Willful ignorance – what is it?

According to Greek mythology, Apollo granted Cassandra, the daughter of the King of Troy, the gift of prophecy. However, after his failed attempt to seduce her, he cursed her so that no one would ever believe her predictions. Cassandra foresaw the fall of Troy, the death of her father, her own death, and the name of her murderer. Knowledge became a curse for her, a source of great suffering and pain. Perhaps some might take from Cassandra's story the preference to know as little as possible.

Unlike Cassandra, philosophy and psychology attribute significant and positive value to the power of knowledge and the ability to foresee the future. "All humans naturally desire to know"—thus began Aristotle in his *Metaphysics* [1], "Every question is a cry to understand the world; there is no such thing as a stupid question" (Sagan, 1997) [2]. Nevertheless, it seems that people sometimes avoid asking questions.

How is it that in situations where it's crucial for us to obtain information in order to make decisions, and we have the "free" option to ask questions to gather the information we desperately need, we still choose not to ask and simply remain in ignorance? In the eyes of an economist, this behavior is irrational. A rational person would ask the necessary question, receive the missing information to manage risks, and allow themselves to make a better and more informed decision.

Tech professionals, take note—these are situations where access to information is cost-free; it's simply "free." You don't need to purchase cloud services, open a new position, buy a license for a new tool, conduct a cross-continental customer survey, or invest in a new feature. All you need to do is ask questions, yet sometimes that just doesn't happen.

To stay true to the source, it's important to note that there are several definitions of the term "willful ignorance." In English, terms like "Willful Ignorance" or "Deliberate Ignorance" are used. Various researchers have articulated the phenomenon, and I've chosen to present the definition by Gerd Gigerenzer, who is considered a leading researcher in the field—

A voluntary decision not to know the answer to a question that concerns us, even if the answer does not entail any costs related to the search for answers (Gigerenzer, 2017) [3].

Some of you might immediately notice and say that even if asking questions has no economic cost like the one I described, it can definitely come with interpersonal costs. You're right! In the book "Etiquette for Ladies and Gentlemen" [4] (those of you who are romantics must check the source) from 1877, it states that "all questions are a complete taboo"—highlighting potential costs and the necessary caution required when posing a question. Even then, it was explained to us that despite all due respect to Aristotle, questions can be inherently sensitive, interpreted as threatening, and can provoke a sense of distrust among people.

For example, I'm sure there are questions you've chosen not to ask your manager, out of fear that the very question itself might provoke a sense of distrust in her. The choice of the question—"Are you still considering my request for a raise?"—will be weighed several times in your overactive mind before it's released into the world.

When Gigerenzer contemplated willful ignorance, he was far from thinking specifically about management or product management. However, the objective reasons he presented for willful ignorance are very relevant today for individuals in these roles. If you've avoided an overload of information to prevent paralysis in the decision-making process, or if you've preferred to ignore a lack of information in uncertain situations to make quicker decisions, or if you've recognized that missing information carries a high cost in terms of time, effort, and resources—then Gigerenzer has hit the nail on the head regarding you.

Willful ignorance is also a defense mechanism, or sometimes a strategy of choice, and not everyone who holds it will see it as negative; at times, there may even be a justified reason for it. After Gigerenzer, Ralph Hertwig and Christoph Engel [5], elaborated on additional reasons—

Emotional regulation and avoidance of regret—people can manipulate their beliefs by selecting sources of information while completely ignoring other sources of information [6]. For example, fear can lead to avoidance of health information that might threaten an existing condition. Avoidance of jealousy can explain why employees are reluctant to ask about or compare their salaries to those of their colleagues (beyond the prohibitions sometimes imposed by companies).

Building tension and maximizing surprises—you're planning to spend the weekend binge-watching your favorite drama series or rewatching yesterday's football game. Are you ready to know in advance what happens in the season finale? Or how the game ended in penalties? Do you really want to know what they got you for your birthday, or would you rather stay surprised?[7]

Performance improvement—it's commonly believed that exposing employees to information that analyzes their task performance is a powerful and effective way to enhance performance. However, it has been shown that this type of feedback can shift attention away from the task itself to the needs of the "self," draining the cognitive resources required for the task at hand [8].

