Irving Lester Janis was an American research psychologist at Yale University and a professor emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley most famous for his theory of "groupthink" which described the systematic errors made by groups when making collective decisions.
13 Facts About Irving Janis
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Irving Janis was born on May 26,1918, in Buffalo, New York.
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Irving Janis received a bachelor of science degree from the University of Chicago in 1939, then received a doctorate from Columbia University.
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In 1947, Irving Janis became a faculty member of the Yale University Psychology Department, where he remained for nearly forty years.
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Irving Janis collaborated with Carl Hovland on his studies of attitude change, including the sleeper effect.
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Irving Janis made important contributions to the study of group dynamics.
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Irving Janis did extensive work in the area of "groupthink," which describes the tendency of groups to try to minimize conflict and reach consensus without sufficiently testing, analyzing, and evaluating their ideas.
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Irving Janis's work suggested that pressures for conformity restrict the thinking of the group, bias its analysis, promote simplistic and stereotyped thinking, and stifle individual creative and independent thought.
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Irving Janis wrote or co-wrote more than a dozen books, including Psychological Stress, Victims of Groupthink, Decision Making, Groupthink, and Crucial Decisions.
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In 1967, Irving Janis was awarded the Socio-Psychological Prize by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
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Irving Janis retired from Yale University in 1985, and in 1986 was appointed Adjunct Professor of Psychology Emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley.
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Irving Janis was married to Marjorie Irving Janis, with whom he had two daughters.
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Irving Janis died of lung cancer on November 15,1990, in Santa Rosa, California.