Changing someone's mind

Esper

Esper

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    Let's say you're right about something and someone else is wrong about it. How can you go about convincing them that you're right and they're wrong? Or let's say someone is hurting themselves and doesn't think they are and you want to get them to stop. How can you get them to come around and see things differently?
     

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    I think Arnie sums it up pretty well.

    In all seriousness, sometimes tough love and a reality check is the only way.
     
    It really relies mostly on the intellectual integrity of your opponent and their ability to accept new reason and evidence whilst ignoring their cognitive biases and natural tendency to be closed or single-minded.

    In a more emotional context (as opposed to a debating context), I think its really the way you can manipulate and control language to appeal to their emotion or get through to them.

    I know Im being really vague, but this pretty much covers it I guess.
     
    I don't really bother, tbh. If they believe me then cool, but if not, then it's their problem.
    BadSheep said:
    It really relies mostly on the intellectual integrity of your opponent and their ability to accept new reason and evidence whilst ignoring their cognitive biases and natural tendency to be closed or single-minded.
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    Heh, opponent he says.
    gimmepie said:
    As a general rule, I think the best way to demonstrate that someone is wrong about something is just to present them with undeniable proof that this is the case.
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    Imo, if you have to go out of your way to present undeniable proof, then they either just make fun of you, or won't even believe it afterwards. Those that change their minds probably don't need that amount of convincing in the first place.
     
    You beat bad ideas with better ideas. No other way around it, is there? If you can't agree, drop it, I don't think there's any shame in that. The trouble comes when it turns to "wow you're so stubborn". As soon as you take on the mentality that you're educating the person that you're supposed to be having a discussion with, something is going wrong on your end.
     
    Marth said:
    I don't really bother, tbh. If they believe me then cool, but if not, then it's their problem.

    Heh, opponent he says.

    Imo, if you have to go out of your way to present undeniable proof, then they either just make fun of you, or won't even believe it afterwards. Those that change their minds probably don't need that amount of convincing in the first place.
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    If there is literally unshakable evidence in front of a person that they ignore, then they have a problem and are beyond help.

    This isn't asking about discussing opposite ideals remember, you can do that without trying to convince people of anything. The question specifically deals with changing the other debater's mind - which is a very rare occurrence because people don't like having their worldview's shattered.
     
    Well, if they're actually hurting themselves, then I say it might actually be a psychiatric matter or a rehabilitation situation. Me, eh. Some things you can't change. Some people will believe that killing people is wrong, no matter the circumstances and others who are willing to execute child rapists or shoot terrorists. Nothing inherently wrong with either of those opinions, but different facets of life have different views of opinions and goals.
     
    I'm not good at explaining things or standing my ground, so I can't really change anyone's views, or that my family is just too stubborn, one of those.

    If someone's hurting themselves though, I'll try much harder to help them, I'll definitely do all the research and stuff necessary.
     
    By the "hurting themselves" part I also meant it to be in a more general sense. Like, imagine someone has lost their job but keeps spending money that they should be saving. But yeah, it could be actually hurting them if, say, they have diabetes and aren't changing their diet. So, like, not as drastic and immediate as self-harm, but still bad for them in different ways.

    Real talk: I have a friend who is doing some things that aren't good for him, but I've had a lot of trouble getting through to him because he won't listen when I try to point out what he's doing is bad for him. I'm trying to see if anyone has some wisdom on the subject.
     
    Just punch him in the face.

    Some people can be quite stubborn - just let him know that you're there if he needs any help. Sometimes that's all you can do if someone refuses to listen or is stuck in their own way.
     
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