Censored!

Developing a framework for making sound decisions fast

Abstract

Public sector leadership often demands fast thinking and rapid response. Our decisions are more likely to be sound, however, when they are informed by ‘slow thinking’ when we are not in crisis mode. The art of ‘thinking, fast and slow’ (Kahneman, 2011) is illustrated by decisions of the Office of Film and Literature Classification (the Classification Office) in the days following the Christchurch mosque shootings on 15 March 2019. This article engages with political philosophy to support the Classification Office in applying its decision framework and encourages public sector investment in ‘slow thinking’, so that public administration can be both responsive and anticipatory, pragmatic and principled.