The Power of Context: How to Manage Our Bias and Improve Our Understanding of Others

by Daniel R. Stalder

A social psychologist focuses on a very common yet rarely discussed bias called the "fundamental attribution error," showing how being aware of this bias can improve our day-to-day understanding of others.

Social life involves making judgments about other people. Often these snap judgments turn out to be wrong when we overlook context. Social psychologists call this pervasive bias the "fundamental attribution error." This book explores the many ways in which this error creeps into our social interactions, frequently causing misunderstanding, hurt feelings, and negative treatment of others.

Psychologist Daniel R. Stalder examines common examples of this error, from road rage and misinterpreting facial expressions to "gaydar," victim blaming, and prejudice. The common denominator in these diverse examples is that we falsely assume inherent traits or intentions while overlooking situational factors that might explain a person's behavior.

Conversely in the actor-observer bias, we explain our own sometimes questionable behaviors by appealing to situational factors. For example, when you tailgate others, there's always a good reason, but when others tailgate you, they are obviously in the wrong.

Stalder also reveals little-known information about classic studies of context, considers both the upsides and downsides to bias, and shares numerous strategies to reduce bias.

Filled with interesting examples, new insights, and an abundance of research, this informative and entertaining book will help us understand each other and reduce conflict.

Genres: Nonfiction, Psychology

330 pages, Hardcover

Published April 17, 2018

Reviews

[Sidharth Mishra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Human beings are an inherently judgemental species. Despite our best intentions, we are quick to jump to conclusions. Conclusions, that are often backed by very little information about the context of the incident, story or individual. We conveniently ignore extrinsic factors and derive inferences that are often not only incorrect but are held with surprising confidence.

In this book, Stalder dives deep into this socio-psychological phenomenon called the Fundamental Attribution Error (FAE). While it sounds pedagogic, it is actually very common and can be observed around us every day. Quoting a fairly common example from the book - think of the time when a driver cut you off on the road and you called him/her an idiot. To be honest, that person may actually have been a moron, or they may also be in an emergency. The point is that we simply can't know for sure.

The book doesn't seek to shove a "positivity pill" down your throat but wants you to acknowledge the fact that in everyday situations like these, our assumptions are not always accurate. We often fall prey to our personal, societal, or cultural biases. As they wreak havoc in our heads, the truth gets burried somewhere. Stalder cites peer-reviewed studies and psychological experiments where these biases are resoundingly apparent.

From a the simple bad-driving example to any time you see a celebrity on the internet being body-shamed, or a sexual assault survivor being victim-shamed, chalk it to FAE. Next time you are about to jump to conclusions, take a pause and ask questions to gather more information. A small change in this mindset can resolve enormous conflicts.

[chichi ✭ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Painstakingly long…certainly could have been shorter