I think it's a bit more than a desire to show "fancy design docs" or metric gaming. I've seen a lot of engineers prioritize fixing as yet hypothetical future problems over problems that are burning them right now even when there is no need for design docs and no metrics to game.
I think some problems are just seen as sexier than others.
I just wanted to shed a light on some unfortunate external pressures faced by a subset of engineers, which contributes to this problem. Didn't meant to come across as cynical.
I think some problems are just seen as sexier than others.