Backup #16 · Therapeutic Theories · Robust Research
We use this only as a Reference Point to shed more light on Human Nature
✦ TERROR MANAGEMENT · STAGE THEORY · YOUTH BIAS · WILLPOWER AS MUSCLE · CHOICE-SUPPORTIVE BIAS · GROUP ATTRIBUTION ERROR · MINIMUM GROUP THEORY ✦ BEYONDISM · AFRICAN RENAISSANCE · SELF-ACTUALIZATION · ROBUST RESEARCH · PSYCHOSOCIAL PROPHESY ✦
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NOTICE — Read each theory's sacred hook and context before entering the content. These seven assimilations are portals into human nature. Approach each with calm curiosity.
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OPEN — Click any glowing card to reveal its hidden wisdom. Each quoted voice, each of the seven UPGRADE steps, holds a sealed truth. Tap to unseal. Tap again to reseal.
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WONDER — Awaken the Oracle at the base of each theory. Ask it your most pressing questions. Let the seven ritual dots track your journey through all seven sacred assimilations.
◈ THE SEVEN AMOROUS ASSIMILATIONS ◈
AMOROUS ASSIMILATION · ONE OF SEVEN
Terror Management Theory
"As mortal creatures, we cannot really fly away from death and there is no place we can have recourse from it."
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Developers: Anthropologist Ernst Becker · Social psychologists Jeff Greenberg, Sheldon Solomon and Tom Pyszczynski
◈ SACRED VOICES ON DEATH ◈
Okot p'Bitek — Song of Lawino (1966)▼
"When death comes to fetch you, she comes unannounced, she comes suddenly like the vomit of dogs, and when she comes the wind keeps blowing, the birds go on singing, and the flowers do not hang their heads." — Ugandan poet, writer, anthropologist and dancer Okot p'Bitek (1931–1982)
Francis Bacon — On Fear of Death▼
"Men fear death, as children fear to go in the dark; and as that natural fear in children is increased with tales, so is the other." — English philosopher, statesman, and lawyer Francis Bacon (1561–1626)
Terror Management Theory explains how we deal with the inevitability of death. The unpredictability and inevitability of death — and its terror — is what most human action is taken to avoid. Psychological conflict results from having a self-preservation instinct in the midst of a world in which death is certain. This conflict produces terror which is managed by a mix of escapism and cultural beliefs — countering biological reality with more significant and enduring forms of meaning and value.
◈ SEVEN WAYS TO UPGRADE YOUR AWARENESS ◈
UUNPREDICTABILITY of death drives most human action▼
Unpredictability or inevitability of death — and its terror — is what most human action is taken to avoid. All striving, all achieving, all building of legacy is, at its root, an answer to the awareness of mortality.
PPSYCHOLOGICAL conflict from self-preservation instinct▼
Psychological conflict results from having a self-preservation instinct in the midst of a possible death. This tension between the will to live and the certainty of dying is the hidden engine of much of human psychology.
GGENERALLY managed by escapism and cultural beliefs▼
Generally, this conflict produces terror which is managed by a mix of escapism and cultural beliefs — countering biological reality with more significant and enduring forms of meaning and value.
RREALLY counters reality with enduring meaning and value▼
Really, these counters replace biological reality with more significant and enduring forms of meaning and value — art, religion, legacy, community, love — all become shields against the terror of annihilation.
AAFFIRMED cultural values that assuage death anxiety▼
Affirmed cultural values that assuage death anxiety include beliefs in the afterlife, bearing children, and identity. These give the feeling that one will persist beyond physical death — through legacy, lineage, or transcendence.
DDECISIVE cultural values form the foundation of self-esteem▼
Decisive cultural values, being influencers of what is meaningful, are the solid foundation of self-esteem. We esteem ourselves when we live up to the standards our culture has taught us to revere.
EESTEEM — living up to one's cultural values▼
Self-esteem is the personal, subjective measure of how well one is living up to one's cultural values. The higher one's self-esteem, the more one feels buffered against existential terror — for it suggests one's life has meaning that transcends death.
