rational ignorance

Examples of rational ignorance in the following topics:

• Political Knowledge

  • This type of voter ignorance is due to the fact that, oftentimes, the cost of investigating political issues and forming opinions outweighs the benefits.
  • This theory, called "rational ignorance," effects the quality of decisions made by large numbers of people and can be seen in general elections, where the probability of any one vote changing the outcome is very small.

• The Supreme Court as Policy Makers

  • A policy is described as a principle or rule to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes.
  • One notable instance came in 1832, when the state of Georgia ignored the Supreme Court's decision in Worcester v.

• The Elements of Ad Hoc Rational Action

  • But initially we can ignore circumstances, since the situation at any one point in time is a given and therefore cannot be manipulated.

• Models of Bureaucracy

  • Many scholars have described rationalization and the question of individual freedom as the main theme of Weber's work.
  • Weber understood this process as the institutionalization of purposive-rational economic and administrative action.
  • Weberian civil service is hierarchically organized and viewed as the most efficient and rational way of organizing.
  • Bureaucratization for Weber was the key part of the rational-legal authority.
  • He saw it as the key process in the ongoing rationalization of Western society.

• Rational Action in Specific Contexts

• The Growth of Bureaucracy

  • Development of communication and transportation technologies made more efficient administration possible (and popularly requested) and democratization and rationalization of culture resulted in demands that the new system treat everybody equally.
  • As Weber understood, particularly during the industrial revolution of the late 19th century, society was being driven by the passage of rational ideas into culture that in turn transformed society into an increasingly bureaucratic entity.
  • Bureaucracy is a type of organizational or institutional management that is, as Weber understood it, rooted in legal-rational authority.
  • Weber did believe bureaucracy was the most rational form of institutional governance, but because Weber viewed rationalization as the driving force of society, he believed bureaucracy would increase until it ruled society.

• Bureaucracy

  • As the most efficient and rational way of organizing, bureaucratization for Weber was the key part of the rational-legal authority, and furthermore, he saw it as the key process in the ongoing rationalization of the Western society.
  • In his view, ongoing bureaucratization could lead to a polar night of icy darkness, in which individuals are trapped in an iron cage of bureaucratic, rule-based, rational control.

• Overcoming Stereotypes

  • It is a useful term because it points to the existence of these general characteristics, but it is dangerous to the extent that differences between individual cows—Bessy and Bossie—are ignored even though they may be important.
  • When we stereotype, we ignore individual differences and assume that knowing one thing about somebody tells us all we need to know: "When you've seen one Jew, you've seen them all. " "All men are alike!

• Issue Voting

  • In a commercialized media context, the media can often not afford to ignore an important issue which another television station, newspaper, or radio station is willing to pick up.
  • It is difficult to see, for instance, how an issue which is a major story to one television station could be ignored by other television stations.

• The Caucus

  • In the "winner-take-all" scenario, a group's delegate allocation may be reported as unanimous while ignoring minority votes.