Abstract for: Effectiveness of Group Model Building in discovering hidden profiles in strategic decision-making

A hidden profile is said to exist when (a) information relevant to the decision at hand is distributed over different members of a decision-making group in such a way that each of the group members possesses unique information and (b) group members will need to pool these unique pieces of information in order to select a superior decision alternative. Hidden profiles give rise to inefficient sharing of information, therefore leading to suboptimal decisions. Strategic decision-making is hampered by difficulties in gathering, sharing and integrating information. Information feedback that is dispersed over group members is often ignored. This reflects the existence of hidden profiles. Group Model Building seems capable of discovering hidden profiles in strategic decision-making. The methodology needs investigation in controlled settings to further ground its value. We have conducted an experiment to test the effectiveness of Group Model Building on its contribution to enhancing information sharing and decision quality.