• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

SafetyRisk.net

Humanising Safety and Embracing Real Risk

  • Home
    • About
      • Privacy Policy
      • Contact
  • FREE
    • Slogans
      • Researchers Reveal the Top 10 Most Effective Safety Slogans Of All Time
      • When Slogans Don’t Work
      • CLASSIC, FAMOUS and INFAMOUS SAFETY QUOTES
      • 500 OF THE BEST WORKPLACE HEALTH and SAFETY SLOGANS 2023
      • CATCHY and FUNNY SAFETY SLOGANS FOR THE WORKPLACE
      • COVID-19 (Coronavirus, Omicron) Health and Safety Slogans and Quotes for the Workplace
      • Safety Acronyms
      • You know Where You Can Stick Your Safety Slogans
      • Sayings, Slogans, Aphorisms and the Discourse of Simple
      • Spanish Safety Slogans – Consignas de seguridad
      • Safety Slogans List
      • Road Safety Slogans 2023
      • How to write your own safety slogans
      • Why Are Safety Slogans Important
      • Safety Slogans Don’t Save Lives
      • 40 Free Safety Slogans For the Workplace
      • Safety Slogans for Work
    • FREE SAFETY eBOOKS
    • Free Hotel and Resort Risk Management Checklist
    • FREE DOWNLOADS
    • TOP 50
    • FREE RISK ASSESSMENT FORMS
    • Find a Safety Consultant
    • Free Safety Program Documents
    • Psychology Of Safety
    • Safety Ideas That Work
    • HEALTH and SAFETY MANUALS
    • FREE SAFE WORK METHOD STATEMENT RESOURCES
    • Whats New In Safety
    • FUN SAFETY STUFF
    • Health and Safety Training
    • SAFETY COURSES
    • Safety Training Needs Analysis and Matrix
    • Top 20 Safety Books
    • This Toaster Is Hot
    • Free Covid-19 Toolbox Talks
    • Download Page – Please Be Patient With Larger Files…….
    • SAFETY IMAGES, Photos, Unsafe Pictures and Funny Fails
    • How to Calculate TRIFR, LTIFR and Other Health and Safety Indicators
    • Download Safety Moments from Human Resources Secretariat
  • Social Psychology Of Risk
    • What is Psychological Health and Safety at Work?
    • Safety Psychology Terminology
    • Some Basics on Social Psychology & Risk
    • Understanding The Social Psychology of Risk – Prof Karl E. Weick
    • The Psychology of Leadership in Risk
    • Conducting a Psychology and Culture Safety Walk
    • The Psychology of Conversion – 20 Tips to get Started
    • Understanding The Social Psychology of Risk And Safety
    • Psychology and safety
    • The Psychology of Safety
    • Hot Toaster
    • TALKING RISK VIDEOS
    • WHAT IS SAFETY
    • THE HOT TOASTER
    • THE ZERO HARM DEBATE
    • SEMIOTICS
    • LEADERSHIP
  • Dr Long Posts
    • ALL POSTS
    • Learning Styles Matter
    • There is no Hierarchy of Controls
    • Scaffolding, Readiness and ZPD in Learning
    • What Can Safety Learn From Playschool?
    • Presentation Tips for Safety People
    • Dialogue Do’s and Don’ts
    • It’s Only a Symbol
    • Ten Cautions About Safety Checklists
    • Zero is Unethical
    • First Report on Zero Survey
    • There is No Objectivity, Deal With it!
  • THEMES
    • Risk Myths
    • Safety Myths
    • Safety Culture Silences
    • Safety Culture
    • Psychological Health and Safety
    • Zero Harm
    • Due Diligence
  • Free Learning
    • Introduction to SPoR – Free
    • FREE RISK and SAFETY EBOOKS
    • FREE ebook – Guidance for the beginning OHS professional
    • Free EBook – Effective Safety Management Systems
    • Free EBook – Lessons I Have Learnt
  • Psychological Safety
    • What is Psychological Health and Safety at Work?
    • Managing psychosocial hazards at work
    • Psychological Safety – has it become the next Maslow’s hammer?
    • What is Psychosocial Safety
    • Psychological Safety Slogans and Quotes
    • What is Psychological Safety?
    • Understanding Psychological Terminology
    • Psycho-Social and Socio-Psychological, What’s the Difference?
    • Build a Psychologically Safe Workplace by Taking Risks and Analysing Failures
    • It’s not weird – it’s a psychological safety initiative!
You are here: Home / Robert Long / C. G. Jung on Risk and Safety

C. G. Jung on Risk and Safety

November 15, 2022 by Dr Rob Long 7 Comments

Originally posted on February 21, 2016 @ 6:06 PM

C. G. Jung on Risk and Safety

imageJung was a Swiss psychiatrist and psychotherapist who has had a profound influence on western thought and practice (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Jung ). His theory of archetypes is the foundation of the Myer-Briggs Type Indicator which is in constant use and has been undertaken by millions over the past 60 years. Regardless of the controversy surrounding the work of Jung, his work on the Collective Unconscious, archetypes and ‘complexes’ serve as useful tools for understanding human judgment and decision making. Similarly, Freud’s work on defense mechanisms, ego, id and super-ego (One Brain Three Minds https://vimeo.com/106770292 ) and the unconscious, have provided us with many useful ways of understanding decision making.

