Hindsight bias is one of the first concepts we covered, it is in module two. Hindsight bias is the tendency to think an outcome was obvious when looking back at all of the information, even if before you were unsure. On example of this is on page 7, “The others listened without interest and nodded, unconvinced. ” The other patients may have later felt that it was obvious when they found out Corte did not go back to the seventh floor, though they knew little of his condition other than what he said, this could be an example of hindsight bias. Self-concept and self-schema are both concepts discussed in module three.
Self-concept is what we believe and know about ourselves and self-schema are how we organize what we believe about ourselves and help the processing of self-relevant information. An example of this is on page 2, “Although he was an extremely slight case, in the very earliest stages, Giovanni Corte had been advised to go to the well-known sanatorium. ” Corte knows he is sick, but believes he is a very mild case, if that, this is his self-concept of himself. He will use this concept later on when his sickness is referred to and use self-schema to seek relevant information.
Another concept discussed in module three is individualism. Individualism is the tendency to set one’s goals before a groups and define one’s self according to personal attributes rather than by the group. An example of this can be found on page 15, “But he did insist, despite nurses’ banter, that the label on the door of his new room should read Giovanni Corte, third floor, temporary. ” Giovanni does not want to be considered in the same group as the patients on the second floor, he is different from them he is healthier and belongs elsewhere.
This shows individualism because Corte is looking for was to separate himself from the other patients, they are all sick but he is not as sick so does not really belong to this group, he is different. Collectivism, which is discussed in module three, is the opposite of individualism. Collectivism is putting groups goals before your own and identifying as a part of that group not as an individual. An example of this can be found on page seven, “One thing Giovanni Corte did realize, however, was that he would certainly have some difficulty getting back up to the floor where, medically speaking, he really belonged. Giovanni identifies with the people on the seventh floor, he never shows this towards any other floors, this is collectivism, he sees himself as a part of that group of people, those classified as hardly sick and does not like being separated from that. The final concept discussed in module three is planning fallacy. Planning fallacy is the tendency to underestimate the length of time it will take to complete a given task. An example of this can be found on page 11, “A patient who, basically, should have been on the seventh floor was in fact on the fourth.
As soon as his eczema was better, he would be going up again. ” Giovanni thinks that once his eczema is gone he’ll go right back where he wants to be, the seventh floor, this is not true though. In fact he never moves up to a higher floor, only down. Thus shows planning fallacy, he believes it will be quick and easily handled then he will be gone, but he is very wrong. A concept from module four is false-uniqueness. False-uniqueness is when people think their habits, traits, opinions, really anything about themselves is less common than it really is.
An example of this can be found on page 10, “He, on the other hand, could afford the luxury of walking from his bedroom to the room where the rays were, amid the compliments and amazement of the nurses themselves. ” Giovanni fells special and different from the other patients because he is healthy enough to walk and though this may be special on the certain floor, it is over all one of the most common things that people can do, and all though he should be grateful he can walk, that doesn’t make him unique. Moving on to module five one of the concepts is self-efficacy.
Self-efficacy is the thought that you are competent and effective, it is not the same as self-esteem which is ones self-worth. An example of this can be found on page 12, “Giovanni Corte too was delighted to have an opportunity ti talk, and drew the conversation around to his normal past life as a lawyer ans man of the world. He tried to convince himself that he still belonged to the society of healthy men, that he was still connected with the world of business, that he was really still interested in matters of public import. Giovanni’s self-esteem may not be the best but he is trying to remember positive things from his past, things that will show that he is a competent and effective man. This shows self-efficacy, he is thinking of the things that make him effective and useful, not those that don’t. Another concept from module five is locus of control. Locus of control is when people perceive outcomes as being within their internal control (praying your team wins) or that they are able to be controlled by chance or outside forces.
An example of this can be found on page five, “He stared at them with morbid intensity, trying to visualize the ghastly secrets of that terrible first floor where patients were taken to die; he felt relieved that he was so far away. ” Giovanni perceives the first floor as a death omen, as though by going there you will die, not the other way around that people are going there because they may die. This shows locus of control because Giovanni seems to think the floor controls the peoples health.
The final concept in module five is learned helplessness. Learned helplessness is the feeling of hopelessness that one feels when they have no control over repeated bad events. An example of this can be found on page four, “Oh the dying. There’s nothing for the doctors to do down there. Only the priests. ” Though is doesn’t show personal hopelessness the patient talking to Giovanni expresses hopelessness for those on the first floor, he feels there is nothing anyone can do for them.
