Drone Policy (3/3): A Roadmap To Better Decisions

Leverage the bystander effect

In a wonderful TedX talk, Dr. Ken Brown shares something important that many people miss when they talk about the bystander effect: while the largest bystander effects are seen when participants are encouraged to remain passive, instructing one bystander to step into action can completely reverse the observed bystander effect. The data show that when one person actively helps, others are more likely to step in to aide further.

Organizations like the Heroic Imagination Project are already educating individuals about the social and psychological skills required to assess critical situations and take action when needed. Such programs encourage students of all ages to be “everyday heroes,” to lead by example and help others even when helping is difficult or costly.

Tackle the problem at an institutional level

Although teaching drone teams to recognize and address moral disengagement and bystander effects would be a good start, rooting out these problems will require institutional changes to drone bureaucracies that enable teams and individuals to speak out when warranted. For example, creating team positions focused on anonymously collecting and disseminating strategic concerns throughout an operation would allow drone operators to voice hesitations and questions without fearing punishment. Policymakers are needed to figure out how to implement these kinds of changes within the traditional hierarchies of defense and intelligence organizations.

Rejecting the current agent-less and euphemistic language

Additionally, personalizing and literal language needs to replace the current agent-less and euphemistic verbiage of drone policies. This is only one tactic for instilling a greater sense of personal and moral responsibility for mission outcomes that is surely lacking given the preceding accounts. Combating moral disengagement within drone units, from inside these teams and from outside policymakers, requires honesty about civilian casualties and a shared language of responsibility and agency.