Sometimes it's good to give up the driver's seat | Baba Shiv | TEDxStanford
-
0:05 - 0:08I'm going to start
on a slightly somber note. -
0:09 - 0:12Two thousand and seven, five years ago,
-
0:12 - 0:15my wife gets diagnosed with breast cancer.
-
0:16 - 0:17Stage IIB.
-
0:19 - 0:22Now, looking back, the most
harrowing part of that experience -
0:22 - 0:24was not just the hospital visits --
-
0:24 - 0:26these were very painful
for my wife, understandably so. -
0:27 - 0:30It was not even the initial shock
of knowing that she had breast cancer -
0:30 - 0:32at just 39 years old,
-
0:32 - 0:34absolutely no history
of cancer in her family. -
0:35 - 0:39The most horrifying and agonizing part
of the whole experience -
0:39 - 0:43was we were making decisions
after decisions after decisions -
0:43 - 0:45that were being thrust upon us.
-
0:45 - 0:48Should it be a mastectomy?
Should it be a lumpectomy? -
0:48 - 0:50Should it be a more
aggressive form of treatment, -
0:50 - 0:52given that it was stage IIB?
-
0:52 - 0:53With all the side effects?
-
0:54 - 0:56Or should it be a less
aggressive form of treatment? -
0:57 - 1:00And these were being thrust
upon us by the doctors. -
1:01 - 1:03Now you could ask this question,
-
1:03 - 1:04why were the doctors doing this?
-
1:04 - 1:06A simplistic answer would be,
-
1:06 - 1:07the doctors are doing this
-
1:07 - 1:10because they want to protect
themselves legally. -
1:11 - 1:12I think that is too simplistic.
-
1:12 - 1:14These are well-meaning doctors,
-
1:14 - 1:16some of them have gone on
to become very good friends. -
1:16 - 1:19They probably were simply
following the wisdom -
1:19 - 1:20that has come down through the ages,
-
1:20 - 1:23this adage that when
you're making decisions, -
1:23 - 1:24especially decisions of importance,
-
1:24 - 1:27it's best to be in charge,
it's best to be in control, -
1:27 - 1:29it's best to be in the driver's seat.
-
1:30 - 1:32And we were certainly
in the driver's seat, -
1:32 - 1:33making all these decisions.
-
1:33 - 1:36And let me tell you --
if some of you have been there, -
1:36 - 1:38it was a most agonizing
and harrowing experience. -
1:39 - 1:41Which got me thinking.
-
1:41 - 1:44I said, is there any validity
to this whole adage -
1:44 - 1:46that when you're making decisions,
-
1:46 - 1:48it's best to take the driver's seat,
-
1:48 - 1:49be in charge, be in control?
-
1:49 - 1:53Or are there contexts
where we're far better off -
1:53 - 1:55taking the passenger's seat
-
1:55 - 1:56and have someone else drive?
-
1:56 - 1:58For example, a trusted financial advisor,
-
1:58 - 2:00could be a trusted doctor, etc.
-
2:01 - 2:04And since I study human decision making,
-
2:04 - 2:06I said, I'm going to run some studies
-
2:06 - 2:07to find some answers.
-
2:07 - 2:10And I'm going to share one
of these studies with you today. -
2:11 - 2:15So, imagine that all of you
are participants in the study. -
2:15 - 2:18I want to tell you that
what you're going to do in the study is, -
2:18 - 2:20you're going to drink a cup of tea.
-
2:21 - 2:24If you're wondering why, I'll tell you why
in a few seconds from now. -
2:24 - 2:26You are going to solve
a series of puzzles, -
2:26 - 2:30and I'm going to show you examples
of these puzzles momentarily. -
2:31 - 2:32And the more puzzles you solve,
-
2:32 - 2:35the greater the chances
that you'll win some prizes. -
2:36 - 2:38Now, why do you have to consume the tea?
-
2:38 - 2:40Why? Because it makes a lot of sense:
-
2:40 - 2:43In order to solve these puzzles
effectively, if you think about it, -
2:43 - 2:46your mind needs to be in two states
simultaneously, right? -
2:47 - 2:49It needs to be alert,
-
2:49 - 2:50for which caffeine is very good.
-
2:52 - 2:54Simultaneously, it needs to be calm --
-
2:54 - 2:56not agitated, calm --
-
2:56 - 2:58for which chamomile is very good.
-
3:00 - 3:03Now comes the between-subjects design,
-
3:03 - 3:05the AB design, the AB testing.
-
3:05 - 3:08So what I'm going to do is randomly
assign you to one of two groups. -
3:08 - 3:11So imagine that there is
an imaginary line out here, -
3:11 - 3:14so everyone here will be group A,
-
3:14 - 3:16everyone out here will be group B.
-
3:17 - 3:22Now, for you folks, what I'm going to do
is I'm going to show you these two teas, -
3:22 - 3:25and I'll go ahead and ask you
to choose your tea. -
3:25 - 3:27So you can choose whichever tea you want.
-
3:27 - 3:29You can decide, what is your mental state:
-
3:29 - 3:31OK, I choose the caffeinated tea,
-
3:31 - 3:32I choose the chamomile tea.
