In order to understand Fundamental Attribution Error, you first need to understand what is meant by attribution. Attribution in psychology simply means attributing causation to behaviour. When you observe a behaviour, you tend to look for reasons behind that behaviour. This ‘looking for reasons behind a behaviour’ is called the attribution process. When we’re looking […]
What is gaslighting in psychology?
Gaslighting means manipulating someone’s perception of reality to the point that they begin to question their own sanity. The manipulation is so effective that a person being gaslighted comes to doubt their ability to perceive reality and recall events from memory accurately. To put it simply, person A perceives something about person B who denies […]
What is meant by dissociation in psychology?
Imagine how people react when tragedy strikes, be it a death in the family, a natural disaster, a terror attack, anything. Let’s take the example of death in a family. People can display a wide variety of behaviours in such situations. Men tend to silently grieve or even cry with restrained tears if they happened […]
What is meant by neurosis in psychology?
Neurosis generally refers to a mental disorder that is characterized by feelings of anxiety, depression, and fear that are disproportionate to the circumstances of a person’s life but not completely incapacitating. In this article, however, we’ll look at neurosis from the psychoanalytic perspective. It states that neurosis is the result of mental conflict. This article is based […]
What is meant by priming in psychology?
Priming in psychology is a phenomenon that occurs when exposure to a stimulus influences our thoughts and behaviour in response to another succeeding stimulus. When this happens on a subconscious level, it’s called subconscious priming. In simpler words, when you’re exposed to a piece of information, it has a potential of influencing your response to a […]
Cognitive dissonance in psychology (explained)
Simply put, cognitive dissonance in psychology means the inability of the human mind to hold two conflicting ideas or beliefs. The confusion and uncertainty caused by the presence of two conflicting ideas make the mind unstable. Since our mind constantly seeks stability, it does what it can to resolve its cognitive dissonance. A cognitively dissonant […]
How we understand the world (Duality of mind)
Duality is an essential feature of the human mind. Our mind makes use of duality to understand the world, to make sense of it. Had our mind not been dual, I don’t think we could ever possibly describe the world around us. There would be no language, no words, no measurements, nothing. The mind is […]
The concept of psychological stability
Almost every system in the world interacts with some other system so that stability is attained. Every phenomenon that occurs in nature is a result of energy exchanges between two or more systems. Whether it be the physical dynamics of motion or the chemical combination of two substances, the aim of the system components is […]
Belief systems: Programs of the subconscious mind
This article discusses belief systems i.e. the programs in our subconscious mind that largely determine our behaviours. Even if you know nothing about psychology and human behaviour, understanding the concept of a belief system will be sufficient to enable you to grasp the very essence of mind mechanics. A belief system is a set of […]
What is the subconscious mind?
What is meant by the subconscious mind?What is the difference between the conscious and the subconscious mind? To understand these concepts, consider the following scenario: When first learning to drive a car, you’re highly focused, alert and aware. Your mind is working on the task, being 100% involved. After some time, when you master the […]