From the course: Decision-Making in High-Stress Situations

Unlock the full course today

Join today to access over 22,600 courses taught by industry experts or purchase this course individually.

Uncovering hidden options in high-stress decision-making

Uncovering hidden options in high-stress decision-making

From the course: Decision-Making in High-Stress Situations

Start my 1-month free trial

Uncovering hidden options in high-stress decision-making

“

- On April 26th, 1986, a test of a reactor at the Chernobyl power plant led to a chain reaction resulting in explosions, a reactor meltdown, and a massive release of radioactive material. A prolonged investigation and opening of secret archives made it clear that there was far more to this accident than was originally reported and that a narrow view of immediate response options contributed to the massive disaster. There are two main reasons why extreme stress causes narrow framing, making us miss options. Number one, we resort to simple, simple information processing. We weed out what seems less important. Number two, we fail in a fundamental decision-making requirement, the systematic consideration of all possible decision alternatives. In a panic, we offer solutions too early before all available options are considered. As the test at Chernobyl was being conducted, power plummeted to unstable levels. Rather than…

Contents