Willful Blindness

In Full View

Many of the most horrific crimes against humanity were committed out in the open in front of lots of ordinary citizens. What factor in human nature allows people to live in denial, ignoring problems within their own homes, communities, and religious and governmental institutions? How could executives at Enron, W.R. Grace, Countrywide and BP take actions that caused people to lose their lives or life savings?

Many forces stop people from seeing the truth, asking questions and taking action. Sometimes, a little denial doesn’t hurt. Yet, when the knowledge that people could have prevented a tragedy compounds the tragedy itself, a blind eye is often the culprit. Neuroscience explains some aspects of the brain that cause “willful blindness,” and you also can blame the foibles of human nature.

Like Me

Humans often fall in love with people who are like themselves. The online dating site eHarmony developed a questionnaire that identifies applicants’ traits in order to match them with similar people. The Internet radio site Pandora registers what kind of music you like and gives you more of it. The site’s founder Tim Westergren acknowledges, “Pandora...