Is Perspective-Taking the Key to Overcoming Polarization?
b'Why is it so hard to see things from a perspective other than our own? Our perspectives are shaped by our life experiences and our biology \\u2013 some people are color-blind, for example. As a result of these differences, no two people see the world in exactly the same way. And yet, when it comes to differences of opinion on issues that we really care about, we are quick to demand that everyone else see things the way we do. Psychologists call the ability to see from a different vantage point \\u201cperspective taking.\\u201d Is perspective-taking the key to overcoming polarization in society? In this podcast episode, we learn how our brains are wired to process information differently \\u2013 some think in words, others pictures. We get practical tips on how to practice perspective-taking during difficult conversations. And, we learn about the potential pitfalls of focusing only on developing empathy to bridge differences, because some empathy leads to helping, some does not. \\n\\nPodcast Guests:\\nTemple Grandin, professor of animal science at Colorado State University and author of \\u201cVisual Thinking: The Hidden Gifts of People who Think in Pictures, Patterns and Abstractions,\\u201d \\u201cDifferent Kinds of Minds\\u201d and \\u201cThinking in Pictures: My Life with Autism\\u201d\\n\\nMonica Guzman, senior fellow at Braver Angels, host of A Braver Way podcast, and author of \\u201cI Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times\\u201d\\n\\nAlison Jane Martingano, professor of psychology at University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, empathy researcher, host of \\u201cPsychology and Stuff\\u201d podcast'