The Observer Effect

The observer effect is a phenomena in physics where just from the act of observation, the experimental results are changed. It is the disturbance of an observed system by the act of observation. The instruments used to measure the data, by necessity, alter the state of what they measure in some way. I want to use this effect as an analogy of how, human being as actors, modify the situation, since we, like the observer, insert ourselves into the space of action, hence changing the space of action. The elements in that space react to us, as we react to them. 

Here are some examples to illustrate what I mean. If the police is seen to always be hostile towards people, then it is no surprise if people go out of their way to avoid anyone in a uniform that even vaguely resembles the uniform of a policeman. People wearing headphones are telling others not to talk to them, hence possibly dampening the atmosphere in the room. In a workplace, if a co-worker always dominates a discussion, people might come to expect it of them, or react in undesired ways, such as withdrawing from the discussion, or not even wanting to join the discussion. Or they may like it – it depends. 

We need to be self-reflexive to realise that we modify the atmosphere, sometimes in a good way, sometimes in a negative way. If we aren’t conscious enough of the situation, we may misunderstand the situation, and wonder why people are responding the way they are. We also then have responsibility. Since we recognise that we change the mood, the atmosphere or the dynamics of a situation, we have to consider if we now intentionally want it to be that way. 

We see this phenomena also in racial stereotypes, where one group which has been historically dominated and enslaved are considered as lazy and dumb, but if they have been so severely set back, then when they do not do well in school for instance, how can we condemn them when we have failed to understand the roots of their perceived lack of ability? Or a parent who has been overly protective of their child. How then can that parent suddenly expect the child to make difficult decisions when all along, the parent has been making the decision for the child even in the smallest of issues? 

However, it need not be negative. In understanding this dynamic of the observer effect, we can act to minimise the effects of the intrusive measuring devices. For e.g. we use voltmeters that themselves will only take a little energy to show us how much voltage is in the circuit. Or we may power the instruments separately instead of using the power from the circuit to power also the measuring device. It all depends how sensitive the experimental setup is to the measuring devices and the requirements of the measuring devices. If a patient has already lost a lot of blood, then drawing out entire testtubes of blood to test for diseases might be the thing that finally kills the person. If however, the patient is healthy, then drawing out one or 2 testtubes is like throwing a cup of water into the sea, the change is undetectable. 

So we need to read the situation, which can be something rather limited like a classroom in my example of the dominant student, or something larger, like our society in my example of racial stereotypes and overly protective parents. Understand how we may interfere in the dynamic and then act. If we are the dominant co-worker, then we may need to restraint ourselves. If we are the privileged ones, then we need to try to understand the situation of the others by being more generous in understanding why things are the way they are, and not be too quick to judge. If we are the protective parent, then we need to understand that our aim is to prepare the child for the rigours of life, and so need to train them to think and act for themselves responsibly. To do otherwise would give rise to undesired outcomes, detrimental to the other but also to ourselves. So we have responsibility also, we too are culpable.