Understanding Psychological Distance and Bias

The fundamental philosophy of this note is to

create passion and space by exploring possibilities,
aiming for a gentle sense of happiness.

Therefore,

・Knowing oneself
・Passion
・Space
・Happiness

are the major themes.

However, I have a strong interest in and affection for human beings.
So

What kind of existence are humans in the first place?

I often think about and research things like this.

Today, I will talk about one of the results:
human characteristics.

Have you ever had an experience like this?

・Even though I had a concrete ideal in my mind, I couldn't get others to empathize with it when I explained it.
・I intended to study today, but I found myself reaching for my smartphone and watching short videos.
・I tried to make working out every morning a routine, but I couldn't get out of bed and gave up after three days.

The above are all my own experiences... (lol)

But don't you all have similar things in mind?

When things like the above happen,

I don't have the ability to communicate...
I'm a lazy person who can't do anything stoically...

Don't you end up blaming yourself like this?

I blamed myself so much that for a while I stopped feeling anything,
and I didn't even feel like trying to improve...

In the first place, because failure experiences accumulate,
when I try to do something next,
from the beginning

It probably won't go well again anyway...

You enter a mode of resignation, don't you...

But in fact, the failure stories mentioned above all share a common human characteristic.
It does not necessarily depend on individual ability.

By recognizing that this is how humans are and proceeding correctly, the above phenomena can be avoided.

I will explain these.

Human characteristics common to failure stories

The human characteristics common to the failure stories like the ones above are the following two points.

Humans have a concreteness bias, preferring the concrete over the abstract

Humans perceive things with close psychological distance as "concrete" and things with far psychological distance as "abstract"

In other words, people have a tendency to prefer concrete things that are psychologically close.

This means that in human decision-making and communication,

"Psychologically close x Concrete x Here and now"
"Psychologically distant x Abstract x Future/Others"

when weighing these against each other,
there is a tendency to prioritize the former.

In social psychology, this is called

“Construal Level Theory (CLT),” which links “psychological distance and level of abstraction”,

and it is a concept that has been verified in numerous experiments.

In addition, there is one more troublesome characteristic, which is
present bias.

This is

Compared to rewards obtained in the present,
we tend to underestimate rewards obtained in the future

—this is a property of the brain.

An example is:
1. Receive 500,000 yen right now.
2. Receive 750,000 yen one year from now.
Given these two options, people tend to choose 1.

Humans possess these kinds of sometimes troublesome traits,
and we are unknowingly controlled by them.

Let's try using these human traits mentioned above
to explain each of these failure stories as follows.

・Even though it was a concrete ideal within myself, I couldn't get others to empathize with it when I communicated it.

Explanation:
Because my values, thoughts, and emotions were at a "zero distance" within me,
it felt extremely concrete.

However, the other person could only receive limited external signals—expressions, language, and actions—so the psychological distance was far.
Therefore, the abstract "ideal self-image" could not be seen.

・I intended to study today, but
I found myself reaching for my smartphone and watching short videos.

Explanation:
The results of studying are "future/abstract," so the psychological distance was far, and I felt the value was small.
Short videos were "here and now/concrete" rewards where "sound, visuals, and laughter" are obtained immediately.
The brain heavily discounts future rewards due to present bias and chooses current pleasure.
As a result, dopamine was repeatedly triggered by short videos before I could sit at my desk, and studying was postponed.

・I tried to make morning muscle training a routine, but I couldn't get out of bed and gave up after three days.

Explanation:
The health benefits and physical changes from exercise are "distant/abstract" merits that take weeks to years.
The warmth of the futon and the pleasure of sleeping in were "near/concrete," and the execution cost was immediately apparent.
As long as "morning muscle training" remained abstract, the psychological distance was far.
Because there was no concrete trigger or immediate reward, the habit circuit was not formed, and it stopped after three days.

What do you think?
By unraveling these failure stories as shown above,

it is not due to individual ability,

I think you can somewhat visualize that.

In addition, since the reasons have been identified,
don't you feel that
countermeasures can also be taken?

Finally, I would like to share some countermeasures.

How to understand and manipulate psychological distance

I will show you specific examples of what actions you can take to improve upon each of these failure stories.
These can serve as potential solutions.

・I had a concrete ideal in my mind, but when I communicated it, others couldn't empathize with it.

Countermeasure:
To help others empathize with you:
・Provide the backstory leading up to it.
・Make the ideal concrete using numbers or similar metrics.
・Specify the steps to reach that ideal.

・I intended to study today, but
I found myself reaching for my smartphone and watching short videos.

Countermeasure:
・Lower the barrier to starting by saying, "Once I sit at my desk, I will open my workbook for just three minutes."
・Set an "immediate reward," such as allowing yourself to watch videos after studying, to bring the timing of the reward forward.
・Physically place your smartphone out of sight to block "near temptations" by distance.

・I tried to make working out every morning a routine, but I couldn't get out of bed and gave up after three days.

Countermeasure:
・Place your workout clothes and shoes by your pillow before going to sleep, and set a rule to "change immediately when the alarm goes off."
・Start with a "super-mini task," such as just five push-ups, to build up a sense of success.
・Prepare an "immediate reward" like your favorite music and a protein shake right after working out to bring future benefits closer.
・Put a checkmark on your calendar every time to visually concretize your sense of accomplishment and maintain self-efficacy.

What did you think?

By understanding human nature and designing your actions,
you might get one step closer to the person you want to be.

By the way, since I am the author who has made the mistakes mentioned above,
I was really bad at building habits.

However, I have been able to post on note for over 10 consecutive days since I started.

This is also because

I first sit at my desk and try writing one line,

and other similar measures as mentioned above.

Well, the most important thing is to do what you love, though.

Why don't you try an experiment to control yourself, too?

By the way, the white researcher

has a touch bias

.

It is a bias where they get a treat if they touch the author.

In other words, it's a trick...