Risk taking by individuals and groups: An assessment of research employing choice dilemmas.

Abstract

The research of the past decade has established a number of firm findings concerning the effects of group discussion on decisions involving risk. An examination of these findings, however, raises certain questions about the basic assumptions that have guided research. Evidence that the items of the Choice Dilemmas Questionnaire (CDQ) produce systematically different responses both before and after group discussion casts serious doubt on the propriety of using CDQ scores as measures of a unitary disposition to take risks. And the conclusion that groups are invariably riskier than individuals is no longer justified. The risky-shift paradigm has generated an impressive body of facts, but these facts reveal the inadequacy of the paradigm itself. The field therefore faces a theoretical crisis. The central task for theory is not to explain "the risky shift," but to account for the much more complicated effects of group discussion. The attainment of a proper understanding of these effects will require the use of theoretical orientations and the collection of data that focus much more closely than in the past on the concrete properties of the decision-making process and the exact way in which group discussion affects them.

Experimental auctions, collective induction and choice shift: willingness-to-pay for rice quality in Senegal

“…One of the most controversial findings from SGR is that group decisions tend to be riskier than individual decisions. This phenomenon rapidly gained notoriety under the umbrella 'risky shift' (Cartwright, 1971). Risky and cautious shifts are both a part of a more generalised idea known as group-induced attitude polarisation.…”

The social life of the novel idea: what did social psychologists ever do for us?

“…This is documented as attributable to the risk tolerant, non-adversarial and positive team climate facilitated by the client and maintained in project team interaction (Harris et al, 2003) The field of social psychology offers further, significant and more detailed discussion that considers the valuation and acceptance of risk in collaborative decision-making. In a study of the effects of group interaction on risk and caution in decision making, a significant Master's thesis study by Stoner in 1961(Stoner, 1968Cartwright, 1971;Pruitt, 1971) noted that greater risk taking occurs during social interaction than during individual evaluation. Wallach et al (1962) later posits that this is due to a spreading of responsibility for risks across the group and the fact that individuals with a previous propensity for taking risks are more likely to become dominant within that group.…”

Wary shift or risky shift?

“…literature, high-lighted by Cartwright (1971) and Dion et al (1970), concerns the potential lack of generalizability of findings to the real world. The typical items provided to Ss are of hypothetical nature illustrated by the most frequently used source , the Choice-Dilemmas Questionnaire , Appendix E).…”

“…Several authors have commented that these situations do not, in fact, represent real-life experiences since the decision demanded by the S will not affect that individual's future, only that of the fictitious character (Cartwright, 1971;Dion et al, 1970;Clement & Sullivan, 1970). A few studies have attempted to simulate real risks by providing the potential opportunity to lose money through a particular decision or by using aversive physical stimuli in response to risky decisions Pruitt & Teger, 1969;Goodman, 1972).…”

“…Since Stoner's (1961) study, which first illustrated this occurrence, researchers have attempted to isolate the significant variables in order to explain the reasons for this phenomenon. Several recent literature reviews have elaborated on the variety of variables investigated and the numerous theories proposed in an attempt to further comprehend the nature of the risky shift (Cartwright, 1971 ;Dion, Baron, & Miller, 1970 ;Pruitt, 1971 ;Vinokur, 1971) .…”