Sometimes we assume a person’s behavior is determined by their personal qualities such as attitudes and goals. Other times we attribute an individual’s behavior to the situation in which they find themselves. When we assume others behave based on who they are even when powerful external factors are evident, this is called fundamental attribution error.
We tend to make this error in matters concerning trauma recovery. As a society, the stigma about mental illness remains strong. As a result, people suffering trauma are faced with assumptions that they are to blame for their own pain. If they are not getting better it is because they are not trying hard enough. Even people dealing with complex trauma face the expectation that recovery should move along at a brisk pace and in one direction -- forward. Any setback is seen as a personal failure.
Trauma recovery is a process that involves being able to distinguish between personal choices and external forces. The assumption that out there, somewhere, is a state of being called “normal” makes it hard to see that difference. Worse, the pressure to be “normal” uses up energy that is needed to develop coping and healing strategies.
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