Avoiding information that could potentially bring with it a negative outcome is one of the most well-known biases in individual decision making.
History is littered with leaders whose avoidance of information that might bring bad news led countries, companies and lives to unfortunate ends. Avoiding potentially bad news costs people and society as a whole in so many ways. Everyday examples might include not checking whether we’re carrying an infectious disease and passing it to others, being unwilling to check our bank balance before spending that money we need for the essentials, or not wanting to have that medical test ‘in case it’s bad news’.
Making good decisions requires all the relevant information whether that information potentially creates stress or not. Being able to work with stress effectively reduces this information avoidance bias and is one of the strengths of building a mindfulness practice.
Equanimity
Mindfulness involves the practice of 3 attentional skills working together. One of these skills is Equanimity which is defined in the Unified Mindfulness System as the ability to let your sensory experience come and go without push or pull. This willingness to let experience come and go includes those moments which deliver information containing potentially bad news.
A recent study in the UK explored this question of whether mindfulness training could be utilised for reducing information avoidance. All of the participants were new to Meditation. The results of the study found that even after a 2 week training those participants who had received the training had increased their willingness to receive potentially negative information when compared with the other groups involved in the study over the period.
Mindfulness impacts how we relate to experience
Focusing on our sensory experience with Mindfulness skills can, with practice, make even ordinary experiences feel fresh and even extraordinary. The evidence suggests increasing our baseline level of mindfulness in daily life makes us better able to confront potentially negative, but essential and useful information. This also helps us deal with stress and regulate our emotions in ways that enhance our wellbeing and improve decision making. Being someone who is able to remain calm and effective when news ‘approaches’ you become the kind of stable and trusted colleague, friend, partner or parent that makes those around you feel reassured and supported.