This activity is designed for participants to learn about status-quo bias and the importance of context. Participants will also learn a heuristic for counteracting status quo bias.
Warm-up question: Should public health officials re-poison the water supply??
Think of a problem in your organization where some people want to maintain the status quo, and other people want things to change. Can you use the reversal test to make progress on this problem?
So far, human life expectancy in developed countries has increased over the 20th’centruy, largely due to biotechnological investment, which is increasing the pace of technological change.
Imagine that the use of CRISPR technology has the potential to radically improve human wellbeing, eliminating disability and extending people’s lives by 50%.
All parties agree with the precautionary principle, but:
· Disability advocates say, do not use CRISPR on humans. (maintain position)
· Biologists say, do not stop the natural progress of science. (maintain speed of development)
· Investors say, do not slow the pace of innovation. (maintain acceleration of development)