Unfortunately, Safety is commanded by the rationalist-materialist and reductionist-behaviourist paradigm (see Dekker http://sidneydekker.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/DekkerDriftRiskChapter2013.pdf). Any study of curriculum in risk and safety will demonstrate that the notion of the unconscious and non-conscious decision making is totally absent from safety discourse. For some reason Safety has been hi-jacked and evolved into a discipline of engineering and science. Indeed, just look at the 5 core units required in a Diploma in WHS and the absence of connection to any human skills and understanding decision making is apparent. Safety seems to be the only industry that prepares people to engage with objects not with subjects (people). Yet, I get inundated every day with safety people who want to learn more about human judgment and decision making, the psychology of risk and, understanding motivation, perception, goals and communication.

It was Jung’s work that brought back into discussion the importance of dreams, intuition, non-conscious knowledge, tacit thinking, imagination and heuristics. The rationalist-materialist and reductionist-behaviourist paradigm ushered in by Descartes and Newton banished such things to the scrap heap until revived by Freud and Jung in the early 2oth century. Strange, because every society prior to Descartes and Newton valued deeply the meaning of dreams, visions and the unconscious. Yet, in our private lives we are attracted to stories of the unconscious, the highest grossing movie in 2016 concerns the story of a group of people who believe in ‘the force’. The classics studied in all schools and universities, especially Shakespeare, maintain the importance of the unconscious. History is littered with world changing critical decisions being made on the basis of a dream (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nancy_Reagan ). Many of our great poets, musicians, composers, performers, artists and thinkers place great importance on transcendence and the unconscious. Many try to get into a state of unconscious influence through psychedelics. Yet in Safety, all decisions are made rationally and materially.

I was recently asked to undertake a MiProfile survey with an organization that has just embraced the trend in ‘hot desking’ and ‘clean desking’ (http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/blueprintforliving/where-office-meets-prison/7120782). The idea that we are not greatly affected by social arrangements is a nonsense projected by the rationalist-materialist and reductionist-behaviourist mindset. The evidence shows that we are profoundly affected by our social context, this is the foundation of the social psychology of risk (https://safetyrisk.net/understanding-the-social-psychology-of-risk-and-safety/). For example: the challenges of getting kids out from behind screens and into play and activity are a huge challenge for the future (https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/mental-wealth/201402/gray-matters-too-much-screen-time-damages-the-brain; http://theconversation.com/why-screen-time-before-bed-is-bad-for-children-46464 . It has also been demonstrated that hot desking increases risk aversion and limits creativity. For more on the trade-offs and by-products of ‘hot desking’ see below.

http://www.brw.com.au/f/video/national/clean_desks_kill_creativity_Aa6Le2NSTDWmZY6KDUXmmK

http://theconversation.com/mess-or-nest-do-clean-desk-policies-really-help-us-work-better-3037

https://bluenotes.anz.com/posts/2016/01/long-live-the-messy-desk/

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/clean-desk-policy-please-think-twice-anetta-pizag

So whilst the rationalist-materialist and reductionist-behaviourist mindset is fixed on KPIs and objects (hazards), the social psychological paradigm knows than money is not a motivator over meaning and purpose in life. http://ideas.ted.com/what-motivates-us-at-work-7-fascinating-studies-that-give-insights/?utm_campaign=social&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=linkedin.com&utm_content=ideas-blog&utm_term=humanities People are not the sum of inputs and outputs. Human judgments and decisions are not just about rational and irrational decisions.

Thanks to Jung we now can give greater weight to the importance of imagination in risk and safety. How can someone know what a hazard is without imagination of how a human will interact with an object? Thanks to Jung we now know that extroversion and introversion change people’s modes of communicating and learning. How much of why safety inductions are so poor is due to the rationalist-materialist and reductionist-behaviourist paradigm? Data is not learning. Thanks to Jung we now know that many of the things that influence decisions and judgments are unseen and communicated unconsciously through signs, symbols and semiotics. How much does a symbol of absolutes drive the acceptance of bullying, sociopathy and tyranny in a culture? Thanks to Jung we can now value premonitions, tacit knowledge and the value of heuristics. How important is it to value that something doesn’t feel or look right? Thanks to Jung we now that synchronicity is critical in understanding causality and emergence (http://www.aiprinc.org/para-ac08_Storm_1999.pdf). How often does safety ‘construct’ cause, rather than ‘discover’ cause?

