Effects of shared information and participation on group process and outcome

Investigated the effects of information heterogeneity within different levels of participative decision making. Differences between heterogenous and homogeneous groups in process and outcome variables were predicted to depend upon the nature of the task demands. The impact of anticipated participation on the effectiveness of group brainstorming was also studied. Data were gathered from 24 3-person groups of engineering students participating in a simulation involving nuclear power plant siting. Results indicate that heterogeneity of information may lead to process losses in all stages of decision making. Few significant differences in brainstorming effectiveness were found between levels of anticipated participation. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved).