Thaindian News

London, Oct 12 (IANS) Your friend solicits your opinion about a fancy haircut he has had at an upmarket saloon, expending a small fortune. Since truth hurts, what do you tell him? Most people would probably utter something vague or evasive.

But a new study suggests that this kind of politeness can have disastrous consequences in critical situations, the journal Current Directions in Psychological Science reports.

Especially when pilots are trying to keep a plane in the air during engine failure or a doctor tending a bullet wound, say study author Jean-François Bonnefon and Wim de Neys of CNRS and Universite de Toulouse, both in France and Aidan Feeney of Queen’s University.

Thus, “[w]e must think harder when we consider the possibility that people are being polite, and this harder thinking leaves us in a greater state of uncertainty about what is really meant,” says Bonnefon, according to a CNRS statement.

Politeness can also have serious consequences within corporate culture - people don’t want to embarrass their bosses or their co-workers, so they hesitate to point out when something looks amiss, even when potential fraud or misconduct might be involved.

So how can we make sure we get around the confusion of politeness? One option is to encourage people to be more assertive in high-stakes situations.

Some companies, including airlines, have even instituted assertiveness training programmes.