So these are just a few of the ways Jung can broaden and develop the narrow confines of the rationalist-materialist and reductionist-behaviourist mindset that constricts Safety. Once one steps outside the rationalist-materialist and reductionist-behaviourist construct one sees a whole new world of how safety can be done differently.

  • Bio
  • Latest Posts
  • More about Rob
Dr Rob Long

Dr Rob Long

Expert in Social Psychology, Principal & Trainer at Human Dymensions
Dr Rob Long

Latest posts by Dr Rob Long (see all)

  • Welcome to the Nightmare, Safety Creates its Own Minefield (as usual) - January 23, 2023
  • Foresight Blindness, Hindsight Bias and Risk - January 23, 2023
  • Getting the Balance Right in Tackling Risk - January 23, 2023
  • What is SPoR? - January 23, 2023
  • How Bias Inhibits Learning in Safety - January 23, 2023
Dr Rob Long
PhD., MEd., MOH., BEd., BTh., Dip T., Dip Min., Cert IV TAA, MRMIA Rob is the founder of Human Dymensions and has extensive experience, qualifications and expertise across a range of sectors including government, education, corporate, industry and community sectors over 30 years. Rob has worked at all levels of the education and training sector including serving on various post graduate executive, post graduate supervision, post graduate course design and implementation programs.

Please share our posts

  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Robert Long, Social Psychology of Risk Tagged With: jung, unconscious mind

Reader Interactions

Do you have any thoughts? Please share them below Cancel reply

Primary Sidebar

Search and Discover More on this Site

Never miss a post - Subscribe via Email

Enter your email address and join other discerning risk and safety people who receive notifications of new posts by email

Join 7,495 other subscribers

Introduction to SPOR – FREE!!

SAFETY MYTHS SERIES

The Mythic Symbology of Safety

Posture Myths and Holistic Ergonomics

Safety Mythbusters

Don’t Be Emotional! Another Safety Myth

Tackling the Challenge of Heuristics in Safety

The Myth of Normal

NEW! Free Download

Please take our 2 minute zero survey

Recent Comments

  • Linda McKendry on Posture Myths and Holistic Ergonomics
  • Rob long on Welcome to the Nightmare, Safety Creates its Own Minefield (as usual)
  • Matt Thorne on Welcome to the Nightmare, Safety Creates its Own Minefield (as usual)
  • Anonymous on Welcome to the Nightmare, Safety Creates its Own Minefield (as usual)
  • Jason on How Bias Inhibits Learning in Safety
  • Rob Long on How Bias Inhibits Learning in Safety
  • Admin on How Bias Inhibits Learning in Safety
  • Rob Long on 400,000 Free Downloads
  • Gustavo Saralegui on 400,000 Free Downloads
  • Rob long on To Err is Human, You Better Believe It
  • Wynand on To Err is Human, You Better Believe It
  • Rob Long on To Err is Human, You Better Believe It
  • simon cassin on To Err is Human, You Better Believe It
  • Rob Long on Records of safety activities: evidence of safety or non-compliance?
  • Matt Thorne on Free Online Workshops
  • Rob long on No Good Reason to Follow Reason
  • Brian Edwin Darlington on No Good Reason to Follow Reason
  • Risk Diversity on Book Launch – For the Love of Zero – in Portuguese
  • Rob Long on No Good Reason to Follow Reason
  • Risk Culture Builder on No Good Reason to Follow Reason

FREE eBOOK DOWNLOADS

Footer

VIRAL POST – The Risk Matrix Myth

Top Posts & Pages. Sad that most are so dumb but this is what safety luves

  • Free Safety Moments and Toolbox Talk Examples, Tips and Resources
  • 500 OF THE BEST WORKPLACE HEALTH and SAFETY SLOGANS 2023
  • Road Safety Slogans 2023
  • Download Safety Moments from Human Resources Secretariat
  • CATCHY and FUNNY SAFETY SLOGANS FOR THE WORKPLACE
  • Safety Acronyms
  • Welcome to the Nightmare, Safety Creates its Own Minefield (as usual)
  • How to Calculate TRIFR, LTIFR and Other Health and Safety Indicators
  • FREE RISK ASSESSMENT FORMS, CHECKISTS, REGISTERS, TEMPLATES and APPS
  • 15 Safety Precautions When Working With Electricity

