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By Liam Keown
An Introduction
Willful ignorance is a phenomenon observed when an individual makes a deliberate choice to overlook a piece of information in order to maintain a more comfortable state of mind. It’s a common behavior that manifests in everyone — even if you aren’t aware of it — and can occur within any one of many fields including political events, ethical choices, financial decisions, tasks at work, and more, prompting decisions that can be fueled by an equally long (or longer) list of complex factors.
Here are some situational examples of intentional ignorance, with some common reasons and risks concerning them:
The Hidden Cost
So, people display a behavior that might not be the healthiest choice for them. So what? What’s so bad about thousands or millions of people going around telling themselves white lies? After all, they preserve relationships, self-esteem, and mental energy, so could they really be that bad? Unfortunately, the issue lies in the fact that while you might ignore your problems, they will not be so kind as to ignore you. While you’re procrastinating doing your homework, the due date doesn’t get pushed back any further. If thousands of voters decided to look the other way while there was a scandal involving a politician, that could amount to thousands of votes for a potentially corrupt official.
So What's Behind It?
If this approach is as harmful as it is and has such a disastrous impact on people's well-being, why is it still so common? The answer to this question lies in the contrast between the immediate comfort of avoiding confrontation and the fact that more often than not, the consequences of these choices are so delayed that it’s nearly impossible to see their connection to one’s previous decisions.. While the lack of immediate consequences is a large factor in this behavior’s survival, another is the way that people justify it or avoid seeing it as something negative when they’re aware of it. One way people rationalize ignorance and inaction is by creating excuses for the behavior, for example having a full schedule or not having the energy to deal with something immediately. Another way willful ignorance survives is by people downplaying the significance of an issue, for example by brushing off the weight of a missing assignment or by waiving something off as a coincidence or being “probably nothing”.
When we think of something stressful — whether it’s a dreaded appointment, an abrasive family member, or a controversial political topic — our human instinct is to react with urgency and anxiety. We often tend to drop any semblance of rationality or reasoning in the face of apprehension, and, as a result, prefer to push whatever occupies us off of our plate and onto the floor, rather than figuratively (and sometimes literally) “doing the dishes”. Ignoring our problems gives us relief from immediate stress, and thanks to millennia of conditioning ourselves as a species to focus on the present moment, we’ve developed a preference for actions that give us an immediate reward, a pattern that helps to explain this phenomenon.
The act is further motivated by our innate desire to preserve self-image and mental stability and to impress our peers. Acknowledgment of the existence of the problem involves acceptance of one’s own fault, the destruction of one’s fantasies, or the need to make unwelcome adjustments to one’s lifestyle. In order not to feel the psychological pain caused by such a confrontation, people either alter reality in their heads or deny the gravity of the situation, and unfortunately, the latter is most often preferable to the danger of admitting fault or imperfection, especially when that fault could damage how others see us.
In Conclusion...
Willful Ignorance, though holding merit as far as its abilities to reduce stress, ultimately only provides short-lasting relief. It builds stress and proliferates bad decision-making, while blocking personal growth, clarity, and long-term success, compounding problems as they’re ignored until confrontation is forced. The comfortable lie survives because it makes the present easier. While simply recognizing it doesn’t fix its effects, it is a viable first step toward progress in improving aspects of one’s life. At the end of the day, the truth faced early ends up far less expensive than a lie answered for late.
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