Want discussion questions for your group?

Scroll to the bottom of this page for a set of questions!

Ever wish you could talk right with the author?

You Can! Here’s How… Have your group participate in a 45-minute teleconference call with the author of Blind Spots.

It’s Easy! Here’s how it works:

1. You organize 6 or more people to be part of a book discussion group to talk about Blind Spots and find convenient times and dates for your members to participate in a conference call.
2. Contact Madeleine by email or phone to make a “date” with her.
3. Madeleine will e-mail your members the information they need (the telephone number to call and guest code number to key in) – or she can give that information to you and you can send it to your group yourself.
4. At the pre-arranged time, discussion members make a phone call to the number they’ve been given and key in the Guest Code number Madeleine has provided.

Members can do this individually from their homes, or as a group using a speaker phone if you have one available. You may use either land-line phones or cellular (mobile) phones. This will connect everyone so that Madeleine can talk and discussion group members can ask questions, raise issues, etc.

It’s Cheap!

Oh, yeah? How much?

The cost of the long-distance phone call to the Midwest number you are given. When you are informed of the number to call, you’ll be told where its area code is located (e.g., Duluth, MN). The cost to you will be whatever your telephone service would normally charge to call this number.

Cost-cutting suggestions: If you have both a cell phone and a home phone, use whichever has the lowest costs for long-distance calls. Or consider purchasing a phone card (for example, from Walgreen’s or Sam’s Club). Many phone cards allow you to make a long-distance call anywhere in the US for only 5 cents a minute, so the whole 45 minute call would only cost $2.25.

Discussion Questions for your Book Club!

Chapter 1 Why DO Smart People Do Dumb Things?

Four central ideas are presented in this introductory chapter: 1) that blind spots, rather than stupidity, cause most of the apparently stupid beliefs, decisions and actions we observe; 2) that these blind spots are built into the way we think; 3) that we can learn strategies that will help us, much of the time, to overcome these blind spots; 4) that we would be less judgmental and more understanding of others, especially those who are poles apart from ourselves, if we accepted that all of us have blind spots.

1. Can you think of a time when you, or someone else, did something that seemed really stupid? What were the circumstances? What made this seem so “dumb”? If you now analyze the situation, how might you explain how this might have happened? Does that explanation suggest some reasons why smart people sometimes do dumb things?

2. There is an example in this chapter in which a man was judged harshly by his colleagues for telling a joke that denigrated African-Americans. Their reaction to him was a “shame on you” kind of response. The author argues that a better way to respond to such a person would be to trigger that person’s moral guilt rather than shame. Do you see a distinction between moral guilt and shame? How convincing did you find the author’s arguments against using shame and instead advocating using moral guilt? When, if ever, do you think it would be a good thing to induce shame in a child? Why? When, if ever, do you think it would be a good thing to induce moral guilt in a child? Why?

Chapter 2 Fools Rush In

This chapter deals with the blind spot of “not stopping to think.” The author argues that noticing when it’s really important to stop and think is not as easy as it sounds. She outlines the situations when we frequently fail to stop and think and offers helpful tactics, such as using our sense of being under pressure as a cue to buy more time so we can stop and think.

1. Think back on a time when you realized later “I just didn’t think!” Why didn’t you stop and think? What was going on in the situation that kept that from happening? Have the group brainstorm on what has helped group members notice that they need to slow down and think more.

2. One of the problem situations when we often fail to think are times when others are pressuring us to say or do things that we are reluctant to agree to. In these situations, we need to learn how to buy time and how to be assertive but diplomatic. What are some ways that group members have learned to say “no” to family members, relatives, in-laws, friends, and bosses that have worked without alienating the other person or causing damage to the relationship?

3. Some people resist stepping back from situations in order to stop and think about them because they fear that they’ll end up analyzing life rather than living it. Are there times when you have felt that learning more about something or analyzing it in more detail robbed it of its magic, meaning, or significance to you? Are there times when the reverse happened? The author suggests that a solution to this dilemma is to have a kind of rhythm in which we go back and forth between being immersed in life and stepping back from it. How satisfying do you find this solution?