Recent Posts

  • Welcome to the Nightmare, Safety Creates its Own Minefield (as usual)
  • Foresight Blindness, Hindsight Bias and Risk
  • Getting the Balance Right in Tackling Risk
  • What is SPoR?
  • How Bias Inhibits Learning in Safety
  • Afraid to Let Go of What Doesn’t Work in Safety
  • When You Don’t Know What to do in Safety, Have Another Blitz!!!
  • Gloves and Glasses Compliance
  • A Case of Desensitisation – What Would You Do?
  • How to Leave the Safety Industry
  • The Mythic Symbology of Safety
  • Dark Waters, The True Story of DuPont and Zero
  • 400,000 Free Downloads
  • Am I stupid? I didn’t think of that…
  • Don’t Look Now Safety, Your Metaphor is Showing
  • Ratio Delusions and Heinrich’s Hoax
  • To Err is Human, You Better Believe It
  • Culture as a Wicked Problem, for Safety
  • Safety Leadership Training
  • Cultural Orientation in Risk
  • The Stanford Experiment and The Social Psychology of Risk
  • Objectivity, Audits and Attribution When Calculating Risk
  • Records of safety activities: evidence of safety or non-compliance?
  • Zero, The Seeking of Infinity
  • Safety Leadership Essentials
  • What Can Indiana Jones Tell Us About Culture
  • Safety as a Worldview
  • The Loathing of Limits
  • Culture Cannot be Framed Through Safety
  • Free Online Workshops
  • Safety Culture–Hudson’s Model
  • Book Launch – For the Love of Zero – in Portuguese
  • Advancing Backwards in Safety
  • The ‘Noise’ of Safety, Silence and Practicing of Mindfulness
  • All Things Must Pass in Risk
  • I’m just not that into safety anymore
  • Sticks and Stones and the Nonsense of Zero Harm
  • Courting Infallibility in Safety
  • Indicators of Risk
  • What Can Safety Learn From Playschool?
  • No Good Reason to Follow Reason
  • Just as Well Culture Doesn’t Listen to Safety
  • What Are the Benefits Of Social Psychology of Risk?
  • Short-Sighted Lenses by Safety
  • Is Safety the Empire of Non-Sense?
  • No Wonder Safety is Confused About Culture
  • Building High Performance Safety Cultures
  • Understanding iCue, a Visual, Verbal, Semiotic Method for Tackling Risk
  • On Culture and Safety
  • Focus on ‘Meeting’ people, not legislation – a path to risk maturity

VIRAL POST!!! HOW TO QUIT THE SAFETY INDUSTRY

FEATURED POSTS

The 10 Behaviours of the Safety Sociopath

Free Books – 66 Downloads for Tackling Risk

Off to a Flying Start in Learning with CLLR

Foundations of Perception and Imagination in Risk

Right Then Children, Sit Up Straight and Take Some Safety

SPoR and Disposing of Bad Myths

Who Gives a Toss?

SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY OF RISK – INTRODUCTION WORKSHOP

Risk and Safety Starts with Being?

Tackling Risk, A Field Guide to Risk and Learning

Hoarding as a Psychosis Against Uncertainty

Resilience and Safety

Evidence, Proof and Paperwork in Safety

Unthinkable

Transdisciplinarity and Worldviews in Risk

Third Group Commences the Graduate Program in The Psychology of Risk

The Safety Charade as Tokenism in Safety

How to Leave the Safety Industry

Courage to Challenge the Great TRIFR and LTIFR Delusion

Safety Cries Wolf!

The Mechanistic Worldview and the Dehumanisation of Risk

Six Tips to Improve Your Safety Conversations

The Conundrum in Discerning Risk

Talking Risk Video–The Unconscious In Communication

More Realistic Swiss Cheese Symbol

Forecasting Safety

Suggested Safety Reading for 2018

A Parallel Universe in Safety

New Video Explains Cognitive Dissonance and Safety

The Repression of Uncertainty

Safety Justifies Anything and Everything

The Common Sense Fallacy

Safety and Non-Neuroscience

Why is fallibility so challenging in the workplace?

An Introduction to Semiotics and Risk

The Curse of Cognitivism

What Can ‘Safety’ Learn From a Rock?

Gestures in Risk Management – A Podcast

Impacts of Cognitive Dissonance in the Workplace

Y is Being and Doing

More Posts from this Category

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address and join other discerning risk and safety people who receive notifications of new posts by email

Join 7,495 other subscribers

How we pay for the high cost of running of this site – try it for free on your site

WHAT IS PSYCHOLOGICAL SAFETY?

What is Psychological Safety at Work?