When groups make decisions­—whether it’s humans aligning on a shared idea, robots coordinating tasks, or fish deciding where to swim—not everyone contributes equally. Some individuals have more reliable information, whereas others are more connected and have higher social influence. A new study by researchers at the Cluster of Excellence Science of Intelligence shows that a combination of uncertainty and heterogeneity plays a crucial role in how groups reach consensus. The findings, published in Scientific Reports by Vito Mengers, Mohsen Raoufi, Oliver Brock, Heiko Hamann, and Pawel Romanczuk, show that groups make faster and more accurate decisions when individuals factor in not only the opinions of their neighbors but also their confidence about these opinions and how connected those others are within the group. However, more confidence does not always equal smarter decisions. The study also shows that overconfident group members with wrong information might mislead the group.

The EPA’s network consistently failed to capture air quality in communities of color across six major pollutants. The monitors are the key data source driving decisions about pollution reduction, urban planning and public health initiatives. The data may misrepresent pollution concentrations, leaving marginalized groups at risk.