Chapter 3 Often Wrong, But Never in Doubt?

This chapter deals with the blind spot of not knowing what we don’t know. The author suggests ways of discovering what we don’t know, but also argues that sometimes we can “choose ignorance” and should stand up for ourselves when others treat us as if we were stupid simply because we are disinterested in learning about subjects that they value.

1. Can you recall a time when you felt stupid, or others treated you as if you were stupid, simply because you didn’t know something? What, if anything, have you done to try to stand up for yourself when others disrespect you in this way? What has worked, what has backfired? Group members could brainstorm about effective ways to resist being treated as an idiot by others.

2. Have you had to deal with someone who seems unable to admit that they might be wrong? What are some reasons that they might act this way — factors in the current situation that might inhibit them from admitting they were wrong, factors in their past? What might be some useful ways of responding to them?

3. The author argues that we shouldn’t judge others as “dumb” or “bad” just because they don’t care about learning things we think are important. What are some areas of knowledge that you believe to be so important that you think all children should learn about them, even if the children are disinterested, or must struggle to learn them? Why? How might we teach these children so that they don’t experience crippling feelings of inadequacy?

Chapter 4 If It Were Any Closer, It Would Bite You!

This chapter deals with the blind spot of “not noticing” what is obvious to others, or to ourselves in retrospect. We not only fail to notice aspects of our outer worlds, but often fail to notice our inner worlds — our own thoughts and feelings. The author suggests ways to be more aware of both our inner and outer worlds, including ways of noticing what we have come to ignore, just because it is so familiar.

1. Many people aren’t aware of their own learning styles. Think back to your best and worst learning experiences—whether in school, during job training, or just learning something you were interested in. What made the best so good? What made the worst so terrible? What does this suggest about your own learning style—the conditions which make learning harder for you and those which make it easier?

2. Can you recall a time as a child when you suddenly realized “oh, not everyone is like my family.” You realized that in some way, your family was different. This is an experience in which you “noticed” something that you had previously ignored because it was so familiar to you. What impact did it have on you to realize that “not everyone” thought or behaved in this same way?

3. The author advocates “talking to strangers” — meaning having contact with people from a different culture or background — in order to notice aspects of our own culture that are so familiar we have never questioned them. Had you had an experience in which you were surprised to see how differently someone from another culture viewed your practices or beliefs? What impact did this have on you?

Chapter 5 Your Own Worst Enemy

This chapter focuses on the blind spot of not seeing ourselves. While offering strategies for seeing ourselves more clearly, the author also recognizes that there are many obstacles to getting useful feedback about ourselves and to being able to accept a truer picture of ourselves when it’s offered to us.

1. Think about a time when someone gave you feedback about yourself that affected you in a significant way. What were the circumstances? To what extent did this feedback help and/or harm you? What makes the difference, for you, between feedback which has primarily positive effects and feedback which — even if true — has destructive effects? If you’ve gotten useful feedback delivered in a potentially harmful way, how were you able to offset the negative impact and just take advantage of the useful information being offered?

2. One of the strategies the author suggests to discover our blind spots about ourselves is to examine our “yes, buts,” especially those that take the form “Yes, but I can’t do that because —’I'm a perfectionist’ — or ‘I would worry too much.’” The author believes that it’s possible to choose to live with the anxiety we’d have as a perfectionist if we lowered our standards, or the worry we’d have as an overprotective mother if we gave our children more freedom. Do you think it’s possible to do this? Desirable? What are the pros and cons of trying to change in this way? Have you ever changed from believing “I can’t do that” to believing that you could do that? What helped you to make that change?

Chapter 6 Don’t Give a Cat Calendar to a Dog Lover!

This chapter is about how difficult it is for us to see the perspective of others, the blind spot called “myside bias.” The author argues that we overcome myside bias more through the use of our imaginations than through the use of logical reasoning, and so she recommends strategies like listening to personal stories and viewing films that help us see the world through the eyes of others. She also discusses the resistances we have to genuinely trying to see the world through the eyes of people who are poles apart from ourselves in their political or religious views.