-
3:32 - 3:35So you're going to be in charge,
you're going to be in control, -
3:35 - 3:38you're going to be in the driver's seat.
-
3:38 - 3:41You folks, I'm going to show you
these two teas, -
3:41 - 3:42but you don't have a choice.
-
3:43 - 3:45I'm going to give you
one of these two teas, -
3:45 - 3:48and keep in mind, I'm going
to pick one of these two teas -
3:48 - 3:49at random for you.
-
3:49 - 3:50And you know that.
-
3:51 - 3:54So if you think about it,
this is an extreme-case scenario, -
3:54 - 3:55because in the real world,
-
3:55 - 3:57whenever you are taking passenger's seat,
-
3:57 - 4:00very often the driver is going
to be someone you trust, -
4:00 - 4:01an expert, etc.
-
4:01 - 4:03So this is an extreme-case scenario.
-
4:04 - 4:09Now, you're all going to consume the tea.
-
4:09 - 4:11So imagine that you're taking the tea now,
-
4:11 - 4:13we'll wait for you to finish the tea.
-
4:13 - 4:16We'll give another five minutes
for the ingredient to have its effects. -
4:16 - 4:21Now you're going to have
30 minutes to solve 15 puzzles. -
4:22 - 4:25Here's an example of the puzzle
you're going to solve. -
4:25 - 4:27Anyone in the audience
want to take a stab? -
4:27 - 4:30Audience member: Pulpit!
Baba Shiv: Whoa! OK. -
4:30 - 4:31That's cool.
-
4:31 - 4:34Yeah, so what we'd do if we had
you who gave the answer -
4:34 - 4:35as a participant,
-
4:35 - 4:37we would have calibrated
the difficulty level -
4:37 - 4:39of the puzzles to your expertise.
-
4:39 - 4:42Because we want
these puzzles to be difficult. -
4:42 - 4:43These are tricky puzzles,
-
4:43 - 4:46because your first instinct
is to say "tulip." -
4:46 - 4:48And then you have to unstick yourself.
-
4:49 - 4:50Right?
-
4:50 - 4:53So these have been calibrated
to your level of expertise, -
4:53 - 4:54because we want this to be difficult,
-
4:54 - 4:57and I'll tell you why, momentarily.
-
4:57 - 4:58Now, here's another example.
-
4:59 - 5:01Anyone? This is much more difficult.
-
5:01 - 5:03Audience member: Embark.
BS: Yeah. Wow! OK. -
5:03 - 5:05So, yeah, so this is, again, difficult.
-
5:05 - 5:08You'll say "kamber," then you'll go,
"maker," and all that, -
5:08 - 5:09and then you can unstick yourself.
-
5:09 - 5:12So you have 30 minutes now
to solve these 15 puzzles. -
5:14 - 5:18Now, the question we're asking
here is, in terms of the outcome -- -
5:18 - 5:20and it comes in the number
of puzzles solved -- -
5:20 - 5:24will you in the driver's seat
end up solving more puzzles -
5:24 - 5:26because you are in control,
-
5:26 - 5:28you could decide which tea
you would choose, -
5:28 - 5:29or would you be better off,
-
5:30 - 5:32in terms of the number of puzzles solved?
-
5:32 - 5:35And, systemically, what we will show,
-
5:35 - 5:37across a series of studies,
-
5:37 - 5:39is that you, the passengers,
-
5:39 - 5:43even though the tea
was picked for you at random, -
5:43 - 5:45will end up solving
more puzzles than you, the drivers. -
5:47 - 5:49We also observe another thing,
-
5:49 - 5:52and that is, you folks not only
are solving fewer puzzles, -
5:52 - 5:56you're also putting less juice
into the task -- less effort, -
5:56 - 5:58you're less persistent, and so on.
-
5:58 - 5:59How do we know that?
-
5:59 - 6:01Well, we have two objective measures.
-
6:01 - 6:04One is, what is the time,
on average, you're taking -
6:04 - 6:06in attempting to solve these puzzles?
-
6:07 - 6:09You will spend less time compared to you.
-
6:09 - 6:11Second, you have
30 minutes to solve these; -
6:12 - 6:13are you taking the entire 30 minutes
-
6:13 - 6:16or are you giving up
before the 30 minutes elapse? -
6:16 - 6:19You will be more likely to give up
before the 30 minutes elapse, -
6:20 - 6:21compared to you.
-
6:21 - 6:22So you're putting in less juice,
-
6:22 - 6:25and therefore, the outcome:
fewer puzzles solved. -
6:26 - 6:30That brings us now to:
why does this happen? -
6:30 - 6:35And under what situations -- when --
would we see this pattern of results -
6:35 - 6:39where the passenger is going to show
better, more favorable outcomes, -
6:39 - 6:40compared to the driver?
-
6:41 - 6:46It all has to do with when you face
what I call the INCA. -
6:47 - 6:51It's an acronym that stands for the nature
of the feedback you're getting -
6:51 - 6:53after you made the decision.
