 255 participants arrived at group decisions in 57 groups employing a note passing technique. Overall, the contributions of the most communicative member significantly influenced group scores while the contributions of the most expert member did not. Evidence emerges indicating that amount of contribution by the most communicative group member is influenced by the initial closeness of that member to the average pre-discussion position of the group. The results are examined in relation to the linear discrepancy model and the babble effect.

Keywords::

• Biased Information Processing
• Decision-Making
• Expertise
• Group Dynamics
• Shared Information

Additional information

Notes on contributors

David Dryden Henningsen

David Dryden Henningsen (Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, 1999) is a Professor in the Department of Communication at Northern Illinois University.

Mary Lynn Miller Henningsen

Mary Lynn Miller Henningsen (Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, 2001) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication at Northern Illinois University.