Decision making under pressure. Recently, Brockner and James (2008) identified the factors that influence when leaders will perceive crises not only as a
threat, but also as a possible opportunity. They articulated that at the outset of
a crisis, leaders are generally only able to experience it as a threat to themselves and to their organization. Within this frame, the corresponding behaviors that decision makers are likely to adopt are typically short-term actions
associated with damage control. Moreover, during this stage the threatening
event usually leads to an undercurrent of negative emotions such as fear and
anxiety (Smith & Ellsworth, 1985). We believe that these types of negative
emotions can severely and adversely affect a leader’s ability to make wise
decisions. Thus, the ability to make sound and rapid decisions under pressure
becomes a core competency to effective crisis handling.
In addition to the emotional responses to crisis, characteristics of a crisis
itself (time pressure, limited information, required action and change) are precisely what contribute to the difficulty of decision making. In situations where
we have ample time to respond and abundant access to information, for
example, leaders will likely engage in sound decision making. In the absence
of these things, physiological, emotional, and cognitive (Smith & Ellsworth,
1985) constraints converge to interfere with decision making