◈ TIMELY THERAPYThe goal of LIFE is not to live forever; the pure purpose is to CREATE something that will. — BEYONDISM affirms that the African Renaissance is itself an act of immortality: building meaning that outlasts the individual life.
◈ THE ORACLE — TERROR MANAGEMENT THEORY ◈
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AMOROUS ASSIMILATION · TWO OF SEVEN
Stage Theory — ABCDE of Relationships
"Friendships begin with liking or gratitude — roots that can be pulled up." — George Eliot (1819–1880)
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Developer: American psychologist George Levinger (1927–2017)
◈ SACRED VOICES ON FRIENDSHIP ◈
Samuel Johnson — On Spontaneous Kindness▼
"Always, Sir, set a high value on spontaneous kindness. He whose inclination prompts him to cultivate your friendship of his own accord, will love you more than one whom you have been at pains to attach to you." — British lexicographer Samuel Johnson (1709–1784), May 1781.
Mariama Bâ — On Friendship's Splendour▼
"Friendship has splendours that love knows not. It grows stronger when crossed, whereas obstacles kill love. Friendship resists time, which wearies and severs couples. It has heights unknown to love." — Senegalese novelist and campaigner Mariama Bâ (1929–1981)
Francis Bacon — On Perfidious Friends▼
"Cosmus, Duke of Florence, was wont to say of perfidious friends, that 'We read that we ought to forgive our enemies; but we do not read that we ought to forgive our friends.'" — Francis Bacon (1561–1626)
George Canning — On the Candid Friend▼
"Give me the avowed, erect and manly foe; Firm I can meet, perhaps return the blow; But of all plagues, good Heaven, thy wrath can send, Save me, oh, save me, from the candid friend." — British PM George Canning (1770–1827)
Stage Theory outlines the ABCDE stages through which relationships mature. Rather than gradually changing, people make sudden shifts to different plateaus of perception and commitment. Think back to how you initially encountered your most important comrade — what gravitated you to them? How did your first union attract others? What emotional benefits did you share? How has this spark been maintained, improved, or faded?
◈ SEVEN WAYS TO UPGRADE YOUR AWARENESS ◈
UUNDERSTAND: Stage Theory describes distinct developmental stages▼
Stage Theory describes how people go through distinct stages as they develop relationships. These stages are not gradual drifts but sudden shifts — like climbing steps rather than a ramp.
PPRECISELY, we make sudden shifts to different plateaus▼
Precisely, rather than gradually changing, we make sudden shifts to different plateaus of perception. One day a stranger, the next a confidant — relationships crystallise at decisive moments, not through slow erosion.
GA — Acquaintance: initial attraction, often based on beauty▼
Gainful Acquaintance is how we meet others and feel an initial attraction, often based on beauty, proximity, or shared context. This is the spark — shallow, bright, and as yet untested by time or adversity.
RB — Build-up: increasing independence and self-revelation▼
Real Build-up is when we become increasingly interdependent as we reveal more about ourselves. Secrets are shared, vulnerabilities are offered, and the relationship deepens through mutual disclosure.
AC — Continuation: long-term commitments such as marriage▼
Actual Continuation or consolidation is when longer-term commitments are made, such as marriage or formal partnership. The relationship has proven itself and both parties commit to its ongoing maintenance.
DD — Deterioration: effort, rewards, barriers and alternatives▼
Deterioration is due to relative effort, rewards, barriers to exit, and the availability of alternatives. When costs outweigh benefits and exits become visible, the relationship begins its descent — subtly at first, then unmistakably.
EE — Ending: voluntary separation or one grudgingly leaves▼
Ending the relationship is when partners agree to separate voluntarily, or when one grudgingly leaves. Every ending is a data point — it reveals which stage's unresolved tensions finally became irresoluble.
◈ TIMELY THERAPYThe depth of commitment in a relationship informs the height of resentment upon betrayal. — BEYONDISM reminds us: the deeper the bond, the more sacred the trust — and the more catastrophic its violation.
