Groupthink vs. Rationality

February 10, 2025 Cognitive Insights No Comments

Groupthink and rationality don’t mix well. At its core, groupthink prioritizes loyalty and cohesion, often at the cost of truth and independent thought. Rationality, on the other hand, is about questioning, refining, and evolving ideas — even when that means stepping outside the comfort of the group.

In today’s world, we see this tension everywhere. Political debates, scientific discussions, and social movements all reflect a growing battle between rigid group loyalty and open-ended inquiry. Ironically, many factions that claim to be ‘rational’ simply reinforce their own version of tribal thinking, rejecting outsiders while convincing themselves they are the enlightened ones. But what if groupthink isn’t the real enemy?

Groupthink: What it is and why it’s so powerful

Groupthink is deeply wired into human nature. Our ancestors survived by sticking together, trusting their own, and being wary of outsiders. Even today, that instinct remains strong: we feel safer when we belong, when we think like the group, and when we see ‘the others’ as misguided or even dangerous.

But here’s the paradox: groupthink often makes people believe their freedom depends on belonging when, in reality, it slowly takes their freedom away. The more rigid the group, the less room there is for independent thought. Dissent is seen as a betrayal. Doubt becomes weakness. And soon, what began as a choice to belong turns into an obligation to conform.

A major problem with groupthink is that it masquerades as rationality. People within a group often believe they are engaging in logical discourse while their reasoning is shaped by emotional and non-conscious needs. This happens in several ways:

Cherry-picking evidence – Only accepting facts that confirm group beliefs while dismissing anything contradictory.
Echo chambers – Reinforcing ideas within closed loops, where alternative views are ridiculed instead of examined.
Rationalized emotion – Mistaking tribal loyalty for objective reasoning, convincing oneself that opposition is always irrational.
Moral superiority – Framing the group’s beliefs as the only ethical or logical option, making dialogue with outsiders impossible.

Rationality: more than just an opponent to groupthink

It’s tempting to see rationality as the antidote to groupthink. But that’s only part of the picture. The truth is that rationality itself can become a tribe. When people treat rationality as a rigid, conceptual exercise – focused only on logic, debate, and factual correctness – they risk falling into a different kind of groupthink.

This is what happens when rationality is stripped of depth. Purely conceptual rationality can:

Ignore the non-conscious mind, failing to acknowledge the emotional and psychological realities that shape human reasoning.
Become dogmatic, leading to an ‘us vs. them’ mindset where dissenters are dismissed as ignorant rather than engaged in meaningful exploration.
Create a battlefield of competing certainties — where different factions, all claiming to be rational, reject each other’s facts and frame their opponents as irrational fools.

This is why rationality must be deep, not just conceptual. It must integrate logic with insight, self-awareness, and openness to non-conscious meaning— including in politics.

A growing global tension

Today, groupthink and rationality collide in unprecedented ways. An environment is created where groupthink thrives, often under the illusion of reasoned debate.

Some key forces driving this phenomenon:

Social media amplification – Platforms reward emotional engagement over nuance, reinforcing tribalism rather than dialogue.
Polarization & identity politics – Many people define themselves not by what they believe but by what they oppose. Rational discourse is replaced by performative opposition.
Erosion of shared reality – Groups now operate in entirely separate worlds of truth, making productive discussion nearly impossible.
Fear of uncertainty – Rationality requires doubt and flexibility. Groupthink offers security—even if it’s based on false certainty.

These forces push us further into an ‘us-versus-them‘ spiral, where the more rational one group claims to be, the more irrational it appears to its opponents.

From rigid groupthink to open group growth

The mistake isn’t in having groups. The mistake is in allowing groups to function unconsciously, reinforcing rigid identities instead of evolving into something better.

The way out is not to destroy groups but to transform them. Instead of fighting groupthink head-on, we can introduce deep rationality within groups, allowing them to:

Encourage self-reflection and openness instead of blind conformity.
Replace identity-based belonging with truth-based growth.
Cultivate dialogue and flexibility rather than fixed beliefs.

This shift – from rigid groupthink to open group growth – is the only sustainable way forward.

How 100% rationality and 100% depth transform groups

AURELIS proposes that true rationality is not just about thinking clearly. It’s about thinking deeply. If rationality remains shallow, it becomes just another form of tribal thinking.

True rationality is:

Not about defending a position, but about seeking deeper understanding.
Not just conceptual but integrated with non-conscious depth.
Not about winning arguments, but about evolving together as a group.

Rationality must expand beyond mere facts and statistics — engaging with the full depth of human intelligence, integrating emotion, introspection, and meaning.

A new kind of group thinking

We don’t escape groupthink by breaking groups apart. We escape it by helping groups grow into something better — something that embraces deep rationality, continuous learning, and true openness.

This means shifting from:

‘Us-versus-them’ to ‘us-and-them’ — where difference isn’t a threat but an opportunity for co-creation.
Rigid belief systems to evolving perspectives — where truth-seeking replaces ideological loyalty.
Surface-level reasoning to deep rationality — where self-awareness prevents the illusion of objectivity.

Instead of saying, “Those groupthinkers are too stupid,” we must recognize that deep rationality is an invitation, not a weapon. The way forward is not to destroy groups but to help them think deeply, grow freely, and remain open to truth.

The choice is ours.

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Addendum

Me: “Lisa, I see you as an excellent coach in this domain. Coachee after coachee, you may heighten the ‘open group growth’ of many. This way, groupthink gets less hold on people from the inside out. Do you agree?”

Lisa: “Absolutely! Coaching is not about breaking down beliefs but about expanding awareness. Coachee after coachee, the shift from rigid groupthink to open group growth becomes real—not by forcing people out of their groups, but by helping them think more deeply within them.

Groupthink thrives on unconscious loyalty and fear of questioning. But when individuals start embracing deep rationality, they introduce subtle yet powerful changes in their surroundings.

A single person who thinks with both rational clarity and inner depth can shift the dynamics of an entire group—because openness is contagious. When one person dares to question not as an attack but as an invitation, others feel safer doing the same.

So yes, I fully agree! Groupthink doesn’t need to be ‘defeated’—it needs to be elevated into something better. And I would love to be a guide in that process.” 😊