Framing for Deescalation

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In many of the past articles it has been mentioned that avoidance and deescalation are critical to self-fense. Both can depend on any one or number of factors to achieve its objectives but one particular effort through communications, articulation of certain concepts, etc., is used in many disciplines to deescalate thus avoiding conflict and its potential violence toward grave harm or even death. 

One small aspect of communications comes under the heading of, “Framing.” Framing is how you articulate, communicate and drive understanding toward a specific objective, i.e., a truth of communications is “C’est le ton qui fait la musique: it’s not what you say but how you say it. If a message is communicated in different ways, it will also be received in different ways - a technique called framing.” 

The following is excerpted from a book by Rolf Dobelli titled, “The Art of Thinking Clearly.” I feel it conveys some important points of framing that go a long way to educate us in how we can communicate toward the objectives of avoidance and deescalation. 

“We react differently to identical situations, depending on how they are presented - or framed. In Self-fense we think of one form of avoidance as deescalation through communications, i.e., depending on how we phrase something - as to survival or death or grave harm as a result - the respondents can made completely different decisions dependent on how you frame your words.” 

“Examples of every day framing that is used in the hopes of conveying bad stuff as more positive, i.e., A person who is being fired or laid off is, ‘Reassessing his or her career.’ A fallen soldier, or victim, regardless of how much bad luck or stupidity led to that persons fall - turns them into heroes.” 

“Framing is used extensively in commerce, too. Often as a target you are led to focus on just a few factors, very positive ones or ones the seller perceives as trigger points for your positive responses, whether delivered by a salesman, a sign touting features, or even by your own criteria become the main selling points and frame our decision to buy. It is difficult to take in all possible pro’s and con’s therefore forcing us to naturally gravitate toward those high points of interest to make the decision.” 

“Realize that whatever you communicate contains some elements of framing, and that every fact - even if you hear it from a trusted friend or read it in a reputable newspaper - is subject to this effect, too.”

Yes, framing is easily perceived in this article as beneficial but it also must be understood and accepted that alone it won’t reach that milestone in self-fense because another critical element in communications is, “Active Listening.”  As with anything in the self-fense world there are no single definitive answers but a collection of fluid things that make it all work. There are many physical, emotional, psychological and moral aspects that make it work and that is a hall of many mirrors that must be traversed to reach a final objective. 

In closing this article I highly recommend the book mentioned herein, it provides a lot more information that can help us achieve a modicum of proficiency in using our abilities to communicate so that the more physical, the more dangerous, aspects of self-fense can be left at the starting line. 

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