◈ THE ORACLE — STAGE THEORY ◈
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AMOROUS ASSIMILATION · THREE OF SEVEN
Youth Bias — The Glow of the Early Years
"When we remember that we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained." — Mark Twain
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Developers: Jonathan Koppel and Dorthe Berntsen (2014)
◈ SACRED VOICES ON MEMORY AND YOUTH ◈
Donald Davie — On Inherited Stories▼
"Hearing one saga, we enact the next. We please our elders when we sit enthralled; But then they're puzzled; and at last they're vexed to have their youths so avidly recalled." — British poet Donald Davie (1922–1995)
Baby Boomers — The Moon Landing and MLK▼
Baby boomers born around the 1950s will probably think that the moon landing, and Martin Luther King's famous Washington speech, were particularly significant and most celebrated public events — because they occurred during their formative youth years.
Youth Bias describes the human tendency to consider the most important events in history as those that happened when we were young. Human beings uninhibitedly tend to think that the most significant public events occurred during their youth — particularly between the ages of 10 and 30. There is a good relation between memory and emotion: we remember better when we are emotionally aroused, and youth is the season of maximum emotional intensity.
◈ SEVEN WAYS TO UPGRADE YOUR AWARENESS ◈
UUNINHIBITED tendency to see youth as historically supreme▼
Uninhibited, human beings tend to think that the most important events happened in their youth. This is not vanity — it is a structural feature of how memory and identity are built during the formative seasons of life.
PPUBLIC events particularly remembered from ages 10 to 30▼
Public events (as opposed to personal ones) are of particular concern, especially those occurring between the ages of 10 and 30 — the years of identity formation, when the world feels most vivid and most personally significant.
GGOOD relation between memory and emotional arousal▼
Good relation of memory and emotion: we remember better events when we are emotionally aroused. Youth is the season of maximum emotional intensity — hence the richness and durability of early memories.
RROMANTICISING of youth: difficulties downplayed, wars recalled▼
Romanticising of youth is key — difficulties are downplayed and the brightness of the era is amplified, although wars and collective traumas are remembered because they were too enormous to sentimentalise.
AAS per research, huge bias toward second and third decades▼
As per research, there is a huge bias toward the second and third decades of life for people over 33. The twenties especially carry disproportionate weight in how people narrate the history of their era.
DDISTINGUISHABLY, younger people biased to ages 16–20▼
Distinguishably, younger people under 33 are biased to ages 16 to 20; older people are biased to the tens. Each generation's sense of historical significance is anchored to its own formative window.
EEVOKING nostalgia by returning to teens, twenties, or childhood▼
Evoking nostalgia in others is done by going back to the teens, twenties, or childhood of their lives. Marketers, politicians, and artists who understand Youth Bias know exactly which era to invoke to unlock emotional resonance.
◈ TIMELY THERAPYTo find joy in work, to see beauty in everything, is to discover the fountain of youth. — BEYONDISM teaches that those who remain curious and emotionally alive at any age defy the gravitational pull of nostalgia and live perpetually in their prime.
◈ THE ORACLE — YOUTH BIAS ◈
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AMOROUS ASSIMILATION · FOUR OF SEVEN
Willpower as Muscle
"Will power is the only tensile strength of one's own solid disposition; one cannot increase it by a single ounce."
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Developers: Baumeister et al (1998)
◈ SACRED CONTEXT — THE GLUCOSE BRAIN ◈
The Brain's Enormous Energy Cost▼
The exercise of will requires cognitive effort, as the brain uses more glucose from the blood. As blood glucose is a limited supply, it can run low, leading to a sense of weakening. The human brain takes a lot of energy to run — it consumes 20% of the body's calories although it constitutes only 2% of the body's mass.
John Milton — On Necessity and Will▼
"And with necessity, the tyrant's plea, excus'd his devilish deeds." — English writer John Milton (1608–1674). Even the strongest will can be rationalised away when necessity is invoked as its master.
Willpower, like a muscle, can be made stronger with exercise — but also fatigued through overuse. Practising or exercising willpower gets you better at it and you become exhausted less easily over time. The gnawing exhaustion in deliberately utilising willpower can be both physical and mental. You feel when you are physically tired but may well not realise that your will is fatiguing underneath — with dangerous consequences for decision-making.
