Decision makers know they’re supposed to seek outside counsel — a diversity of information improves the likelihood of a good decision. This, of course, means that good decisions are social decisions. But the converse isn’t necessarily true: Not all social decisions are good ones.
Alex “Sandy” Pentland has proven this with math, showing that when we seek outside advice in some social environments, what we get back are actually reflections of our own ideas and biases. He calls these decision making “bubbles” or “echo chambers.” This video explains how and why these decision bubbles form, and what happens to your performance when you find yourself in one.
The good news, Pentland explains in his recent article “Beyond the Echo Chamber” is that it’s possible to rig your decision making process to avoid these bubbles.