The Power of 'We'...

A new study announced by the American Psychological Association shows that groups are better than individuals for solving complex problems. The new research, appearing in the April 2006 issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, quotes lead researcher Patrick Laughlin, Ph.D.:

"We found that groups of size three, four, and five outperformed the best individuals and attribute this performance to the ability of people to work together to generate and adopt correct responses, reject erroneous responses, and effectively process information,"

This power of the group for solving complex problems is what I wrote about in my book Leading People the Black Belt Way: Conquering the Five Core Problems Facing Leaders Today.

On page 97 of Leading People the Black Belt Way, I wrote:

"Some leaders incorrectly believe that needing other people is a sign of immaturity and weakness. Nothing can be more damaging to your organization than misunderstanding the importance of interdependence. The fact of the matter is that we all need other people."



Tim Warneka


BOTTOM LINE: Strong leaders tap into the power of the group

tags:
leadership
groups
APA
American Psychological Association