◈ SEVEN WAYS TO UPGRADE YOUR AWARENESS ◈
UUSUAL willpower is similar to muscle — an analogy, not physics▼
Usual willpower is similar to muscle, although this is more of an analogy than a physical similarity. The key insight is the pattern of use, rest, fatigue, and strengthening — not the biological mechanism itself.
PPRACTISING willpower makes it stronger, less easily exhausted▼
Practising or exercising using willpower gets you better at it and you become exhausted less easily. Small daily acts of discipline — making the bed, resisting the snack, keeping the promise — build the underlying capacity.
GGNAWING exhaustion from willpower can be physical and mental▼
Gnawing exhaustion in deliberately utilising or exercising willpower can be both physical and mental. The depletion crosses bodily and psychological lines — you feel it in your muscles and your mood simultaneously.
RREAL thought of not succeeding may cause premature exhaustion▼
Real thought of not succeeding may result in wearing out based on what you are thinking about. Negative self-talk and anticipated failure can deplete willpower reserves before any real effort has even been made.
AACTUALLY, you may not realise that your will is fatiguing▼
Actually, you feel when you are physically tired but may well not realise that your will is fatiguing. This unconscious depletion is the most dangerous kind — it erodes judgment without triggering the alarm bells of obvious exhaustion.
DDUE paradox: will-tiring can paradoxically intensify emotions▼
Due paradox is when the will tires, one may be more energetic; emotions are loosened and intensified. When the controlling faculty weakens, the emotional life surges — laughter comes easier, tears come faster, impulses become harder to resist.
EEGO depletion 'turns up the volume on life'▼
Ego depletion has hence been said to 'turn up the volume on life'; will-sagging may paradoxically arouse one more. This is why creative breakthroughs sometimes come at moments of exhaustion — the censor sleeps when the will is spent.
◈ TIMELY THERAPYAnticipating exhaustion rather than physical depletion may be the key factor. — BEYONDISM teaches: manage the mind's belief about capacity, and the capacity itself expands. The will is as much story as it is sinew.
◈ THE ORACLE — WILLPOWER AS MUSCLE ◈
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AMOROUS ASSIMILATION · FIVE OF SEVEN
Choice-Supportive Bias
"And with necessity, the tyrant's plea, excus'd his devilish deeds." — John Milton (1608–1674)
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Developers: Mather, Shafir and Johnson (2000)
◈ SACRED CONTEXT — THE YANKEE FAN ◈
The Fan Who Cannot See Faults▼
You have made a decision to be a fan of, say, the Yankees. You tend to discount a losing streak, poor pitching performance, or incompetent management. Instead, you praise their star batter, laud their fielding, and admire their history. This is choice-supportive bias in action — the decision to choose creates a memory that justifies the choice.
Choice-supportive bias entails distorting memories to make decisions seem good in retrospect. Upon recalling a past decision, we distort memories to make the choices appear to be the best made. Purposive choice of option A instead of option B often leads to downplaying the faults of option A and amplifying or ascribing new negative faults to option B. What is truly remembered about a decision can be as important as the decision itself.
◈ SEVEN WAYS TO UPGRADE YOUR AWARENESS ◈
UUPON recalling a past decision, we distort memories favourably▼
Upon recalling a past decision, we distort memories to make the choices appear to be the best made. This is not conscious lying — it is the psyche protecting its investment in the self-image of a competent decision-maker.
PPURPOSIVE choice of A leads to downplaying A's faults▼
Purposive choice of option A instead of option B often leads to downplaying the faults of option A. The very act of choosing creates a loyalty — and loyalty, once formed, filters perception retroactively.
GGIVEN this happens, one may amplify new faults in option B▼
Given that this happens without duress, one may amplify or ascribe new negative faults to option B — faults that were not noticed or not weighted at the time of the original decision.
RREALLY, advantages of A are noticed; those of B are minimised▼
Really, one may notice the advantages of option A and not notice or de-emphasise those of option B. The chosen path gleams; the unchosen path dims — memory reshapes the landscape to match the decision already made.
