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The dark side of dialog

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2018

Justin J. Couchman
Affiliation:
Psychology Department, Albright College, Reading, PA 19604. jcouchman@albright.edu
Gwenievere A. Birster
Affiliation:
McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA 02478. gbirster@partners.org
Mariana V. C. Coutinho
Affiliation:
College of Natural and Health Sciences, Zayed University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. mariana.coutinho@zu.ac.ae

Abstract

We agree that the self is constructed through a collaborative dialog. But hostile interlocutors could use various cognitive techniques to hijack the dialog, resulting in beliefs, values, and even selves that are out of line with reality. The implications of this problem are dire, but we suggest that increased metacognitive awareness could help guide this process to a truthful conclusion.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2018 

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