The Human Risk Podcast19 Des 2021

Béatrice Otto on Fools

What do fools have to do with managing human risk? On the face of it, they’re likely to be a driver, rather than a solution. But when we use the term to describe in the context of court jesters, then the answer might be very different.

As my guest on this episode, Béatrice Otto, helps me to understand. She’s the author of a book called Fools Are Everywhere: The Court Jester Around The World, which explores the history of the role. I’m fascinated by this from a human risk perspective because the comedy deployed by jesters provided them with a very effective vehicle for highlighting flaws in human decision-making. By permitting the jester to make jokes about what they had observed, the monarch or emperor would receive feedback they wouldn’t get from elsewhere.

In our wide-ranging discussion, we explore the role of the fool, how they came to be appointed, the limits of what they could say and some of the cunning techniques they deployed to get their point across. Béatrice explains how the role came about, why the fool no longer exists and why perhaps it should.

My thanks to my former colleague and regular listener to the show, Simon Rogerson, who first pointed out to me the relevance of court jesters to risk management.

To find out more about the issues we discuss on the show:
The book Fools Are Everywhere - https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/F/bo3615397.html

Béatrice’s website - https://www.foolsareeverywhere.com/
 To sign up for her newsletter - https://www.foolsareeverywhere.com/

The job description for corporate fools - https://www.foolsareeverywhere.com/blog-fools-job-description/

If you missed the previous episodes featuring comedian and impressionist Josh Berry:
Part One - https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/josh-berry-on-comedy-satire-impressions-part-one/
Part Two - https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/josh-berry-on-comedy-satire-impressions-part-two/

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(368)

Dr Gia Nardini on how Social Movements succeed

What makes some social movements successful and others not? That's what my guest on this episode Dr Gia Nardini, an Assistant Professor at Denver University, set out to find out when she examined the...

16 Apr 20211h 1min

Araminta Naylor & Dr Nick Hobson on Mitigating Human Risk in Applied Behavioural Science

How can we mitigate human risk in a profession to ensure that practitioners engage in ethical practice and customers can rely on the people they engage? It's a challenge facing many new digital indust...

13 Apr 202156min

Eliot Wilson on decision-making in politics

When it comes to decision-making, there are few roles that have as much impact on everyone's lives as those taken by politicians. But what is it about politics, that brings out human risk? On this epi...

4 Apr 20211h

Tim Harford on using data to make smarter decisions

How can we be smarter about interpreting the data that is presented to us? On a daily basis, we’re bombarded with information — some of it well-intentioned, some of it deliberately misleading. Whet...

31 Mar 202153min

Professor Barbara Casu on how gender diversity on Boards can reduce misconduct

Can gender diversity on Boards reduce misconduct? That's what my guest on this episode, Barbara Casu of The Business School in London, explored in recent research into the banking sector. Barbara is ...

26 Mar 20211h 2min

Maarten Hoekstra on Ethics: 'Making the Good doable'

How can we make it easier for people to do the right thing? My guest on this episode, Maarten Hoekstra, is fascinated by this challenge of "making the good, doable". Maarten is Co-Chair of the Behavio...

20 Mar 202154min

Kelly Paxton on Pink Collar Crime under COVID

How has COVID facilitated Pink Collar Crime? That's what my guest on this episode, Kelly Paxton, is here to explain. This is her second appearance on the show (you'll find the first here 👉https://ww...

14 Mar 20211h 7min

Evelyn Gosnell & Lindsay Juarez on reducing the spread of misinformation on social media

What can we do to reduce the spread of misinformation on social media?That was the challenge facing my guests on this episode and, having succeeded, they came onto the show to talk about what they'd l...

7 Mar 202155min