Problem
Exaggeration of programme achievements
Other Names:
Exaggeration of research significanceTechnological hype
Exaggeration of organization performance
Incidence:
The Challenger space shuttle disaster has been seen as deriving from failure to effectively report on the inadequate performance of the O-rings used as sealants. Officials responsible for developing an anti-missile system to defend the USA were discovered in 1992 to have repeatedly exaggerated the achievements of space experiments and flight tests conducted in 1990 to demonstrate the success of their research efforts. The seven tests each cost between $12 million and $50 million. More questions remained unanswered than were publicly acknowledged by programme officials. During the Gulf War, the performance of high tech weaponry was repeatedly exaggerated, partly to confuse the enemy and partly to facilitate future sales of such products. Broader Problems:
Exaggeration Aggravates:
Misreporting of military actionExaggeration of merits of particular solutionsInconclusiveness of scientific and medical testsMisappropriation of resources for high cost research projects Subject(s):
Research, Standards → ResearchTechnology → Technology
Related UN Sustainable Development Goals:
Problem Type:
F: Fuzzy exceptional problems Date of last update
01.01.2000 – 00:00 CET