ComputerHunter.org

 

Other Peoples Opinions


In a society where interaction is part of everyday life, and other people form a vital part of life, other people's opinions are actually important in where we fit into society. However, we often think we know what other people are thinking and base our actions around those 'apparent' opinions.

Yet how do we actually know whether our assumptions about other people's opinions are true or not? Frankly, we don't. This is where the Fundamental Attribution Error comes in. To put it into plain Engligh, it means that we make a basic error in assuming other people's thoughts without checking or otherwise knowing whether we are right or not in that assumption.

We base these assumptions on our schema of the world (another Psychology term which means a system of beliefs we have about how the world works from how to order food in a restaurant to how we 'should' live our lives). These schema are made up from our experiences in the world, with some schema being made up from other people's schema which we have picked up along the way: such as our parents' and friends' schemas.

Now mostly, these errors are fairly harmless: it is when we start living our lives entirely around what we think other people are thinking that it can become 'dangerous'. Many people fall into the trap of becoming practically obsessive about what other people are thinking of how we behave that everything that we do becomes subject to what we think other people are thinking.

So how do you stop being like that? First thing to do is to recognise when you are making these assumptions and when they are patently false, and put some kind of system in place to prevent yourself from getting caught up in the negative cycle. One useful technique is the Emotional Release technique taught in the Sedona Method where you can quicly overcome the obsessive nature that can sometimes come from the error. Another way is to understand why you have the schemas you do and to change them: often they are out of date and are not actually helpful (as they are supposed to be). They are also linked to the 'gremlins' (if you're British you might know the term from the recent spate of adverts on TV advertising education) - but that's a future article. Fundamentally though, to overcome harmful errors, it is all about understanding when you make them and stopping them spiral out of control.

Charlotte Burton is a Licensed Career Coach & Psychometric Assessor. For more information and to sign up for the ezine, view the website at http://www.lifeisvital.com or email charlotte@lifeisvital.com to request your complimentary consultation.







Google News - Top Stories

Boston Globe

• Europe Unified On Proposal to Protect Banks
Washington Post - 2 hours ago
Earlier versions of this article, including in the print edition of The Washington Post, carried the wrong dateline. The article was written Oct. 12.
Treasury will buy stock in banks; Asia, Europe bounce back The Miami Herald
US moves to get rescue plan started; stocks rise The Associated Press
CNN - Bloomberg - San Francisco Chronicle - ABS CBN News
all 664 news articles


The Southern Ledger

Winds whip up wildfire north of Los Angeles
The Associated Press - 34 minutes ago
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Intense Santa Ana winds swept into Southern California Monday morning and whipped up a 3000-acre wildfire, forcing the closure of a major freeway during rush hour and burning mobile homes and industrial buildings.
Video: Fire Burns 500 Acres Northeast of Los Angeles AssociatedPress
Winds whip up wildfire north of Los Angeles San Francisco Chronicle
San Diego Union Tribune - WLOS - WRVA - United Press International
all 1,857 news articles


Voice of America

SCENARIOS: How candidates are faring in key states
Reuters - 34 minutes ago
(Reuters) - The US presidential election on November 4 hinges on a handful of battleground states where opinion polls show Democrat Barack Obama making significant gains against his Republican rival, US Sen. John McCain of Arizona.
5 questions to ask before voting MSNBC
History Suggests McCain Faces an Uphill Battle New York Times
KVBC - The Flint Journal - MLive.com - The Daily Voice - StarNewsOnline.com
all 702 news articles


BBC News

EU slams Mugabe, threatens new sanctions against Zimbabwe
AFP - 45 minutes ago
LUXEMBOURG (AFP) - The EU on Monday condemned Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe's "unilateral decision" to form a new government and threatened fresh sanctions unless he respects a power-sharing deal.
Zimbabwe Opposition Leader Threatens to Quit Power-Share Deal Voice of America
Thabo Mbeki to Mediate in Deadlocked Zimbabwe Talks (Update1) Bloomberg
AllAfrica.com - United Press International - International Herald Tribune - The Associated Press
all 2,595 news articles


Calgary Herald

NK 'lets monitors into Yongbyon'
BBC News - 1 hour ago
North Korea has restored United Nations monitors' access to the Yongbyon nuclear site, including the plutonium reprocessing plant, diplomats say.
US Move on N. Korea Assailed in Japan Washington Post
Critics of US-North Korea Nuclear Deal Say US Concedes Too Much Voice of America
guardian.co.uk - Reuters - RedOrbit - Wall Street Journal
all 3,369 news articles

Google
 

Copyright © 2006 Computer Hunter - A Division of Arthur´s Job Base