Introduction

Module 2 discusses the various styles of decision-making. Throughout this module, focus on

• Identifying your psychological type and relate it to personal preferences.
• Describe factors and personal styles that have an impact on the decision.
• Distinguish between situations requiring individual decisions and those requiring group decisions.
• Identify the attributes of an effective decision-maker.

This module uses the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), although there are many other equally reliable inventories available to help you determine your preferences and decision-making style.

What Is Psychological Type?

A psychological type is a personality pattern based on the theory of psychiatrist Carl Jung. Based on his observation of people's behavior, Jung concluded that people have inherent differences in their use of their minds and where they derive and focus their energy. Jung identifies two mental processes - taking in information (or perceiving) and organizing information and drawing conclusion (or judging).

Jung also identified two different ways in which people do each of these mental activities. People take in information through their senses or by intuition. People organize information either by thinking or by feeling. People also differ in where they derive and focus their energy. They are either externally oriented (extroverts), energized by people and activity: or internally oriented (introverts), energized by thinking or feeling.

The different ways of organizing and relating to the world can be combined differently, thus creating different psychological types. For example, one person could be an extrovert who relies on thinking more than feeling and sensing over intuiting, while another individual could be an introvert who is intuitive and feeling-oriented.

What Are Preferences?

Preferences are the dominant ways in which an individual functions. The following brief exercise illustrates what is meant by preferences.

Fold your hands. Note which thumb is on top. Now fold your hands so that the opposite thumb is on top. Did you notice that you naturally fold your hands one way, while the other required a bit more thought and effort? The natural way - the way you did it first, without thinking - is your preference. Notice that you could do the task the other way but that it was not your preferred way.

Using Type Inventories to Determine Preferences

One kind of personality test called a typed inventory can help you determine your preferred or dominant ways of functioning, including your preferred decision-making style. Such tests ask you to answer a series of questions and, based on your responses, assign you a type that is an aggregate of your preferences.

One such test is the MBTI. The MBTI is based on the personality theory of Jung previously described. It assesses the test taker's preferences on four polarities:

• Extroversion vs. introversion - where energy is derived and focused.
• Sensing vs. intuition - how information is obtained.
• Thinking vs. feeling - how decisions are made.
• Judging vs. perceiving - how the test taker is oriented toward the external world.

Based on the test taker's expressed preferences, the MBTI assigns a type coded by four letters (one letter for each polarity - e.g., E or I for the first scale). Because these four preferences can be combined in various ways, there are 16 psychological types.

It is important to note that there are no right or wrong preferences. Each type has characteristic strengths and weaknesses. The point is to know yourself to maximize your strengths, minimize or compensate for your weaknesses, and realize that your preferences affect how you make decisions.

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator

Log onto the MBTI Web site - http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp and complete the inventory. Note your type and then complete the module.

Preferences and Decision Making

Our preferences affect how we make decisions. For example, someone who is thinking-oriented has a different decision-making approach than someone who is feeling-oriented.

Your Type - What Does It Mean for Decision Making?

When you took the personality profile online, you received four letters indicating your preferred type (of two possible types) in each of four functions. The two middle letters S or N, T or F) indicate your dominant decision-making type.

Each dominant function has its characteristic strengths and blind spots when it comes to decision making. The following are some generalizations about each dominant function:

• Sensing: The bias is toward stability. Decisions must make sense based on past experiences. Asks, "What are the facts, costs, and benefits?"
• Intuition: The bias is toward innovation. Decisions should creatively make use of new opportunities and insights. Asks, "What are the patterns and possible interpretations?"
• Thinking: The bias is toward effectiveness. Decisions must be objective and logical. Asks, "What are the pros and cons, cases, and effects?"
• Feeling: The bias is toward integrity. Decisions should consider people's values and needs. Asks, "How does this affect those involved?"

What Does It Mean to Flex?

1. key to good decision-making is that it uses both sensing and intuition to gather all the pertinent information and both thinking and feeling to weigh all the factors involved. When we rely on our dominant function, we tend to miss things and make more flawed decisions.
2. flex means to ask yourself the other three functions' questions, as well as the questions of your dominant function that naturally occur to you. Although this process may feel awkward at first, it leads to decisions that are more sound.

Who Decides?

In addition to the four dominant functions explained above, there are also four styles of decision. As you read through the four styles, not that the amount of control that the leader has over the decision drops from total to almost none. Yet, the leader retains ultimate responsibility.

Emergency managers often work in situations that require a high degree of coordination. These cases call for a group decision-making process. There are other times, however, when they must make a command decision alone. Several factors affect whether an individual or a group should decide.

Individual Decision-Making

In individual decision making, the leader must make the decision alone, and input from others is limited to collecting relevant information.

Decision-Making Through Consultation

In consultation, the leader shares the issue with one or more people - seeking ideas, opinions, and suggestions - and then decides. The leader considers others' input, but the final decision may or may not be influenced by it.

Group Decision-Making

In this case, the leader and others work together until they reach a consensus decision. Each group member's opinion and point of view is considered. As a result of helping to make the decision, group members buy into the final decision and commit to supporting its implementation.

Delegating the Decision

When delegating a decision, the leader sets the parameters to allow others to make the final decision. Although the leader does not make the decision, he or she supports it.

Use the following questions to determine whether the circumstances call for an individual or group decision.

