How Black and White Thinking is at the Root of All Extremism

And why challenging black and white thinking is imperative for a truly meaningful life

Thinking in black and white is to come to quick and predictable conclusions about things without scrutiny. It is about efficiently reconciling new experiences into our psyches.

However, with black and white thinking, we experience life situations through a heavy filter of conditioned rules and generalizations, which leads to erroneous and skewed perceptions.

ORIGIN

Through the process of socialization, and as a consequence of indoctrination, children are taught to adopt a set of beliefs and a way of thinking based on religious, familial, and cultural rules. Furthermore, children are rarely asked to employ their reasoning and intuitive processes to come to their own conclusions — especially when it conflicts with these rules — and frequently reprimanded and scolded for not accepting things as is.

This gives rise to adults conditioned to see the world through a rigid black-and-white lens — things are either good or bad, right or wrong — and are incapable of seeing the validity and truth in others’ ideologies. In other words, they live in a reality of absolutism.

EXTREMISM

With the heavy conditioning many parents employ, children enter adulthood having had lost their intuitive sense. Furthermore, they lack the critical faculty necessary to discern for themselves the meaning of things from a spectrum of infinite possibilities — for them, things are black or white, when in fact, there is a large gray area.

People who fail to challenge their existing beliefs and rules are more likely to hold prejudices and even fall victim to extremist ideologies, which are fundamentally spawned from unconscious black and white thinking.

With extremist ideologies, fixed rules are applied to all people and things across the board, and when anything doesn’t meet these rules, they are dubbed as bad or evil. This “us versus them” narrative begins the process of dehumanization, by which extremists feel morally justified to harm others.

CHALLENGING BLACK & WHITE THINKING

Black and white thinking is not something you want to eliminate — not that you can anyway. Some situations require you to make quick distinctions and judgment calls, which utilize neurologically wired rules — as opposed to being a process of deliberation and reflection.

Early childhood conditioning has installed in many of us rigid rules, which in one way or another, limit our ability to experience life with more richness and color.

So, when we challenge these rules, especially those that create judgment and prejudice, we can build a more accurate picture of reality. We become more secure in ourselves and less inclined to hold on to a one-size-fits-all worldview, which invariably supports growth, connection, and evolution. Furthermore, when the faculty of black and white thinking becomes aligned with our truths, we become better equipped to intuit and effortlessly make good decisions.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Most of the opinions you have about things result from unconscious beliefs you adopted in childhood. However, likely, many of these beliefs have gravely limited your experience of life — since they are not really yours but the beliefs of your parents. And unless you were raised by woke, self-aware parents, you were likely subjected to inflexible indoctrination.

As a result, the responsibility falls on you to examine your automatic opinions and the narrative you live by to see in which way you have subjected your life to erroneous black and white thinking.

When you are deliberate about connecting deeper to yourself and others, there is no longer anxiety in approaching your belief system with curiosity and inquiry. You can play the devil’s advocate and hold and entertain several viewpoints simultaneously, which will foster understanding and deeper connections with others. And most importantly, by challenging your black and white thinking, you choose to empower yourself with beliefs that give your life more meaning.

So, although you are neurologically wired to think in black and white, not challenging this mode of thinking may have detrimental effects on your well-being and quality of life if gone unchecked.

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