Stages in Group Decision Making: The Decomposition of Historical Narratives

A preliminary model of the stages in high-level decision making by governmental groups is presented. Following Mintzberg, Raisinghani, and Theoret's account of unstructured decisions, the stages of issue identification, solution development, and solution selection are defined. Each stage is characterized by ordered sequences of social activities, termed routines. These were enacted by members to meet the informationmanagement demands that arise whenever a complex issue must be resolved collectively. In the development stage, recognition that a departure from a preferred state presents an issue for the and diagnosis of the issue according to its urgency as an opportunity, a problem, or a crisis are the key routines. The development of possible solutions using search and design routines characterizes the next stage. Screening, evaluation, and authorization of proposed solutions comprise routines typical- of the final stage of decision making. The social psychological processes that underlie these decision making operations are described. A novel aspect of the model lies in the cycles of issue redefinition and reanalysis that it posits. Agenda norms that control movement between stages or routines may call for repetition of an earlier operation in the decision process when a later operation cannot be completed successfully. For instance, if no solution to a recognized problem can be found either by searching through group memoryfor a useful standard procedure or by custom-designing one, the may return to the identification stage to rediagnose the situation as not actually a problem or as an opportunity which unfortunately cannot be capitalized upon. The events that invoke recycling are categorized as ex