Abilene Paradox: When Groups Agree on Something Nobody Wants

Abilene Paradox: When Groups Agree on Something Nobody Wants It is a hot afternoon in Coleman, Texas. A family is sitting on the porch, drinking lemonade, playing dominoes. Someone suggests driving 53 miles to Abilene for dinner. Nobody really wants to go -- the drive is long, the car has no air conditioning, and the food in Abilene is nothing special. But each person assumes the others want to go, so everyone agrees. They make the miserable trip. The food is mediocre. The drive back is worse. When they return, everyone admits they did not want to go in the first place. Someone says, "I only suggested it because I thought you all were bored." Others respond, "I only went along because I thought everyone else wanted to go." This story, told by management expert Jerry Harvey in 1974, gives its name to the Abilene Paradox -- a phenomenon where a group collectively decides on a course of action that no individual member actually wants. How Is This Different from Groupthink? The Abilene Par