3 ms·

Society is very diverse, it's not that realistic to change society such that you stamp out the ideas you disagree with, it's much more feasible and effective to

• derefr 7y ago
  I mean, the whole point of the Abilene paradox is that it's something that happens when everyone's level of regret they'd have from doing the thing doesn't exceed their level of regret from social approbation if it turns out everyone else did want to do the thing and they had to be the one to argue against it. So in the end everyone loses a little utility—rather than everyone expecting to lose a lot of utility (in the form of personal social capital), and then actually losing nothing-at-all when it turns out nobody's on the other side of the argument. If you want to stand up for a lack of decorum in your community, there's nothing stopping you; but the behavioral economics just don't work out in favor of anyone following after your example, and do in fact work out in favor of the rest of the group tearing down the presumed-social-more-violator to protect themselves from being associated with you. (Again, even in cases where everyone turns out to secretly agree with you!)
  • root_axis 7y ago
    People will have opinions about things, it's not feasible to eliminate the possibility of exposure to ideas you disagree with. If the Abilene paradox is so crippling that it precludes the possibility of expressing your own opinions within your own community then what hope is there to "change societal expectations"?
    • antepodius 7y ago
      Divine grace.