.png)
If raised with a Western mindset, you likely presume individualism rules supreme. You likely assume your problems arise because you as an individual failed to think clearly or make a rational decision. Meanwhile, trust in our institutions continue to collapse since they either drag us into problems or get in the way of solving our problems. We encounter problems on many levels. Pain occurs from different levels of human problems. Anankelogy identifies four types.
NOTE: Much of this is verbatim from chapter 4 of You NEED This, the book that introduces anankelogy to the world as a new social science for understanding your needs.
Which do you think is more likely?
You can solve about any problem you face simply by making the best rational choice.
OR
Most problems you face stem from items for which you have little to no control.
Problems occur on four different levels. Anankelogy instills the discipline to resist indulging in the assumption that every problem can be solved by mere individual change. Your pain occurs from four different levels of human problems. Problems persist when overlooking all of its dimensions.
Too often, we assume the individual only needs to change themselves to fix a problem. Too often, we overlook aspects of a problem no single person can change, at least not without creating more problems.
Too often, we can bounce to the opposite extreme. When you know you cannot be held personally responsible for every aspect of a problem, do you ever insist you have no personal responsibility in the matter? Do you lose your sense of personal agency in the face of more powerful barriers?
1. Personal problems
A problem may exist only because of a personal failure to make a responsible choice. For example, if you decide to indulge in binge eating to the point of getting a stomach ache, you have a personal problem. No one has the problem but you because of your own personal actions.
In our individualistic culture, we often presume personal problems when overlooking external factors. Overeating can be a coping reaction to these painful problems identified below. It’s arguably be easier to change one individual than many people or social structures.
Consider these three examples.
Personal vocational problem. You get repeatedly angry at work due to your unrealistic expectations of your boss and of your coworkers. To resolve this problem, you simply adjust your mindset to what you can reasonably anticipate from others on the job.
Personal political problem. You can’t understand why your roommate voted ‘yes’ on a ballot initiative you oppose. To resolve this problem, you could ask your roommate and intently listen to their reasons without interrupting or expecting they first listen to your reasons.
Personal judicial problem. After being convicted of something that never even occurred, you must emotionally adjust to the loss of your freedom. To resolve this problem, you will have to thoroughly grieve your losses which include finding a new path forward while less free.
Need-response addresses such personal problems in your wellness campaign. You receive support to address personal problems in the BASE phase of the wellness campaign.
2. Interpersonal problems
A problem exists when two or more people of relatively equal social standing fail to respond effectively to one or more impacted needs. As soon as one responds to the affected need, it can more easily resolve.
For example, if you fail to return something you borrowed because you could not find that person at the agreed upon time, you have an interpersonal problem. Only the actions of one or both contribute interpersonally to the problem.
Consider these three examples.
Interpersonal vocational problem. Your coworkers try to tease you in fun without realizing how such bantering evokes traumatizing memories, which compromises your work performance, for which they tease you even more. To resolve this problem, need-response offers you a viable way to understand and respect their affected needs which can incentivize them to better understand and respect your overlooked needs.
Interpersonal political problem. You cannot share your stance on the ballot initiative with your roommate without spinning out of control into a heated argument. To resolve this problem, need-response unpacks politics so you can better understand and respect the policy needs on both sides of each politicized issue.
Interpersonal judicial problem. You start losing friends and family members who assume you must be guilty of something, who remain unaware of the high rates of wrongful convictions. To resolve this problem, need-response provides an estimated innocence form that automatically calculate the viability of an innocence claim by comparing it to known exonerations.
Need-response addresses such interpersonal problems in your wellness campaign. You receive support to address interpersonal problems in the ALLY and TEAM phase of the wellness campaign.
3. Power problems
A problem exists when someone with more social power fails to respond effectively to the impacted needs of those with relatively less social power. Power dynamics often prevent the less powerful to voice their concerns, to avoid risking retribution.
For example, a power problem occurred if your teacher ever scolded you for poor performance when you lacked a viable way to report the reasonable context for your unusually low performance. Solving this kind of problem requires cooperation from someone typically less inclined to admit there is a problem.
Need-response incentivizes such powerholders to listen to those impacted. Which enables the less powerful to speak truth to power. We level the playing field with what we call the Impact Parity Model. It identifies the powerholder as the AI (ascribed or acknowledged impactor) and the vulnerable powerless as the RI (reporting or recognized impactee).
Consider these three examples.
