Nov 13, 2021 20:00:00

Experts explain why people in power make 'stupid decisions'

From business owners to heads of state, people with high social status make many decisions, but sometimes they make short-sighted choices.

Daniel de Jilba, a part-time lecturer who has taught risk culture at the University of New South Wales in Australia and a researcher in organizational psychology, said, 'A person who has climbed to the throne of power makes a mistake. Why is it going to end up? '

3 reasons people with power are more likely to make bad decisions
https://theconversation.com/3-reasons-people-with-power-are-more-likely-to-make-bad-decisions-169017

Based on the results of research and experiments that have been conducted so far, Mr. De Jitterbug has classified the problems that power people tend to fall into into the following three categories.

◆ 1: I can't stand from the perspective of others
For those who lead the organization, it is important to be in the perspective of others. However, a 2006 study found that people who feel 'I have power' tend to overestimate their views and downplay the perspectives of others. ..

In this study, social psychologist Adam Galinsky and colleagues first associate some of the participants with 'when they have power over someone' or 'when someone has power over themselves.' By instructing, I made 'a group that I think is strong', 'a group that I think I am weak', and 'a control group that is not instructed'.

Next, when participants in each group took three types of tests to measure their ability to think from the perspective of others, the group who thought that they were 'strong' was different from the control group. It is said that the result of the test that captures human emotions has decreased by 6%. We also found that the group who thought 'I am strong' had a lower ability to detect discomfort from the text of the email than the group who felt 'I am weak'.

◆ 2: Deny expert advice
The tendency that 'people who feel that they have power will not hear the advice of experts' was announced in 2012 by sociologist Ray Tost and others who are studying organizational behavior.

It turned out from research.

In this study, participants were first divided into 'groups who think they are strong' and 'groups who think they are weak' in the same way as the above-mentioned experiment conducted by Garinsky et al. Then, after dividing each participant into several groups, we conducted a prediction test such as guessing the weight of a person.

After the prediction test of the participants in the first group was completed, the participants in the next group received advice and opinions from the participants in the first group. Then, after being told by the experimenter whether the adviser was an 'expert' who gave a good answer or a 'beginner' who gave a mediocre answer, I took the same prediction test.

As a result of this experiment, those who think that they are weak tend to listen to the advice of 'experts', while those who think that they are strong also tend to 'beginners' in the opinion of 'experts'. I found that I didn't listen to the opinion. Regarding this result, the research team concludes that 'the reason for rejecting expert advice is that there is a desire to maintain one's social advantage.'

◆ 3: Ignore restrictions
According to De Jitterbug, those who have power can behave more freely than those who do not, so it is highly likely that they will not be able to recognize the constraints as they pursue their goals. This is supported by

a study published in 2013 by a research team led by Associate Professor Jennifer Whitson, who studies management and organization at the University of Texas at Austin.

In this study, Associate Professor Whitson and colleagues grouped participants in the same way as Garinsky et al. I told you nine conditions that would be a tailwind for business, such as 'high.' Then, I found that the group that I thought was strong was less accurate in remembering the constraints later than the group that I thought was weak.

Regarding the results of this experiment, De Jilva said, 'It is sometimes useful to ignore restrictions. For example, Apple founder Steve Jobs tells Apple's founder Steve Jobs that he can't make such a thing when developing an iPod. There is an anecdote that he rejected the engineer's story, but Elizabeth Holmes , the founder of the medical venture Theranos, who always wears a black sweater with Jobs in mind, said, 'Small medical use under development. As a result of ignoring the fact that the device is not feasible, he was accused of fraud. '

by Kazuhiro Shiozawa

De Jilba also summarized three issues that powers tend to fall into: 'In today's world, where it's more important than ever to respect different opinions and listen to expert advice, power is We must not forget these problems we have. From this pandemic experience of the new corona virus, we have found that it is better to disperse power. That is, the leader image we need is power. He is the one who understands that it is corrupt and listens humbly. '