Re:Lee Ross and the “Fundamental Attribution Error”
by lordnacho on Tuesday July 13, 2021 @02:59AM
(#27818257)
I can't help but draw a connection with another pop-science idea: growth mindset.
(I don't mean to denigrate either idea by the use of that term, it's just that you need a term to describe scientific ideas that have a following outside of their expert group.)
If you think someone has a fundamental issue, you'll never try to change it. If someone is just an asshole, you can avoid them, but not change them. Similarly if you think you're "bad at math" and that this is some kind of unchangeable quality, there's no point in trying to learn.
With both ideas, the key is there's a belief that you can alter outcomes by changing the situation.
(I don't mean to denigrate either idea by the use of that term, it's just that you need a term to describe scientific ideas that have a following outside of their expert group.)
If you think someone has a fundamental issue, you'll never try to change it. If someone is just an asshole, you can avoid them, but not change them. Similarly if you think you're "bad at math" and that this is some kind of unchangeable quality, there's no point in trying to learn.
With both ideas, the key is there's a belief that you can alter outcomes by changing the situation.