Strategic Empathy in World Politics: Is It Possible to Overcome the Rashomon Effect and the Fundamental Attribution Error?
Author:
Sergey CHUGROV
Abstract. Political and psychological factors, in particular the Rashomon effect (plurality of parallel "true" versions) and the fundamental attribution error, contribute to a more insightful description of the mechanism of the emergence of domestic political and international conflicts of varying intensity in our increasingly complex world. They also go a long way toward revealing the anatomy of the turbulent global processes that, on a mass level, have formed a presentiment of apocalyptic catastrophes, a sentiment stoked up by propaganda. In politics, the fundamental attribution error manifests itself in that many politicians and journalists tend to overestimate the positive characteristics of the "in-group" (their country) and ignore situational factors when assessing the behavior of "others," "out-groups." Because of the fundamental attribution error, politicians and the media tend to evaluate the actions of the opposing side as negative actions and ignore situational factors that could play a role. This is a typical source of "alternative truth" in the media, biased judgments and misunderstandings that may aggravate international relations. The author argues that causal attribution errors feed irrational nationalist feelings, although the psychological mechanisms of this process are still poorly explored. The author proposes a wider use of the strategic empathy toolkit as a method of overcoming the psychological mechanisms of reality distortion.
Keywords: human capital, psychological factors, foreign policy, Rashomon effect, causal attribution, psychology of international relations...
| Article Title | Strategic Empathy in World Politics: Is It Possible to Overcome the Rashomon Effect and the Fundamental Attribution Error? |
| Author | Sergey CHUGROV |
| Source | Social Sciences, No. 4, Vol. 52, December 31, 2021 |
| Page(s) | 64-79 |
| Rubric |
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| Place of Publication | Minneapolis-Moscow, USA-Russia |
| Size | 48.6 Kbytes |
| Words | 7232 |
| DOI | https://dx.doi.org/10.21557/SSC.72349730 |
| Persistent URL | https://on-demand.eastview.com/browse/doc/72349730 |