Understanding Dichotomous Thinking And What It Means For You

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Have you ever heard the term 'dichotomous thinking?' If you haven't then don't feel too bad, not a lot of people have. But you've probably heard a little about what it means. When you are using dichotomous thinking, it means you're looking at everything in a black and white sort of way. That means, you only see good and bad, right and wrong, but nothing in the middle. There is no 'gray area' for you because you see everything as only one way or the other.

About Dichotomous Thinking

Now, a lot of people look at things in extremes and see only black or white without actually having a mental disorder. There comes the point, however when it becomes a mental health disorder known as a borderline personality disorder. In fact, dichotomous thinking is considered to be a symptom of this disorder, and it can lead to a whole lot of difficulty in your life and even problems accomplishing the things that you want. You might not think of it as such a big deal, but imagine only being able to see right and wrong about everything.
When was the last time that you set a goal for yourself? Let's say you had a goal to finish ten projects by the end of the week. At the end of the week, you've only accomplished eight. Now what? For most people, they might be a little disappointed, but they'll also be able to look at accomplishing eight projects as a good start and a good effort. For someone who uses dichotomous thinking, there is no gray area of 'okay.' Instead, there is only success and failure. Because your goal was ten and you only got eight it means that you failed.

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Could you imagine going through your entire life feeling like you failed any time that you didn't achieve perfection? It's going to be tiring, and it's going to be upsetting as well because it's impossible to be perfect all the time. You'll spend a lot of your time thinking that you've failed, even when you've made a valiant effort and did quite well. For most, finishing eight projects instead of ten might be a sign that your goals were a little too high and you should slow them down a little. For someone with this type of thinking, however, that's not possible, and instead, they feel upset at the failure every time they don't meet the goal.