Intelligent Disobedience

Summary

They say the rules are made to be broken. But which rules? When should you break them? And how do you do it? Ira Chaleff explores when following orders does more harm than good and what to do about it.

Abu Ghraib prison. Enron. Abuse in the Catholic Church. NSA surveillance of blameless citizens. Needless deaths at Veterans Administration hospitals. These scandals could have been prevented if, early on, people had said no to their higher-ups. And why didn't they? Because, says Ira Chaleff, they didn't know how. It's much harder than it might seem. In this very timely new book, the author of the classic The Courageous Follower goes deeply into when and how to disobey orders and disagree with decisions in an intelligent, helpful, and ethical way.

Chaleff took his inspiration, and the book's title, from a concept used in guide dog training. Guide dogs must be able to recognize a command that would put the human and themselves at risk of serious harm, learn how to effectively resist the command, and identify alternate safer options for achieving a legitimate goal. This is precisely what Chaleff helps human beings do. He delves into the psychological dynamics of obedience, drawing in particular on Stanley Milgram's seminal Yale experiments where volunteers were induced to administer shocks to innocent people. Using dozens of vivid examples involving major historical events and everyday situations, he offers advice on judging whether a situation calls for intelligent disobedience, how to most effectively express opposition, and how we can create a culture where, rather than "just following orders," citizens are encouraged to think about whether or not those orders actually make sense.