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psychology

do i turn the wheel or does the wheel turn me?

There is a human bias to underestimate the role we play in creating our own circumstances (this is part of the ‘Fundamental Attribution Error’). I wonder also if there is an opposite bias to underestimate the effect that our circumstances have on us. If there is, what is it called?

Either way, I think both (putative) biases can be explained by perceptual selectivity and an adapted mind. It’s easier and more useful to notice how our circumstances affect things than how unchanging aspects of ourselves do. Contrawise, it’s hard to notice slow changes that our circumstances have on ourselves.

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