Somebody else's problem: Difference between revisions

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~~{{short description|Dismissive figure of speech}}~~

"'''Somebody else's problem'''" or "'''someone else's problem'''" is an issue which is dismissed by a person on the grounds that they consider somebody else to be responsible for it.

~~{{for|the sociopsychological phenomenon|diffusion of responsibility}}~~

'''"Somebody else's problem"''' or '''"someone else's problem"''' is an issue which is dismissed by a person on the grounds that they consider somebody else to be responsible for it.

==Examples==

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[[Douglas Adams]]' 1982 novel ''[[Life, the Universe and Everything]]'' (in ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy#Novels|The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy]]'' [[comedy science fiction]] series) introduces the idea of an "SEP [[Field (physics)|field]]" as a kind of [[cloaking device]]. The character [[Ford Prefect (character)|Ford Prefect]] says,

{{quote|An SEP is something we can't see, or don't see, or our brain doesn't let us see, because we think that it's somebody else's problem. That’s what SEP means. Somebody Else’s Problem. The brain just edits it out, it's like a blind spot.}}

The narration then explains:

{{quote|The Somebody Else's Problem field... relies on people's natural predisposition not to see anything they don't want to, weren't expecting, or can't explain. If Effrafax had painted the mountain pink and erected a cheap and simple Somebody Else’s Problem field on it, then people would have walked past the mountain, round it, even over it, and simply never have noticed that the thing was there.}}

Adams' description of an SEP field is quoted in an article of "psychological invisibility", where it is compared to other fictional effects such as the perception filter in ''[[Doctor Who]]'', as well as cognitive biases such as [[inattentional blindness]] and [[change blindness]].<ref>[https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/04/13/sight-unseen-critic-at-large-kathryn-schulz Sight unseen], Catherine Schulz, [[The New Yorker]], April 13, 2015</ref>

Adams' description of an SEP field is quoted in an article of "psychological invisibility", where it is compared to other fictional effects such as the perception filter in ''[[Doctor Who]]'', as well as cognitive biases such as [[inattentional blindness]] and [[change blindness]].<ref>[~~http~~://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/04/13/sight-unseen-critic-at-large-kathryn-schulz Sight unseen], Catherine Schulz, [[The New Yorker]], April 13, 2015</ref>

==See also==

~~{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}~~

* [[Abilene paradox]]

* [[Buck passing]]

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* [[Other people's money (disambiguation)|Other people's money]]

* [[Sheeple]]

~~{{Div col end}}~~

==References==

~~{{HitchhikerMiscellanea}}~~

[[Category:Group processes]]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{short description|Dismissive figure of speech}}
+"'''Somebody else's problem'''" or "'''someone else's problem'''" is an issue which is dismissed by a person on the grounds that they consider somebody else to be responsible for it.
-{{for|the sociopsychological phenomenon|diffusion of responsibility}}
-'''"Somebody else's problem"''' or '''"someone else's problem"''' is an issue which is dismissed by a person on the grounds that they consider somebody else to be responsible for it.
 ==Examples==
@@ Line 26: / Line 23: @@
 [[Douglas Adams]]' 1982 novel ''[[Life, the Universe and Everything]]'' (in ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy#Novels|The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy]]'' [[comedy science fiction]] series) introduces the idea of an "SEP [[Field (physics)|field]]" as a kind of [[cloaking device]]. The character [[Ford Prefect (character)|Ford Prefect]] says,
-{{quote|An SEP is something we can't see, or don't see, or our brain doesn't let us see, because we think that it's somebody else's problem. That’s what SEP means. Somebody Else’s Problem. The brain just edits it out, it's like a blind spot.}}
 The narration then explains:
-{{quote|The Somebody Else's Problem field... relies on people's natural predisposition not to see anything they don't want to, weren't expecting, or can't explain. If Effrafax had painted the mountain pink and erected a cheap and simple Somebody Else’s Problem field on it, then people would have walked past the mountain, round it, even over it, and simply never have noticed that the thing was there.}}
+Adams' description of an SEP field is quoted in an article of "psychological invisibility", where it is compared to other fictional effects such as the perception filter in ''[[Doctor Who]]'', as well as cognitive biases such as [[inattentional blindness]] and [[change blindness]].<ref>[https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/04/13/sight-unseen-critic-at-large-kathryn-schulz Sight unseen], Catherine Schulz, [[The New Yorker]], April 13, 2015</ref>
-Adams' description of an SEP field is quoted in an article of "psychological invisibility", where it is compared to other fictional effects such as the perception filter in ''[[Doctor Who]]'', as well as cognitive biases such as [[inattentional blindness]] and [[change blindness]].<ref>[http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/04/13/sight-unseen-critic-at-large-kathryn-schulz Sight unseen], Catherine Schulz, [[The New Yorker]], April 13, 2015</ref>
 ==See also==
-{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
 * [[Abilene paradox]]
 * [[Buck passing]]
@@ Line 46: / Line 38: @@
 * [[Other people's money (disambiguation)|Other people's money]]
 * [[Sheeple]]
-{{Div col end}}
 ==References==
 {{reflist}}
-{{HitchhikerMiscellanea}}
 [[Category:Group processes]]

Somebody else's problem: Difference between revisions

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