One Reason We Make Bad Decisions: New and fascinating research sheds light on one reason we all make bad decisions: the scarcity trap. This phenomenon affects nearly everything in our lives and connects people who appear to have nothing in common: those of us who don’t have enough money, time, resources, friends or food. When we’re in scarcity, the thing we think we need can become the only thing that matters to us. I highly recommend a recent story on NPR’s Hidden Brain podcast about this research — You 2.0: Tunnel Vision.
The Tunnel Restricts Our View: When we have scarcity and it creates a scarcity mindset, it leads us to behaviors that, in the short term, help us manage scarcity, but in the long term only make matters worse. This type of scarcity is almost like an alarm that goes off in the head that’s saying: “Hey, we REALLY need this thing addressed. We REALLY need this thing addressed.” We lack long-term strategic thinking and focus only on what we perceive to be the immediate crisis.
Our Brains Narrows Our Focus: When we feel that something important is missing in our life, our brain starts to focus on that missing thing. When we’re desperate for something, we can focus on it so obsessively, there’s no room for anything else. From an evolutionary perspective, the human brain is wired to respond to scarcity by tunneling in on the thing that’s missing. If our ancestors needed food, for example, tunnel vision helped them focus all their efforts on finding nutrition and those who did that, survived.
Mental Bandwidth: In tech terms, it’s called bandwidth. If we’re downloading a movie on our home Wi-Fi, for example, we may not have the bandwidth for anything else. Lack somehow changes our minds, and, researchers have found, can even lower how we perform on an IQ test.
When something we desperately need is in short supply, our brain tends to focus on that thing. This focus can be so intense that it impedes our ability to think about anything else.
What Should You Do?
Recognize the Trap: If you’re feeling desperate about something: lack of competent employees, a conflict with another leader, not enough time, realize that your perspective might be distorted.
Avoid Tunnel Vision: While the psychological studies into scarcity and bandwidth are relatively new, the solutions are ancient. Avoid tunnel vision. Keep difficult things in one part of your life from contaminating everything else. Be present. Utilize mindfulness techniques. Exercise. Spend time with friends and family.
Try To Make Parts of Your Life “Mistake Proof”: When we’re inside the tunnel, we make mistakes because we make bad decisions and we miss attending to responsibilities that are not inside the tunnel. Researchers think we should respond to these mistakes the same way we respond to mistakes made by airline pilots. There was a time when we thought that airline pilots who made mistakes were just bad pilots. A big reason air travel has become safer in recent decades is that there has been a shift in thinking. Designers have made cockpits fault-tolerant. Rather than trying to find perfect pilots, cockpits are now designed to account for human error. The goal is to alert pilots when they’ve made a mistake and to diminish the consequences of mistakes.
Surround Yourself with Perspective Supporters: Find people — inside and outside of work — who can call you on your tunnel vision, who can remind you when you’re lacking the 30,000-foot view. Ask for their perspective and take the time to listen to their advice.
For further information about decision making and problem solving read:
Want to Bullet Proof Decision Making? Here’s How
Decisions! Decisions! How Objective Are You Really?
Are You Asking the Right Question? Problem Solving as Problem Reframing
August 12, 2019
