It is curious to me that we tend to attribute causes to behaviors of others by forming our opinions or judgments based on our own experiences. This seems to be at odds with accuracy, and does not seem to be a suitable method for forming an opinion based solely upon our own experiences and perceptions.
How can we as a society form judgements without more detail of the person we are assessing other than a few attributes. It seems to me that the variables necessary to form proper opinions as to whether or not an individual is suitable to a position should be great.
The actor-observer difference confounds me the most. Assuming that mankind’s design may have flaws, the actor-observer difference seems to be either designed or have developed solely to flatter ones-self. If I sound as if I am disturbed at this prospect, I rather am disappointed. I naturally assumed that we were distinctively fair in our rationale and that inherently all are good. This however, sheds new light on the activity of the mind that not only sheds light into a dark recess that we have apparently hidden from ourselves, but also begs the question of what other unseemly and certainly undesirable behaviors do we hide from ourselves that are yet aware of?
Certainly a certain amount of bias might be necessary for survival and even healthy competition. Much like other negative aspects such as anxiety, fear, guilt or shame, a small dose of one of these negative aspects could spur a well deserved kick in the correct direction. The ability to have an ego could give you the needed confidence to achieve and grow. I do concede the positive outcomes of such balances of powers within ourselves, however, I am much grieved over the discovery of a disproportionate core belief system that we are inherently good.
Perhaps, we are truly inherently good, but in order to battle the not so good, we must contain attributes that build barriers in order to maintain existence. Perhaps without these barriers what is good might not exist at all.