The Contingent Wisdom of Dyads: When Discussion Enhances versus Undermines the Accuracy of Collaborative Judgments

We evaluate the effect of discussion on the accuracy of collaborative judgments. In contrast to prior research, we show that discussion can either aid or impede accuracy relative to simple averaging of collaborators’ independent judgments, as a systematic function of task type and interaction process. On estimation tasks with a wide range of potential estimates, discussion aided accuracy by helping participants prevent and eliminate egregious...