Strategic management—how much does willful ignorance help achieve a bargaining advantage in negotiations [9]? When both parties are interested in conducting negotiations, the party that chooses not to know what a reasonable solution is shifts the burden of avoiding a deadlock to the other side, the "informed" party, which will have to make concessions that the "ignorant" party stands to benefit from. Experimental negotiation studies have shown that negotiators may derive benefits from ignorance, and a non-trivial number of players will choose to remain ignorant as long as they can hide their intention to do so [10].

A device for self-discipline—when your future preferences differ from those of the present [11]. For example, regarding the consumption of a product that may incur health costs in the future. Non-smokers who believe that the risk of lung cancer from smoking is expected to be high may be reluctant to see lower estimates. Such estimates might encourage them to smoke, change their behavior, and later regret it.

Evading responsibility—"Sometimes it's better not to know because if you knew, then you'd have to act and stick your neck out" (Maslow, 1963). People can evade responsibility for their actions by avoiding information about the impact of the actions they take on others [12]; at times, they may even be willing to pay not to know [13].

Fairness and justice—a veil of ignorance can sometimes create conditions for building fairness and maintaining justice. For example, large orchestras changed their audition policies by concealing the identities of candidates while they are asked to perform behind a screen. This approach increased the likelihood of success for women and raised the proportion of women in symphony orchestras [14].

Cognitive sustainability and information management—in a world full of stimuli, we become targets for "tasty stimuli" that capture our attention. Players such as companies, advertisers, and policymakers compete for our most valuable resource. In such a cultural environment, we have learned to choose between knowing one fact and remaining ignorant of other facts. This is a core skill. "The ability to ignore things seems likely to remain important throughout life, allowing for the maintenance of personal space against a flood of environmental stimuli" (Crawford, 2015) [15].

Are you noticing signs of willful ignorance? In yourself or in those around you? It’s possible to diagnose them, identify the reasons, and also provide a response. Stay tuned for upcoming chapters.

[1] Aristotle's Metaphysics, Volume 1, 1953 https://books.google.co.il/books?id=N7EtAAAAIAAJ&source=gbs_book_other_versions

[2] Sagan, C. (1997). The demon-haunted world: science as a candle in the dark. 1st Ballantine Books ed. New York, Ballantine Books.

[3] Gigerenzer G.  (2017). Deliberate ignorance. In: J. Brockman (ed.) What Scientific Term or Concept Ought to Be Widely Known?

[4] Duffey, E. B. (1877). The Ladies’ and Gentleman’s Etiquette: A Complete Manual of the Manners and Dress of American Society. Containing Forms of Letters, Invitations, Acceptances, and Regrets. With a Copious Index. Porter and Coates.

[5] Hertwig R, Engel C. Homo Ignorans: Deliberately Choosing Not to Know. Perspect Psychol Sci. 2016 May;11(3):359-72.

[6] Howell, J. L., & Shepperd, J. A. (2013). Reducing health-information avoidance through contemplation. Psychological Science, 24, 1696–1703.

Yaniv, I., Benador, D., & Sagi, M. (2004). On not wanting to know and not wanting to inform others: Choices regarding predictive genetic testing. Risk, Decision and Policy, 9, 317–336.

[7] Ely, J., Frankel, A., & Kamenica, E. (2015). Suspense and surprise. Journal of Political Economy, 123, 215–260.

[8] Kluger, A. N., & DeNisi, A. (1996). The effects of feedback interventions on performance: Historical review, a meta analysis and a preliminary feedback intervention theory. Psychological Bulletin, 119, 254–284.

[9] McAdams, D. (2012). Strategic ignorance in a second-price auction. Economics Letters, 114, 83–85.

[10] Conrads, J., & Irlenbusch, B. (2013). Strategic ignorance in ultimatum bargaining. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 92, 104–115.

[11] Carrillo, J. D., & Mariotti, T. (2000). Strategic ignorance as a self-disciplining device. The Review of Economic Studies, 67, 529–544.

[12] Thunström, L., van’t Veld, K., F. Shogren, J. F., & Nordström, J. (2014). On strategic ignorance of environmental harm and social norms. Revue D’Economie Politique, 124, 195–214.

[13] Nyborg, K. (2011). I don’t want to hear about it: Rational ignorance among duty-oriented consumers. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 79, 263–274.

[14] Goldin, C., & Rouse, C. (2000). Orchestrating impartiality: The impact of “blind” auditions on female musicians. The American Economic Review, 90, 715–741.

[15] Crawford, M. B. (2015). The world beyond your head: On becoming an individual in an age of distraction. New York, NY: Farrar, Straus and Girouxץ