I'm sure that fear plays a big part in every life-threatening
situation.  How many people know much about any kind of cancer,
heart, liver, kidney, or pulmonary disease, AIDS, etc.

A cousin of mine who is an oncologist told me that half his
patients don't want to know anything.  They say, "Do whatever you
have to do Doc, but I don't really want to know anything about
it."  They can't even face hearing about it.

Another important factor in decision making is a simple desire
not to learn the details.  Fear is a big factor in that, but not
the only one.  Many of us believe that the subject is too
complicated and technical for the non-expert to master.  Many
would just prefer to put their time into doing things they know
and enjoy rather than learning about something they really don't
care at all about - except in so far as they need to know
something to stay alive.

I've known highly intelligent, well educated men who confined
their research to one task only - finding a doctor they trust.
Once they found one, they just did what he or she said, without
wanting to learn any more about it themselves.  This, after all,
is what a lot of us do when we need an auto repair, a home
repair, a computer purchase, or anything else that involves
arcane knowledge.

    Alan