AAS a result, we feel good about ourselves and have less regret▼
As a result, we verily feel good about ourselves and our choices and have less regret for bad decisions. This is adaptive — excessive regret is paralyzing — but it also prevents us from learning accurately from our mistakes.
DDELIBERATELY, what is remembered can be as important as the decision▼
Deliberately, what is truly remembered about a decision can be as important as the decision itself. Whoever controls the memory of a choice controls its legacy — within the self, and between people who shared it.
EEND: positive of chosen; negative of rejected, gets remembered▼
End positive aspects may be remembered as part of chosen options; negative ones of rejected options. The pattern is systematic and predictable — which means with awareness, it can be partially corrected through deliberate reflection.
◈ TIMELY THERAPYThink hard when recalling a choice, so as to remember the real reasons for your choice. — BEYONDISM urges the seeker to practise radical honesty with the self: not to punish past decisions, but to learn from them with unclouded eyes.
◈ THE ORACLE — CHOICE-SUPPORTIVE BIAS ◈
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AMOROUS ASSIMILATION · SIX OF SEVEN
Group Attribution Error
"Persist even if your ideas seem dead-born from the very conception; seek to excite a murmur among zealots."
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Developers: Psychologists Scott T. Allison and David M. Messick (1985)
◈ SACRED VOICES ON GROUPS AND SOCIETY ◈
Alexandre Dumas — All for One▼
"All for one, and one for all." — French novelist and dramatist Alexandre Dumas (1802–1870). The most celebrated declaration of group solidarity — and the most frequently betrayed.
Francis Bacon — Man Formed for Society▼
"For man seeketh in society comfort, use, and protection." — English philosopher Francis Bacon (1561–1626). Even those who flee the group do so because of what the group failed to provide.
Robert Altman — What is a Cult?▼
"What's a cult? It just means not enough people to make a minority." — US film director Robert Altman (1925–2006). A wry reminder that the line between group and cult is drawn by numbers, not truth.
Mary Parker Follett — Democracy as Group Organisation▼
"The essence of democracy is creating. The technique of democracy is group organization." — US social worker and management theorist Mary Parker Follett (1868–1933).
Group Attribution Error proposes that groups attribute much like individuals do — and that observers falsely assume a group's decision reflects the preferences of all its individual members. Using a group's decision to attribute a correspondent attitude to its members may be profoundly untrue. Business or corporate meetings might be a minefield of bias and false attribution. Even a unanimous decision does not guarantee universal conviction.
◈ SEVEN WAYS TO UPGRADE YOUR AWARENESS ◈
UUSING a group's decision to attribute member attitudes may be false▼
Using a group's decision to attribute correspondent attitudes to its members may be profoundly untrue. A majority vote does not mean a majority belief — compliance and conviction are very different animals.
PPREFERENCES of individual members are falsely reflected in group outcomes▼
Preferences of individual group members are falsely reflected in the group's decision outcome. Groupthink, social pressure, power hierarchies, and fear of ostracism all conspire to produce outcomes that no individual fully endorses.
GGEAR away from assuming people in a group are similar in conviction▼
Gear away from the assumption that people within the group are more similar in convictions than those outside it. Groups manufacture the appearance of homogeneity; reality is always more various and more contested.
RREALISE corporate meetings are minefields of bias and false attribution▼
Realise that business or corporate meetings might be a minefield of bias and false attribution. What is presented as group consensus is often the aggregated residue of unspoken fears, unacknowledged hierarchies, and withheld dissent.
AASSUME not that a unanimous decision means everyone agrees▼
Assume not that just because a team has made a unanimous decision, everyone subscribes to it. Unanimity is often the product of exhaustion, intimidation, or the desire to be seen as a team player — not genuine agreement.
DDECISIONS can be changed by approaching individual members▼
Decisions can actually be changed by approaching and trying to convert individual members. The group's decision is not monolithic — beneath the surface, a coalition of doubters often waits for permission to speak.