Another example of learned helplessness that shows personal loss of hope can be found on page seventeen, “How many years (for obviously it was now a question of years) would it be before he could climb back to the top of that precipice? ” Giovanni has lost almost all hope of returning to the top floor. After being repeated moved down and down lower he feels that he is unable to do anything to improve his chances of returning, this is learned helplessness. The fundamental attribution error in a concept from module six.
The fundamental attribution error is the tendency of someone ti underestimate the situation influences and overestimate dis-positional influences on other peoples behavior. An example of this can be found on page 16, “Giovanni Corte gave vent to his terror, his diabolical rage in long angry shrieks, which resounded throughout the whole floor. Less noise, please, begged the nurses, there are some patients here who are not at all well. ” Giovanni is outraged that he is being moved to the first floor, which he sees as a death omen, and feels his reaction is completely justified.
The nurses however try to silence him, thinking he is acting completely out of order given the fact that there are sick people around. They completely disregard the fact that they have asked him to go to the place he seems to fear most, this is the fundamental attribution error. The overconfidence phenomenon is the first concept in module seven. The overconfidence phenomenon is the tendency to be more confident than you should be and to overestimate how accurate your beliefs are.
An example of this can be found on page eight, “He shouted that they were cheating him, that he refused to hear of moving downwards, that he would go back home, that rights were rights and that the hospital administration could not afford to ignore the doctors’ diagnosis so brazenly. ” Giovanni is convinced of his health being only slightly bad and ignores the fact that he has been moved down a floor. He believes his opinion of his health is correct and that the hospital has no right to move him further this shows the overconfidence phenomenon. Another concept from module seven is the confirmation bias.
The confirmation bias is the tendency to search for information that supports your opinion and beliefs and to ignore information that may prove otherwise. An example of this can be found on page nine, “His own state seemed unchanged; though after three days on the fifth floor a patch of eczema appeared on his right leg and showed no signs of clearing up during the following days. ” Giovanni blatantly ignores a sign that he may not be as well as he thinks he is. Though he acknowledges the eczema he brushes it off as nothing that would count towards his health, this shows the confirmation bias.
Moving on to module eight one of the concepts is the illusory correlation. The illusory correlation is a perceived relationship where there is none, or the idea that a relationship is stronger than it really is. I think the entire story is an example of illusory correlation. Though there is a relationship between the floors of the hospital and how sick the patients of those floors are I think Giovanni sees a stronger relationship than there is. Giovanni seems to think that the floors control the health of the patients.
The entire story Giovanni wants to return back to the upper floors because he believes the doctors will then tell him he is healthier. There is no influence from the floors over the patients health, it is merely a grading system for the doctors. Another concept from module eight is self-fulfilling prophecy. Self-fulfilling prophecy is when a belief leads to its own fulfillment. An example of this can be found on page five, “A natural pessimist, he was already secretly prepared for an unfavorable verdict and wouldn’t have been surprised if the doctor had sent him down to the next floor. Giovanni’s thought is correct, though initially the doctor does not move him, eventually he repeatedly gets sent down to the next floor until he is on the very last floor this is a self-fulfilling prophecy. In module nine one of the concepts is foot-in-the-door phenomenon. Foot-in-the-door phenomenon is the tendency to agree to a larger request after originally agreeing to a small one. An example of this can be found on pages fourteen and fifteen, “And at last, tired of the inconveniences of the eczema, despite his instinctive reluctance to go down a floor, he decided to take the doctor’s advice and move to the third floor below.
Giovanni is agreeing to a request that is to his benefit, so it’s not that hard to do, plus he believes he will go back up so its not a big sacrifice. “Down to the second? Asked Giovanni Corte, suddenly pale as death. You mean I’ll have to go down to the second? ” Days after agreeing to move to the third floor for his convenience Giovanni is asked to move down to the second for the doctors/nurses’ convenience. This is an example of foot-in-the-door phenomenon, the doctors got him agree to one move that he saw as helpful, then to another he did not want to make. The final concept in module nine is selective exposure.
Selective exposure is the tendency to seek media and information that agree with your views and avoid information that disagrees. An example of this can be found on page seventeen, “He who basically, according to the most stringent medical opinion, was fit for the sixth, if not the seventh floor as far as his illness was concerned! ” Though Giovanni has repeatedly been moved down floor after floor he continues to ignore what that information might mean and instead harbors on what nurses and doctors have told him, though it seems they have done this simply to pacify him. This is selective exposure.
