Closely related to the lemming phenomenon, and sometimes overlapping, are several other concepts such as:
informational cascades (a situation in which every subsequent individual, based on observing others, makes the same [possibly wrong] choice independent of his/her private information. . . . even if all participants in a group have overwhelming information in favor of a correct action, each and every participant [as a group] may take the wrong action);
herd behavior (individuals in a group act together without planned direction. . . . pertains to the behavior of animals in herds, flocks, and schools, and to human conduct during activities such as stock market bubbles and crashes, street demonstrations, sporting events, episodes of mob violence and even everyday decision making, judgment and opinion forming.); and
groupthink (a type of thought exhibited by group members who try to minimize conflict and reach consensus without critically testing, analyzing, and evaluating ideas. . . . members of the group avoid promoting viewpoints outside the comfort zone of consensus thinking. A variety of motives for this may exist such as a desire to avoid being seen as foolish, or a desire to avoid embarrassing or angering other members of the group. Groupthink may cause groups to make hasty, irrational decisions, where individual doubts are set aside, for fear of upsetting the group’s balance.).
These three concepts are, however, fairly benign. They don’t normally end in a negative result, or possible destruction. The lemming activity almost always results in a negative outcome—sometimes very disastrous—for the participants or often, worse yet, for innocent bystanders.
(To be continued)
