Infantilization by Regulation - CATO

http://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/serials/files/regulation/2016/6/regulation-v39n2-5.pdf

We dubbed this perverse result “cognitive hazard” in a 2006 law review article. Our term plays on the related concept of moral hazard,which captures the idea that when someone is protected from the costs of a bad decision, the incentive to invest in precautions against making a bad decision is muted. When government insulates individuals from the consequences and costs of their short-sighted planning and impulsive choices, and from the challenges of fending off hucksters and dealing with one’s mistakes, individuals have little incentive to do things differently in the future and little ability to learn how to navigate the dangers and uncertainties of life. And they are likely to develop a greater sense of entitlement to more protection, a lower sense of agency and self-efficacy, and a greater willingness to blame others for their own problems.