Insignificance

Description.

Components.

Related Engine Processes.

Further reading.

• Disincentive or excuse to take action because it wouldn't be effective in isolation. Lack of confidence that others will play their parts (cf trust-error qv). Pushes responsibility onto others (many of whom will feel the same, resulting in no overall action).
• “I’m just a small cog in a large machine" (one person among eight billion); I can't make a difference.” Is this an example of complex-behaviour qv arising from action-scope qv? (or one action drip-feeding?)
• Individuals are often legally or culturally enouraged to act based on decisions taken by others (eg, on which side of the road to drive; on which side of the path to walk). Does this encourage us to ‘go along for the ride’ rather than thinking issues through for ourselves? What if an individual thinks though an issue which is controlled by a higher authority (eg, government) and reaches a different point of view?[BW]
• ‘What Australia does won’t make much difference because we’re a minor polluter’.
• Link to 'butterfly' quote (unconfidence qv). One solo butterfly is unlikely to start a tornado, but eight billion butterflies flapping simultaneously would be more likely to do so.
• Possible graded relation to thing-scope qv (could present this as a table or concentric ring diagram 'rings of responsibility'; rationalise with table in problem-assessment qv):
  
  • Control: inner elements of system: complete personal control, therefore complete responsibility (eg, recycling)
  • Influence: intermediate elements of system: ability to influence, therefore limited responsibility (eg, setting an example, voting appropriately)
  • Awareness: outer elements of known system: inability to influence, therefore no responsibility (eg, earth shattered by huge asteroid). There's no practical benefit to even knowing about the outer elements, except for curiosity and interest. 'Accept the things I cannot change [or even influence]': see demoralising qv.
  • Unknowable: The system probably extends into a fourth ring — but we don't know whether it does and, if it does, we don't know what its elements and structure would be out there. This is the 'ring of ignorance'. It lies beyond the edge of the observable universe. (Relationship with uncertainty - unquantifiable risk? probability qv)
• Desc of rings of responsibility ^ should xfer from insignificance (trap) to reasoning. Which process(es) deal with it: problem-assessment, option-generation.
• Can arise from tiny-impacts (qv); eg, global warming.
• We can influence locally. Influence can spread throughout the network, like connections within a brain or internet.[BW]
• Similar to demoralising qv, but the emphasis here is on small personal impact whereas demoralising is disincentive to consider the problem at all because it's too bleak.
• [was "One cog" (one-cog)] 'insignificance' is not a good name because it's ambig and could imply that the problem is insignificant, but the focus here is that my/our actions may seem insignificant.
• Distinguish from risk-factor-misjudgement qv: I'm insignificant vs. the problem is insignificant. Rename one or both (personal-insignificance and problem-underestimation)?
• Distinction to tiny-impacts qv: tiny-impacts qv is about doing things that makes the problem worse; insignificance is about doing things that makes the problem better.