Devil’s advocacy within organisations

english

2025

volume 62, issue 3

contestation   critical thinking   devil’s advocacy   groupthink   loyal opposition

Univerza v Ljubljani, Fakulteta za družbene vede
(Obvezni izvod spletne publikacije)

A conceptual study that calls for ‘devil’s advocacy’ to be integrated into organisations is presented. The intellectual history of this concept dates back to Socratic thought and the Athenian tradition of intellectual contestation, contrasting it with societies that prioritised harmony over debate. It is argued in the article that institutionalised opposition, like legal adversarial systems or loyal oppositions in politics, can lead to better decision-making and prevent the abuse of power. In contrast to the authoritarian tendencies in the world today, an organisational culture that embraces critical thinking and diverse viewpoints is regarded as essential for progress, mirroring the principles of intellectual liberty shown in historical movements like the Reformation and Enlightenment. The appendix contains a shortened 1998 unpublished internal World Bank document explicitly labelled as an exercise in devil’s advocacy.

10.11.2025