Selecting a Decision-Making Approach (Job Aid 2-1)

Use the questions below as a guide to developing a decision-making approach. Answer each of the questions below.

• If the response to question 1 is "No," it may be preferable to decide individually in consultation with key players.
• If the response to question 2 is "No," it may be preferable to decide through consultation, with a group, or by delegation.
• If the majority of your responses are "Yes," group decision making may be preferable.
• If the majority of your responses are "No," individual decision making may be preferable.

Questions

1. Do you have a reasonable amount of time to make the decision?
2. Does the leader have enough expertise to make the right decision?
3. Do the others involved share the organizational goals to be attained by solving the problem?
4. Is the decision complex with many possible solutions
5. Is the commitment to the decision by other people critical?
6. Is the decision likely to cause serious conflict among the people affected by it?
7. Is the decision likely to cause serious conflict among the people affected by it?
8. Will the decision directly impact many agencies, individuals, or community members?
9. Will the decision directly impact only a select few?

Successful Group Decision-Making

Group decision making requires good leadership to be successful. There are special conditions necessary for group decision making, such as adequate time. There are also pitfalls unique to group decision-making, such as "groupthink."

Avoiding "Groupthink"

"Groupthink" is a phenomenon that occurs in a cohesive group when members let their need to agree with each other interfere with their ability to think about the decision critically.

Three conditions may lead to "groupthink":

1. Overestimation of the group's ability and power:
   1. Allows members to ignore warning signals.
   2. Allows members to feel complacent.
   3. could result from an overreaction to low self-esteem resulting from recent failures or a difficult task.
2. A "we" vs. "they" attitude:
   1. Leads to stereotypes of outsiders.
   2. Encourages rationalization of decisions.
3. Pressure toward conformity:
   1. could result from direct pressure applied by the group to members who try to disagree.
   2. Does result in members censoring themselves to maintain their membership in the group.

The key to avoiding or mitigating groupthink likes in the behavior of the group leader. If you are the leader of a group with the potential to exhibit groupthink behavior, you may want to take one or more of the following preventive actions:

• Encourage everyone to air objections and doubts and to accept criticism.
• Describe the problem without revealing your preferred solution.
• Assign the group into subgroups and ask each to evaluate the problem.
• Invite outside experts to challenge the group's decision.
• Ask members to take turns playing "devil's advocate."

Groupthink is more likely to occur in an emergency for two reasons:

• Time pressure creates a need for quick decisions.
• Personnel responding to disasters typically have a high degree of cohesion.

To minimize groupthink during an emergency:

• Encourage dissenting opinions consistently.
• Discuss the need to remain open to possibilities with responding personnel before an emergency.
• Examine patterns of decision making during previous emergencies and analyze them to take corrective measures.

When leaders can influence their groups to avoid groupthink, decision making becomes possible based on a healthy consensus. The consensus is not the same as the 100-percent agreement. In consensus, group members determine that they actively support the group's decision, even though it might not be their personal choice.

Use the following to lead groups toward reaching a healthy consensus rather than a premature decision born out of groupthink.

How do you know when you have reached a consensus?

You have reached consensus when each member can say:

• "My personal views and ideas have been listened to and considered."
• "I have openly listened to and considered the ideas and view of every other group member."
• "I can support this decision and work towards its implementation, even if it was not my choice."

Tips for reaching consensus

• Do not employ win/lose techniques, such as voting or negotiating favors back and forth.
• Look for alternatives that are next most acceptable as ways to break a stalemate.
• Do not encourage members to give in to keep harmony.

What Is an Effective Decision Maker?

Think of someone you know who seems to be a born decision-maker. What makes them effective? Most likely:

• He or she makes decisions with competence and confidence.
• Most of his or her decisions work outright.

But what is underlying that decision-making skill? Research has shown that influential decision-makers share several attributes.

Attributes of an Effective Decision Maker Effective decision-makers tend to have the following attributes:

• Knowledge. The most critical requirement for making sound decisions is a deep understanding of all factors. The soundness of the decision depends on how informed the decision-maker is.
• Initiative. Influential decision-makers assume responsibility for beginning the decision-making process and seeing it through. They take an active part in making things better.
• Advice-seeking. Good decision-makers know that they need help from others. They identify people who can make specific contributions to the decision-making process and ask them for their advice and counsel.
• Selectivity. Influential decision-makers seek pertinent data. They avoid getting bogged down by extraneous facts and figures.
• Comprehensiveness. On the other hand, they look at all available options and consider every possible alternative to make the best choice. Currency. Good decision-makers consider current conditions and take advantage of opportunities that exist at the time.
• Flexibility. Influential decision-makers remain open-minded about new concepts and ideas. They are willing to change course or try a different approach if better results seem likely.
• Good judgment. Sound decisions will not always result from merely following procedures. Decision-makers must exercise their best judgment in considering factors particular to the situation.
• Calculated risk-taking. The risks and results of various alternatives must be weighed, and the consequences accepted, whether positive or negative.
• Self-knowledge. Good decision-makers know their abilities, biases, and limitations.

1. As a decision-maker,list strengths and weaknesses with respect to decision-making.

2. Keeping in mind that the attributes of effective decision-makers can be learned, develop a strategy for using your strengths more fully, and minimizing your limitations in decision-making.