How gullible are you?

Vulnerability 

It’s a beautiful world we live in; yet it has its blemishes. Many love and regard unconditionally, while several are callous with the emotions of another. In a world that pronounces war (several times a day at times) one needs to have defenses set veraciously to cope with character attacks. No-one can stay shielded from criticism. Where there is a tongue there is speech and gossip. Feebleness has become an everyday defense for self-conservation by those who don’t have the courage in their conviction. It preserves the self but sacrifices respect. Vulnerability is the equipment to avoid antagonism from a hostile environment. There is transient suspension of one’s rationality and self-regard and in that time window, the wolves attack and overpower the barricades, allowing one to lose personal judgment and give in to the whims of others because there simply isn't any other path to yield.

• I am humiliated every day, but he’s my boss; he’s authority!
• I am overweight they will always ridicule me, I needn't fight back 
• I am overweight! My friends make fun of me, but I can’t do anything! 
• This is how it is for me; people will not change how they think about me!

Gullibility

Gullible defines one who lacks the judgment to disbelieve things that don’t have evidence. Skepticism may involve a lack of surety in action; however the credulous soul is unaware of better decree than to be taken for granted by those who solely claim to know better. Here to we see a cause effect relationship in the vicious cycle wherein naive ones are taken for granted because of their credulousness; and their gullibility adds to their naive nature. These however are explained by factual lack of better awareness. Sometimes in spite of awareness we see cognitive exploitation that is better understood as cognitive vulnerability.

Cognitive Vulnerability

Physical strength is an unrelated variable of vulnerability; it is essentially liked with cognitive capacities. A mind exposed to stressful experiences can occasionally use adaptive responses and healthy coping to fight back the stressor. However susceptible brainpowers now and then fail to contest back, thus they adopt escapist retorts. The reactions are maladaptive and involve suspension of maturity and innate helplessness that incessantly interferes with sound respectful judgment. Situations get committed to memory as intimidating and daunting, one develops a predetermined and automatic response to accept them without challenge and accept unwavering defeat from the environment that chooses to take them for granted. 

Learned helplessness

Helplessness is not genetically transmitted trait. It isn't something one is consciously taught either. Nonetheless learned helplessness is a self-prophesizing adverse phenomenon that occurs on account of one or two initial failures; which then get ingrained in the mind of the vulnerable individual and are presumed to recur without change. Negative events, moments of ridicule and embarrassment get internalized and one begins to expect them to happen repetitively. They lower one’s self esteem, allow one to ‘expect’ to be ridiculed and invariably the embarrassment recurs. Thus vulnerability is ‘learned’ by conditioning, although it was never ‘taught’ as protocol.

A breach of trust

In a trusting environment, there are no hyenas waiting to consume the gullible lamb. However the world is full of unruliness and one cannot survive as a lamb. Trust is imperative for relationships but assertiveness is more important to prevent oneself from being overpowered. Those who exploit the vulnerable are rupturing the bubble of trust (which goes to say that trust is delicate as fizz). However one needs to guard oneself and raise the self in the eyes of the self first.

Correct the negative bias

Negative prejudice in self-assessment is the root for vulnerability to despair. A downward spiral of gloom gets created. And as long as one believes one is unworthy and incapable, the gloom continues and directs behavior accordingly. Negative bias helps maintain a dysphoric mood. The chicken and egg both need to be dealt with. Gradual mood boost corrects negative thoughts and their correction elevates the mood further, unclutters the mind and allows for confidence to creep in from inside the closet. One needs to be reflective in thinking. It helps bounce negative thoughts and uses experiential positivism to build on confidence. Be the mirror and reflect everything back the way it comes to you. It may be an unfair world; one still needs to stand for oneself…