-
6:53 - 6:56So if you think about it,
in this particular puzzle task -- -
6:56 - 6:58it could happen in investing
in the stock market, -
6:58 - 6:59very volatile out there,
-
6:59 - 7:01it could be the medical situation --
-
7:01 - 7:03the feedback here is immediate.
-
7:03 - 7:06You know the feedback,
whether you're solving the puzzles or not. -
7:06 - 7:09Right? Second, it is negative.
-
7:09 - 7:11Remember, the deck
was stacked against you, -
7:11 - 7:14in terms of the difficulty
level of these puzzles. -
7:14 - 7:16And this can happen in the medical domain.
-
7:16 - 7:18For example, very early on
in the treatment, -
7:18 - 7:21things are negative, the feedback,
before things become positive. -
7:21 - 7:23Right? It can happen in the stock market.
-
7:23 - 7:27Volatile stock market, getting negative
feedback, it is also immediate. -
7:27 - 7:30And the feedback in all these cases
is concrete, it's unambiguous; -
7:31 - 7:33you know if you've solved
the puzzles or not. -
7:33 - 7:35Now, the added one,
-
7:35 - 7:40apart from this immediacy,
negative, this concreteness -- -
7:40 - 7:43now you have a sense of agency.
-
7:44 - 7:46You were responsible for your decision.
-
7:47 - 7:48So what do you do?
-
7:48 - 7:51You focus on the foregone option.
-
7:51 - 7:53You say, you know what?
-
7:53 - 7:54I should have chosen the other tea.
-
7:55 - 7:57(Laughter)
-
7:58 - 8:01That casts your decision in doubt,
-
8:01 - 8:03reduces the confidence
you have in the decision, -
8:03 - 8:06the confidence you have
in the performance, -
8:06 - 8:08the performance in terms
of solving the puzzles. -
8:08 - 8:10And therefore less juice into the task,
-
8:10 - 8:12fewer puzzles solved
-
8:12 - 8:16and less favorable outcomes
compared to you folks. -
8:16 - 8:20And this can happen in the medical
domain, if you think about it, right? -
8:20 - 8:22A patient in the driver's
seat, for example. -
8:22 - 8:24Less juice, which means
keeping herself or himself -
8:24 - 8:28less physically fit, physically active
to hasten the recovery process, -
8:28 - 8:30which is what is often advocated.
-
8:30 - 8:31You probably wouldn't do that.
-
8:32 - 8:38And therefore, there are times
when you're facing the INCA, -
8:38 - 8:42when the feedback is going
to be immediate, negative, concrete -
8:42 - 8:43and you have the sense of agency,
-
8:43 - 8:47where you're far better off
taking the passenger's seat -
8:47 - 8:48and have someone else drive.
-
8:50 - 8:53Now, I started off on a somber note.
-
8:53 - 8:55I want to finish up on a more upbeat note.
-
8:55 - 8:58It has now been five years,
slightly more than five years, -
8:58 - 9:04and the good news, thank God,
is that the cancer is still in remission. -
9:05 - 9:06So it all ends well.
-
9:07 - 9:13But one thing I didn't mention
was that very early on into her treatment, -
9:13 - 9:17my wife and I decided
that we would take the passenger's seat. -
9:17 - 9:19And that made so much of a difference
-
9:19 - 9:22in terms of the peace of mind
that came with that; -
9:22 - 9:24we could focus on her recovery.
-
9:24 - 9:27We let the doctors make all the decisions
-
9:27 - 9:28and take the driver's seat.
-
9:29 - 9:30Thank you.
-
9:30 - 9:36(Applause)
- Title:
- Sometimes it's good to give up the driver's seat | Baba Shiv | TEDxStanford
- Description:
-
Over the years, research has shown a counterintuitive fact about human nature: That sometimes, having too much choice makes us less happy. This may even be true when it comes to medical treatment. Baba Shiv shares a fascinating study that measures why choice opens the door to doubt, and suggests that ceding control -- especially on life-or-death decisions -- may be the best thing for us.
This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TEDxTalks
- Duration:
- 09:47
TED Translators admin commented on English subtitles for Sometimes it's good to give up the driver's seat | Baba Shiv | TEDxStanford | ||
TED Translators admin edited English subtitles for Sometimes it's good to give up the driver's seat | Baba Shiv | TEDxStanford | ||
Ivana Korom approved English subtitles for Sometimes it's good to give up the driver's seat | Baba Shiv | TEDxStanford | ||
Ivana Korom accepted English subtitles for Sometimes it's good to give up the driver's seat | Baba Shiv | TEDxStanford | ||
Ivana Korom edited English subtitles for Sometimes it's good to give up the driver's seat | Baba Shiv | TEDxStanford | ||
Ivana Korom edited English subtitles for Sometimes it's good to give up the driver's seat | Baba Shiv | TEDxStanford | ||
Ivana Korom edited English subtitles for Sometimes it's good to give up the driver's seat | Baba Shiv | TEDxStanford | ||
Ivana Korom edited English subtitles for Sometimes it's good to give up the driver's seat | Baba Shiv | TEDxStanford |
TED Translators admin
The English transcript was updated on 2/16/2017