The Psychological Implications of Distorted Moral Equivalencies: A Psychiatrist’s Perspective.
By Lauro Amezcua-Patino, MD, FAPA.
When people compare actions or situations with very different moral or ethical weights, this is called "distorted moral equivalence." This can have deep psychological effects.
This blog post examines how distorted moral equivalencies might affect individuals and society. It examines how cognitive distortions, emotional dysregulation, and social problems might happen.
Mental health professionals need a deeper understanding of these effects to deal with them and lessen the consequences of this cognitive distortion.
Introduction:
People make distorted moral equivalencies when they compare situations or actions that have very different ethical or moral values in the wrong way.
This mental error can show up in many different ways, such as making false comparisons between acts of violence that are very different from each other or comparing minor problems to big wrongs.
Misinformation, cognitive biases, or emotional reasoning can all lead to skewed moral equivalencies, which can have far-reaching and complicated effects.
Cognitive Distortions:
Distorted moral equivalencies can lead to a range of cognitive distortions, including:
1. Overgeneralization: The tendency to apply a single instance or example to a broader context, leading to inaccurate and potentially harmful conclusions.
2. Black-and-white thinking: The belief that situations or actions can only be classified as either entirely good or evil, without consideration for nuance or context.
3. Confirmation bias: The tendency to seek out and interpret information to support preexisting beliefs while disregarding or minimizing contradictory evidence.
These cognitive distortions can make it harder to think clearly and logically and can lead to or keep up unhealthy thought patterns, which can be bad for mental health and relationships.
Emotional Dysregulation:
Distorted moral equivalencies can also make it hard to control your emotions, making you feel angry, frustrated, guilty, or hopeless. By exaggerating the moral weight of different situations or actions, people may have stronger emotional reactions that are out of proportion to the actual moral weight of the event. This can cause long-term stress, anxiety, and depression, as well as rash decisions and the wrong ways to deal with problems.
Social Consequences:
The societal implications of distorted moral equivalencies are vast and interconnected. These distortions can contribute to social division, misunderstanding, and conflict, as individuals struggle to navigate complex moral landscapes with a skewed perspective. Also, distorted moral equivalencies can keep stereotypes, stigmatization, and discrimination going because people can form or hold on to false and harmful ideas about different groups or behaviors.
Conclusion:
As mental health professionals, it's essential to be aware of the psychological effects that distorted moral equivalencies could have in order to deal with them and make them less harmful.
By encouraging people to think critically, control their emotions, and show empathy, we can help them develop more accurate and nuanced views of the moral aspects of their experiences and the world around them.
This promotes greater understanding, cooperation, and mental well-being within our communities and ourselves.