Good Afternoon, again, Kristofer
Here is an analysis of the question of group size. Alternative views
are welcome.
Fred
DELIBERATIVE GROUP SIZE and PERSUASION
At the initial level, when the entire electorate meets for the first
time to select one member of a triad to represent the other two, there
will be three kinds of participants: (1) those who do not want to be
selected, (2) those willing to be selected, and (3) those seeking
selection. In any triad where all three participants do not want to be
selected, the triad will not make a selection.
Thus, among the triads that actually make a selection, the people who
are selected will either be people who want to be selected or people who
are willing to be selected. This is not to say that each person must be
of one type or the other, but rather that each person will be somewhere
on the continuum from those willing to be selected to those wishing to
be selected.
For simplicity, we will assume that the desire to be selected is
equivalent to a desire for public office and that the people we mention
as examples are at one end of the wish-willingness continuum or the
other. The reality is infinitely more complex but the results will
differ only in degree from what we learn by thinking about the kind of
people who are at the hypothetical poles.
We must also note that the attitudes we've mentioned may not be static.
Although, generally, a person seeking public office is unlikely to
become a person willing to serve, a person willing to serve might be
transformed into a person seeking public office:
[If person-willing-to-serve (A) feels person-seeking-office (B) is not a
good choice, (A) may seek to persuade the triad that (A) or (C) is a
better choice. Such an effort moves (A) closer to being a
person-seeking-office because, if A will not support B, the chance that
A will be chosen increases.]
Based on this assessment, we can say that people who advance to the next
level either persuaded the other members of their triad to select them
or they relied on the other members to select them. The difference is
the extent to which they used persuasion to achieve selection.
In a pyramiding process of the type under discussion, it is reasonable
to think that active seekers of public office will succeed more
frequently than passive ones. Thus, after several iterations of the
process, we can anticipate that each member of a triad will be a person
seeking public office. Under such circumstances, the art of persuasion
assumes mounting importance. Those making the selection want desirable
qualities in the person they choose. Those seeking selection will try
to persuade their peers they possess the qualities sought.
When persuasion occurs between two people, it takes place as a dialogue
with one person attempting to persuade the other. In such events, both
parties are free to participate in the process. The person to be
persuaded can question the persuader as to specific points and present
alternative points about the topic under discussion. In such
circumstances, it is possible that the persuader will become the persuaded.
When persuasion involves multiple people, it occurs more as a monologue
with one person attempting to persuade the others. The transition from
dialogue to monologue accelerates as the number of people to be
persuaded increases. The larger the number of people, the less free
they are to participate in the process. As the number of people to be
persuaded grows, the individuals among them are progressively less able
to participate in the process. They can not question the persuader as
to specific points or present alternative points about the topic under
discussion. In such circumstances, it is impossible for the persuader
to become the persuaded.
Viewed in this light, we can say that when selecting public officials, a
system that encourages dialogue is preferable to one which relies on a
monologue. Discussion can best be encouraged by having fewer people in
the "session of persuasion". Because of the need for a definitive
decision, we believe the best group size to encourage active involvement
by all participants is three.
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