EEVEN in a group, you do not have to sheepishly buy in▼
Even when coerced, when in a group, you do not have to sheepishly buy into the decision made. BEYONDISM affirms: the African spirit of Ubuntu does not demand uniformity — it demands authentic participation.
◈ TIMELY THERAPYAn overemphasis on teamwork and consensus can cause serious mental lethargy. — BEYONDISM teaches: the most dangerous conformity is the kind you mistake for community. True togetherness honours the dissenting voice.
◈ THE ORACLE — GROUP ATTRIBUTION ERROR ◈
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AMOROUS ASSIMILATION · SEVEN OF SEVEN
Minimum Group Theory
"Blame game aside, brains are becoming the core of organisations — other activities can be contracted out."
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Developer: Polish social psychologist Henri Tajfel (1919–1982)
◈ SACRED VOICES ON ORGANISATIONS AND GROUPS ◈
Arie de Geus — The Living Company▼
"Companies die because their managers focus on the economic activity of producing goods and services, and they forget that their organization's true nature is that of a community of humans." — Dutch author Arie de Geus.
Daniel Goleman — On Emotional Competence▼
"If a company has the competencies that flow from self-awareness and self-regulation, motivation and empathy, leadership skills and open communication, it should prove more resilient no matter what the future brings." — US author Daniel Goleman.
Francis Fukuyama — On Network Structures▼
"In the future the optimal form of industrial organization will be neither small companies nor large ones but network structures that share the advantages of both." — US economist and historian Francis Fukuyama (1952–).
Lee Iacocca — On Quality and Livelihood▼
"Everybody in an organization has to believe their livelihood is based on the quality of the product they deliver." — US business executive Lee Iacocca (1924–).
Minimum Group Theory affirms that even the most arbitrary group membership triggers ingroup favouritism. When placed in any group, however random the assignment, people immediately begin using group behaviour — favouring the ingroup and viewing the outgroup with suspicion. This "Us versus Them" mentality is prevalent in most group settings, irrespective of age or education. Group members evaluate ingroups more positively on traits of likeability and cooperativeness, and allocate more resources to ingroup members.
◈ SEVEN WAYS TO UPGRADE YOUR AWARENESS ◈
UUS versus THEM mentality is prevalent in all group settings▼
Us versus Them mentality is prevalent in most group settings, irrespective of age or education. It does not require a history of conflict or a genuine difference of interest — mere categorisation is sufficient to generate tribal loyalty.
PPEOPLE favour new ingroups over new outgroups in perception▼
People tend to favour new ingroups over new outgroups in their perceptions and behaviour — even when the group was formed moments ago on entirely arbitrary grounds such as a coin flip or a colour preference.
GGROUP members evaluate ingroups more positively on likeability▼
Group members evaluate new ingroups more positively on traits of likeability or cooperativeness. The same behaviour performed by an ingroup member is interpreted more charitably than the identical behaviour by an outgroup member.
RREADILY, products and decisions of ingroups are rated more positively▼
Readily, they tend to evaluate products and decisions made by new ingroups more positively. Brand loyalty, national pride, alumni networks — all operate on this same ancient tribal mechanism.
AALLOCATION of more resources is more prevalent to ingroup members▼
Allocation of more resources (including money) is more prevalent to members of new ingroups. This bias operates even when it is economically irrational — even when allocating more to an ingroup means receiving less overall.
DDISTINCTIVELY, ingroup favouritism prevails over outgroup derogation▼
Distinctively, ingroup favouritism is more prevalent than negative derogation of the outgroup. People mostly want to elevate their own group — the hostility toward the other is secondary, a side-effect, not the primary motivation.
EEVEN when one's group performs worse, evaluation is often positive▼
Even when one's group performs worse than the other group, the evaluation is often positive. This is the ultimate proof that group identity operates independently of evidence — it is a loyalty of the soul, not of the spreadsheet.
◈ TIMELY THERAPYPrivileged groups duly work for greater power consolidation through favouritism. — BEYONDISM and the African Renaissance demand that we see this mechanism clearly — not to abandon community, but to build communities that consciously resist the tribal impulse to exclude.