Everyone makes decisions in their lives which result in consequences. For individuals, decisions may be made implicitly and without consultation. For groups, making a decision is more complex. Invariably, some group members may want to pursue one course of action, while others may not. Reaching a group decision becomes much more complicated than reaching an individual decision. This is due in part to the nature of groups. Group decision-making is explicit and consultative and conducted primarily by members expressing their opinions based on their knowledge of the topic. The information held by an individual may be viewed differently than that of another group member. The study of group decision-making is two-fold. The first part involves individual action. The individuals who form the group have unique personalities and individual differences that contribute to the group process. The second part is the group dynamic that is created. Just as every individual is unique, so are groups. Every group forms a unique dynamic in which the group forces influence the individuals. How an individual reacts to those forces contributes to the group decision-making process and shapes the ultimate decision.
Armies are virtually never ready to fight major wars. Warfare continues to change over time, which means no two wars are exactly alike. Armys leaders struggle to anticipate the next war, yet it is unrealistic to predict with perfection. The advent of new technology and tactics, unexpected adversaries, the vast size and complexity of military organizations, undetectable capabilities, and unforeseen goals signify gaps will exist between the war an army expects to fight and the war it must fight. Yet, throughout history there has been no army on Earth that has been accused of total unpreparedness than those that went to war in Europe in August of 1914. There is no conflict that more vividly conjures up the image of wasteful military incompetence than the First World War, in which a wholesale chain-of-command on both sides utterly failed to foresee the scale, duration and character of a war transformed by modern weaponry and mass mobilization. The millions cut down among the artillery barrages, machine gun fire and gas clouds have become the quintessential symbol of military unpreparedness and the inability to adapt.
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