Power vocational problem. Your boss insists on yelling at you to try to motivate you when this actually demotivates you, prompting her to shout at you even more, and you prefer not to risk any retaliation by telling her what actually incentivizes you. To resolve this problem, need-response offers managers a way to improve their leadership skills by holding them accountable to how to they affect the needs of their subordinates.
Power political problem. Your local representative thanks you for sharing your critique of her stance on this ballot initiative only to placate and ignore your affected policy needs. To resolve this problem, need-response offers Harmony Politics that can create data of impacted needs to hold all elected representatives accountable to their decisions.
Power judicial problem. Your court-appointed appellate attorney doubts if he can find an issue to reverse your conviction in court. To solve this problem, need-response uses the estimated innocence report to build support that can compel the attorney to exhaust all options.
Need-response addresses such power problems in your wellness campaign. You receive support to address power problems in the GROW phase of the wellness campaign.
4. Structural problems
A problem exists at a more fundamental level when social norms or institutional structures prevent you from resolving your impacted needs. Those in positions of power are not always free to deviate from established norms.
If bound by laws to perform certain duties, their responsiveness to your needs could be limited. Those in positions of authority cannot easily change things to fit your impacted needs. At least not without great peril to themselves or to others.
For example, elected officials step in line to follow the “social facts” of divisive norms. They often can do little to nothing to alter the fault lines of political divisiveness. Especially when political coalitions ensure they avoid getting too specific about your particular needs. Great leadership overcomes such frustrating norms.
Need-response introduces the concept of "citationization" for identifying what specific need or needs a law is expected to serve. Mindlessly obeying laws can pull us away from resolving the needs our laws ostensibly exist to serve. And this can create conditions for mental health challenges. While no one sits above the law, anankelogy asserts, no law sits above the natural needs they exist to serve. You don't exist for human authority or power structures, also asserts anankelogy, such authority and power structures exist for you.
Consider these three examples.
Structural vocational problem. Your employer informs you how they are only bound to follow minimal legal requirements, which do not include holding other employees accountable for retraumatizing you with crude banter between each other. To solve this problem, need-response works with employers to identify opportunities to nurture their talent in ways that could give them competitive advantage over other entities, which in turn helps you to more freely be and do your best on the job.
Structural political problem. You cannot find a candidate within the two-party system who best speaks to your neglected policy needs, so you feel coerced to choose the lesser of the two evil options. To resolve this problem, need-response transcends the left-right divide and even the establishment-populous divide to better understand and respect the needs on all sides of every politicized issue, toward resolving needs, removing pain, and improving each other’s level of functioning.
Structural judicial problem. Your every attempt to secure exoneration through any judicial recourse hits roadblocks built into its adversarial system. To solve this problem, need-response transcends the lower moral standard of the adversarial system with a mutualizing approach that addresses the needs on all sides with empirical accountability.
Need-response addresses such structural problems in your wellness campaign. You receive support to address structural problems in the GOAL phase of the wellness campaign.
Problem of complicated levels of human problems
Problems rarely fit neatly into one of these levels. The more an individual changes to do their part, the more these other levels emerge as a barrier to fully resolve an affected need. The more laws change to reduce structural barriers, the more this tends to upend and perturb those dependent upon the status quo. But if laws frustrate your basic needs, then the law be damned.
You are not governed by laws as much as you are governed by your unrelenting needs. Laws guide but cannot control. Your body’s insistence to function as best it can may defy laws or popular norms on how to handle problems.
Resulting problems emerge as various forms of imposed pathology. Anankelogy recognizes any sustained resistance to resolve needs as potential evil. Any benefit from normalized pathology easily blinds you to the damage of keeping needs unresolved.
The rules can spell out what should result in better lives, but reality sets in to insist you function no matter what the law or its enforcement says. Despite the best efforts of written or unwritten rules, your need to function pulls you into need-conveying guilt, fear, depression, and anger.
Your responsiveness to these various types of human problems
Your turn. Consider one or more of these options to respond to this need-responsive content.
Check our Engaging Forum to FOLLOW discussions on this post and others. JOIN us as a site member to interact with others and to create your own forum comments.
Explore similar content by clicking on the tags below. Find similar content under this anankelogy category.
Share this content with others on social media. Share the link to share the love.
Check out recent posts of interest to you.
Add a rating below to let others know how much of a good read this was for you.
Write a comment below to give others an independent perspective on this content.
Recommend this on Facebook. Introduce anankelogy to your social media contacts.
Lastly, support us in building this new love-nurturing alternative to our hate-enabling institutions. You can help us spread some love.
Kommentare