Attribution bias and Visceral Empathy!
Such complicated words but these two are just the two parts of a coin which is human!
If you thought that these complicated words does not pertain to you then you are wrong!
A simple example will prove that to you! If yo are driving; especially in a city like Bengaluru then you would know this! Anyone who is driving faster than you is a maniac while anyone driving slower than you is a moron! You of course are a pinnacle of perfection! That’s attribution bias in simple terms!
In the novel The laws Of Human Nature; Robert Greene tells about this in the context of relationship with others!
So Attribution bias and visceral empathy represent the clash between how our brains logically explain behavior versus how we emotionally feel someone else’s experience!
So technically Attribution Bias is a cognitive shortcut where you guess the reasons behind people’s actions. The trap here is that you judge others harshly but excuse yourself!
Like the example above, another common behaviour is if a coworker is late, you think they are lazy (internal attribution) but if you are late, you blame traffic (external attribution)!
Then you have the Visceral Empathy! This is the emotion which saves humanity!
This is a deep, physical emotional response to someone else’s state! The feeling that even if you do not just understand their pain; you feel it in your body! Like how your stomach drops when you see someone fall, or your heart races when a friend cries!
Now once you have established these facts then you can understand how and why this Matters in Greene’s Philosophy of Power!
For Greene, letting attribution bias run unchecked is a massive liability. It leaves you weak in two distinct ways!
The first is that you take things Personally! Greene warns that attribution bias causes us to assume other people’s negative behavior is a direct judgment of our value. In reality, their behavior is almost always driven by their own inner motives, fluctuating moods, or immediate context. Taking it personally weakens your emotional power! In short you think you are the center of the universe!
Then you apparently misreading the Board! Which means that If you assume a rival or colleague crossed you simply because they are “evil” or “flawed,” you fail to see the real, external leverage points driving them! You cannot accurately predict or influence people if you view them through the distorted lens of your own bias! Simply speaking your own inner feelings are reflected in your opinion of others!
So once you are attacked by the attribution bias you must defend yourself with the VISCERAL EMPATHY! Which is another way of telling you that when you are faced with a situation causing distress by somone, then you must try to think with EMPATHY and then make a decision!
Of course a simple way would have been the PUT YOURSELF IN HIS OR HER SHOES! But then simplicity does not get audience!
Audience wants talent! Like Javagal Srinath!
Now use your night bias to sleep!
Shub ratri!
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