What are group members engaging in when they withhold their reservations and criticisms for the sake of consensus?

Group members are engaging in a phenomenon known as "groupthink" when they withhold their reservations and criticisms for the sake of consensus.

Groupthink is a psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group of people, in which the desire for harmony or conformity in the group results in an irrational or dysfunctional decision-making outcome.

Here are the steps that lead to groupthink:

1. The group members form a strong, cohesive group.
2. The group's desire for unanimity overrides their motivation to realistically appraise alternative courses of action.
3. Group members try to minimize conflict and reach a consensus decision without critical evaluation of alternative viewpoints.
4. Active suppression of dissenting viewpoints and isolation of their proponents.
5. The lack of systematic procedures for search and appraisal of alternatives.
6. Belief in the inherent morality of the group and ignoring moral consequences of decisions.
7. Stereotyping those who oppose the group's views as weak, evil, biased, spiteful, disfigured, impotent, or stupid.
8. Direct pressure on any member who expresses strong arguments against any of the group's stereotypes, illusions, or commitments, making clear that this type of dissent is contrary to what is expected of all loyal members.
9. Self-censorship of deviations from the apparent group consensus.
10. Shared illusion of unanimity concerning judgments conforming to the majority view.
11. Emergence of self-appointed mindguards— members who protect the group from adverse information that might shatter their shared complacency about the effectiveness and morality of their decisions.