1. Have you ever viewed a film or read a book or had a conversation with someone that drastically affected how you viewed something? Describe experiences you have had that made you say “I didn’t realize …” such as “I didn’t understand how an abused woman could murder her husband, it seemed to me that she had other options open to her, and then I saw The Burning Bed …” What experiences have affected you in this way? Why do you think they had such an impact?

2. Is there some subject that you wish other people would view or understand differently? What would it be? What are some art forms that might be effective in changing people’s attitudes or feelings about this subject?

3. The author argues that we fear becoming too understanding of views that are poles apart from our own because we fear that our empathy might cause us to lose our moral compasses and be unable to judge right from wrong and good from bad. Has this dilemma touched your life? Have you ever changed from condemning something unequivocally to viewing it less harshly? What caused this change? What price did you pay — what were the costs of making this change, if any? What were the benefits, if any?

Chapter 7 Thinking Inside of the Box

This chapter is about the blind spot of being trapped by categories, of often seeing things through a single lens. So the information technology person tends to see every problem as a technical problem, while the human resource person may see every problem as a people problem. The author discusses how our natural tendency to classify the world in this way limits our creativity. But she also emphasizes how this tendency automatically leads us to classify people, too — and so can play a role in both prejudice and violence.

1. The author discusses the work of Amin Maalouf who argues that when we identify too strongly with our gender, our race, our ethnicity, our religion, or our nation, we increase the risk that our need to belong will cause us to commit violence in the name of that identity. To what extent do you think a person’s identity is comprised of his or her identification with groups such as these, or with roles such as a professional identity or as a father or mother? How can we resolve dilemmas in which others are pressing us to choose when these identities conflict with one another (such as “Are you a mother, or an artist?”)?

2. In talking about how classification reduces people, the author notes that some people wish we could just stop seeing differences. She doesn’t think this would be a good idea, even if it were possible. Do you agree? Do you think that it’s possible to not see, or at least to ignore after noticing, differences in gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, social class, etc.? What are the advantages and disadvantages in doing so?

Chapter 8 Thinking by the Seat of Your Pants

This chapter deals with the blind spot of jumping to conclusions — of failing to be logical in our thinking. The author argues that we all possess a “natural logic” and that this natural logic is often at odds with how we must think in order to be successful at logical syllogisms and puzzles. She attempts to show that the apparent stupidity of people who appear illogical is sometimes simply due to their not knowing how to play “the logic game.” But the author also notes that we sometimes fail even in using our everyday natural logic because we don’t examine carefully enough our reasons for holding the beliefs we have or for arriving at the conclusions we make. The author also examines the reasons that some people view logical reasoning negatively.

1. The knowledge people have is often implicit. As a result, we may “know” something without being able to explain how we know it — and as a result we can’t defend it to those who demand a set of logical reasons that support our belief. How do you react when someone asks you “why do you think that?” and you aren’t able to defend your ideas? How do you react when you ask someone “why do you think that?” and they answer “I’m not sure. I just know it”? What do you think are useful ways to respond in situations like these? Why?

2. One of the reasons that some people dislike logic and reason is that they have encountered people who were arrogant, who treated them with disdain because they didn’t have the ability to logically defend their position, or who denigrated knowledge that came through personal experience rather than scientific research. Have you had this sort of experience? What are some possible ways of responding to people in these situations that might be useful? What do you think is the most reasonable position someone can take when their personal experience is different from what experts believe, or what research claims to have found?

Chapter 9 Why It’s So Hard to Find the Proof in the Pudding

This chapter is about how blind we can be to evidence. We sometimes accept evidence unquestioningly because it supports what we already believe, and reject evidence unquestioningly because it contradicts what we believe. The author calls this the blind spot of “fuzzy evidence,” offers antidotes to it, and explains why evidence so often fails to resolve arguments.

1. One way to counter the blind spot of fuzzy evidence is to ask ourselves if we have looked at counterexamples or counterevidence to what we believe. Have you ever had an experience where you realized that your research into a subject or question had focused solely on what supported your view? What were the circumstances? How did you come to realize what had happened, and what did you do when you realized it? In your experience, what are some of the reasons that people often fail to look for disconfirming evidence?

