Functional Perspective on Group Decision Making
Randy Hirokawa & Dennis Gouran
Group and Public Communication—Group Decision Making
Adaptive Structuration Theory
Theory Overview (7th Edition)
Abstracts appear in Appendix A of the text
Groups make high-quality decisions when members fulfill four requisite functions: (1) problem analysis, (2) goal setting, (3) identification of alternatives, and (4) evaluation of positive and negative consequences. Most group communication disrupts progress toward accomplishing these functional tasks, but counteractive communication can bring people back to rational inquiry. (Socio-psychological and cybernetic traditions)