I don't think I entirely agree with you. The safety related decision making process is not exclusive to pilots; everybody in aviation is expected to operate to the same approach. This runs from ground handlers to air trafficers.
I work, professionally, as both an aviator and an Engineer. I actually find that I tend to be even more obsessive about getting things right in an engineering context, where it's somebody else's neck on the line, than I do when flying an aircraft. I don't think an Engineer whose mistake has killed somebody is going to feel any differently about it to a surgeon in the same position. But, the engineer does seem to operate in a far better culture for double-checking his actions than the surgeon.
G