2.5: The Skeptic's Cop-Out

Overview

The Skeptic’s Cop-Out, the final quadrant in Conquergood’s (1985) ethical framework, refers to the decision to disengage from cross-cultural performance altogether out of fear of causing harm. While this stance may stem from compassion or a desire to be respectful, it can ultimately limit opportunities for meaningful dialogue, collaboration, and growth. By avoiding participation, performers may miss the chance to build bridges, share important stories, and contribute to ethical and relational cultural exchange.

Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): A restaurant used barricade tape to block assess to tables and seats during the Coronavirus global pandemic. (CC-BY; Ivan Radic - Barricade tape in a restaurant 
preventing customers from using seats during the Coronavirus global pandemic)

Learning Objectives

1. Identify and explain Conquergood’s concept of The Skeptic’s Cop-Out and how it functions as an ethical dilemma in performance practice.
2. Evaluate the potential consequences of disengaging from cross-cultural performance due to fear of causing harm, including missed opportunities for dialogue, collaboration, and ethical representation.
3. Reflect on personal attitudes and assumptions that may lead to avoidance and develop strategies for engaging ethically and respectfully with cultures beyond one's own through performance.

What is the Skeptic's Cop-Out?

By now, after learning about the first three ethical dilemmas performers can face, you might be feeling a little hesitant. Maybe you're thinking, "What if I mess up? What if I accidentally misrepresent someone’s culture?" That kind of apprehension is completely valid. It often comes from a place of care and a desire to do the right thing, but if we're not careful, that fear can hold us back from engaging in the kind of meaningful, cross-cultural dialogue that performance makes possible.

One natural reaction might be to play it safe and stick strictly to creating performances based only on your own cultural background. That way, there's no risk of appropriating or misrepresenting someone else’s experience, right? While that might seem like the most respectful route, it can also become limiting. For instance, if an artist refuses to collaborate with refugee communities for fear of “getting it wrong,” they may miss the chance to help elevate important stories through shared performance. Or if a student avoids incorporating any material from other cultures in their project, they might end up reinforcing cultural silos rather than building bridges.

This kind of avoidance is what Conquergood (1985) calls The Skeptic’s Cop-Out, the fourth and final quadrant in his framework from Performing as a Moral Act: Ethical Dimensions of the Ethnography of Performance. The Skeptic’s Cop-Out is when someone chooses not to engage with cultures beyond their own at all. Performers make this choice in an effort to avoid doing harm, but in taking themselves out of the conversation entirely, they also miss out on the chance to listen, learn, and contribute in ethical, respectful ways.

Exercise \(\PageIndex{1}\)

Activity 1: Self-Reflection Journal – Fear vs. Opportunity

Objective: Reflect on your own apprehensions and explore the ethical potential of engaging across cultures.

Instructions:
In a short journal entry (1–2 pages), respond to the following prompts:

• Have you ever hesitated to engage with a culture that isn’t your own for fear of “getting it wrong”? Describe the situation.

• What were you afraid might happen, and why?

• How might that fear have prevented a meaningful opportunity for learning, connection, or collaboration?

• How can you balance ethical sensitivity with a willingness to engage?

Think of it like someone declining to attend a cultural celebration because they're afraid of offending anyone. Their intent might be good, but the result is a missed opportunity for connection, mutual understanding, and growth. In short, The Skeptic’s Cop-Out avoids doing harm by avoiding engagement altogether. In doing so, it also gives up the chance to do good through thoughtful, collaborative, and dialogical performance.

Exercise \(\PageIndex{2}\)

Activity 2: Case Study Discussion – To Engage or Not to Engage?

Objective: Analyze a hypothetical scenario using Conquergood’s ethical quadrants, focusing on The Skeptic’s Cop-Out.

Instructions:
Read the following scenario and discuss in small groups:

 

A student is assigned to create a performance on global human rights issues. They consider focusing on women’s education in Afghanistan but decide against it, saying, “I don’t want to speak for people I don’t represent. I’ll just do a project about my own high school experience instead.”

Discussion Questions:

• What are the student’s intentions, and how do they reflect The Skeptic’s Cop-Out?

• What opportunities for ethical collaboration might be missed here?

• How could the student approach this topic ethically without appropriating or speaking over others?

• What does Conquergood mean by “ethical, relational performance” in this context?