I think this is the root of most of the disagreement. A trait is a distinguishing quality or characteristic, and by asserting that something is a trait, you’re saying it’s an immutable part of their identity. If instead you recognize that you’re only talking about observed behaviors, which are likely context-dependent and may be changeable, it’s both more factual and more likely to lead to good interactions.
I’m not sure that scapegoating is the issue at hand. Scapegoating is putting blame for something on the wrong person. In the cases under discussion, it’s the right person, but the wrong blame.
True. I think that imputing motivation, especially negative motivation, rather than describing desirable and undesirable behaviors, is the core of the problem we’re addressing. I don’t want to blame/scapegoat someone for using the term “lazy” any more than I want to blame/scapegoat the person accused of laziness.
It seems to me that if you’re trying to understand, predict, or interact with human behavior, and you refuse to attribute motives to people, you’re likely to have a difficult time of it.
I think this is the root of most of the disagreement. A trait is a distinguishing quality or characteristic, and by asserting that something is a trait, you’re saying it’s an immutable part of their identity. If instead you recognize that you’re only talking about observed behaviors, which are likely context-dependent and may be changeable, it’s both more factual and more likely to lead to good interactions.
I’m not sure that scapegoating is the issue at hand. Scapegoating is putting blame for something on the wrong person. In the cases under discussion, it’s the right person, but the wrong blame.
Your definition doesn’t distinguish scapegoating from making an unmotivated error.
True. I think that imputing motivation, especially negative motivation, rather than describing desirable and undesirable behaviors, is the core of the problem we’re addressing. I don’t want to blame/scapegoat someone for using the term “lazy” any more than I want to blame/scapegoat the person accused of laziness.
It seems to me that if you’re trying to understand, predict, or interact with human behavior, and you refuse to attribute motives to people, you’re likely to have a difficult time of it.