2. The author argues that we sometimes deny the significance of counterevidence because it’s very hard to admit it when we are wrong — and it’s hard to admit partly because those who turn out to be right often delight in our being in the wrong. A lot of people find it very difficult to admit that they might have been wrong, even about trivial matters. Why do you think this is so? What makes it harder or easier for people to admit it when they’ve been wrong?

3. In discussing the limits of the scientific worldview, the author argues that if we only value knowledge that is based on science and the scientific method, we’ll ignore significant questions that have intrigued and trouble people for millennia — questions about the meaning of life, for example. What attitude do you think people should take towards beliefs that cannot be based on science or scientific data? Do you think “every opinion is equal”? If not, what would be the basis on which you’d favor one opinion over another?

Chapter 10 The Usual Suspects

This chapter is about the blind spot that leads us to often miss the “real” cause of what’s happening because that cause is not apparent; it’s hidden. Our natural gift of human beings, our ability to see patterns, means that we have a great propensity to see the pattern of “x is causing y.” But sometimes this strength backfires. We end up blaming the wrong culprit because we have latched on to the most obvious cause — and we’re wrong. The difficulty is determining which “apparent” causes are the real causes – and which are not — is complicated by the fact that we have another difficult decision to make – we need to figure out which apparent causes are meaningful and which are flukes.

1. One way to overcome this blind spot is to ask “the history teacher question” (p. 205). Think of a recent time when you thought you knew “why” something was happening. What was happening? What was your explanation? If you now ask the history teacher question, and then ask yourself again “why” that something was happening, does that change your answer to that question?

2. This chapter challenges people who want to believe the New Age adage that “there are no accidents.” Why is the author so against this adage? What do you see as the advantages and disadvantages of embracing these sorts of New Age attitudes? What is your position on this issue, and why? In your experience, do the advantages of embracing New Age attitudes outweigh the disadvantages? Does this have to be an ‘either-or’ situation, or can you see a way to both agree that there is randomness to the universe, and still believe that we are surrounded by a “caring” universe?

Chapter 11 He Can’t See the Forest for the Trees

This chapter is about a familiar blind spot, the blind spot of “missing the big picture,” of not seeing how some larger system is affecting what’s happening. Besides offering tactics to overcome this blind spot, the author shows how missing the big picture is related to our ability to think abstractly. She also discusses the tension between acknowledging that the larger system influences individuals and still insisting that individuals take responsibility for their actions.

1. Try asking one of the questions the author suggests for helping people overcome this blind spot. This question takes the form of: Is there anything about x as a whole that makes y happen? For example, is there anything about … (our family, our organization, our club, our nation) as a whole that (makes it harder to express ourselves honestly, to take risks, to create a feeling of safety for newcomers, to act more independently, etc.) What do you come up with? How do your answers affect how you view the situation or what you might want to do to change it?

2. Once we realize how big an impact a system can have on us as individuals, it’s tempting to “blame the system” for everything. What larger systems have affected you? What has their impact on you been? Given the strength of the system to affect us, how much personal responsibility do you think a person needs to take for what has or has not happened to them in that situation? Are there situations in which you think the system has such a great impact that it is justifiable to “blame the system” and take no personal responsibility? If so, what would be some examples of this?

Chapter 12 Afterword: Blind Spots and Hope

In this chapter, the author discusses what she hopes the significance of her book might be in today’s world. She talks about Jim Kenney’s metaphor for our times of two great mountains of water clashing in the ocean, and of her hope that Blind Spots will contribute to the wave that represents the rise of progressive values.

1. To what extent do you believe in the possibility of cultural evolution — the possibility that cultures can evolve in their thinking so that old ways of thinking are discarded and more humane ways of living are adopted? To what extent do you believe that the negative side of human nature — greed, selfishness, our capacity for aggressiveness — can impede cultural evolution and so diminish hope for significant and lasting change in the world?