Groupthink or Deadlock: When Do Leaders Learn from Their Advisors?

Argues that too much advice can lead to policy deadlock depending on leadership style.

The danger of groupthink is now standard fare in leadership training programs and a widely accepted explanation, among political scientists, for policy-making fiascoes. Efforts to avoid groupthink, however, can lead to an even more serious problem-deadlock. Groupthink or Deadlock explores these dual problems in the Eisenhower and Reagan administrations and demonstrates how both presidents were capable of l...