Critical Incident - Titanic: How Groupthink Led to an Icy Death in the North Atlantic

This critical incident of the Titanic sinking is a historically well-known event that is utilized to teach both students and managers about how groupthink can impact decision-making in an organization adversely. In the case of the Titanic groupthink impacted adversely decisions related to how many lifeboats were on the ship and safety issues related to operations. It is anticipated that this critical incident could be used in an undergraduate organizational behavior, psychology, or sociology course. The case would also be useful in executive education related to organizational behavior and communications.