Jenny, one way to become stuck is to couple the question with its answer in an attempt to streamline the process of inquiry. "This looks like a THIS therefore it is resolved by a THAT. We cheat the problem of its ability to teach by first supposing we recognize it and then search out the answer. Or we have an answer and alter the question to fit? (Is this a description of jumping to a conclusion?
How about changing the term "risky" to "unconfident"? To me, the change of words lowers the price of being wrong and it also might lower the urge to be "right" over a more productive speculative approach. To walk away from a known answer may be risky but it also may allow us a new and better answer.
I like the footprint idea as it seems to decouple question and answer. Listening to a situation and recording without struggling to resolve it is what I see in the patterns.
This is interesting: On The Reality of Congitive Illusions http://www.cs.colorado.edu/~martin/Csci6402/Papers/kahneman-tversky.pdf