In this episode, we dive into the role of social conformity, biases, and decision-making in diving safety. Humans naturally seek group belonging, but this can lead to harsh judgments when incidents occur, particularly on social media. We explore how biases like hindsight and outcome bias affect our perceptions of accidents, often focusing on blame rather than understanding the decision-making processes behind them. To improve diving safety, it’s essential to create a "Just Culture"—a psychologically safe environment where mistakes can be shared without fear of humiliation or judgment. By examining flawed systems rather than individual outcomes and teaching the "why" behind protocols, we can foster better decision-making and prevent future incidents.

Original blog: https://www.thehumandiver.com/blog/we-judge-based-on-outcomes-not-on-process

Links: Learning teams blog: https://www.thehumandiver/blog/can-divers-learn-from-the-us-forest-service

Hindsight bias: https://www.thehumandiver/blog/incompetent-and-unaware-you-don-t-know-what-you-don-t-know

More about Just Culture: https://humanisticsystems.com/2016/11/24/just-culture-who-are-we-really-afraid-of%EF%BB%BF/

Tags: English, Gareth Lock