Minimisation or minimization is an action where an individual intentionally downplays a situation or a thing. Minimisation, or downplaying the significance of an event or emotion, is a common strategy in dealing with feelings of

guilt Guilt most commonly refers to: *Guilt (emotion), an emotion that occurs when a person feels that they have violated a moral standard *Culpability, a legal term *Guilt (law), a legal term Music * ''Guilt'' (album), a 2009 album by Mims * "Guilt" ( ...

Understatements

Understatement is a form of speech which contains an expression of less strength than what would be expected. A related term is

euphemism A euphemism ( ) is when an expression that could offend or imply something unpleasant is replaced with one that is agreeable or inoffensive. Some euphemisms are intended to amuse, while others use bland, inoffensive terms for concepts that the u ...

, where a polite phrase is used in place of a harsher or more offensive expression.

Self-esteem/depression

Redefining events to downplay their significance can be an effective way of preserving one's self-esteem. One of the problems of depression (found in those with clinical, bipolar, and chronic depressive mood disorders, as well as

cyclothymia Cyclothymia (, ), also known as cyclothymic disorder, psychothemia / psychothymia, bipolar III, affective personality disorder and cyclothymic personality disorder, is a mental disorder, mental and Abnormal behaviour, behavioural Disease#Disorder ...

) is the tendency to do the reverse: minimising the positive, discounting praise, and dismissing one's own accomplishments. On the other hand, one technique used by

Alfred Adler Alfred Adler ( ; ; 7 February 1870 – 28 May 1937) was an Austrian medical doctor, psychotherapist, and founder of the school of individual psychology. His emphasis on the importance of feelings of belonging, relationships within the family, a ...

to combat neurosis was to minimise the excessive significance the neurotic attaches to his own symptoms—the

narcissistic Narcissism is a self-centered personality style characterized as having an excessive preoccupation with oneself and one's own needs, often at the expense of others. Narcissism, named after the Greek mythological figure ''Narcissus'', has evolv ...

gains derived from pride in one's own illness.

Social minimisation

Display rules Display rules are a social group or culture's informal norms that distinguish how one should express oneself. They function as a way to maintain the social order of a given culture, creating an expected standard of behaviour to guide people in the ...

expressing a group's general consensus about the display of feeling often involve minimising the amount of emotion one displays, as with a poker face. Social interchanges involving minor infringements often end with the 'victim' minimising the offence with a comment like 'Think nothing of it', using so-called 'reduction words', such as 'no big deal,' 'only a little,' 'merely,' or 'just', the latter particularly useful in denying intent. On a wider scale, renaming things in a more benign or neutral form—'

collateral damage "Collateral damage" is a term for any incidental and undesired death, injury or other damage inflicted, especially on civilians, as the result of an activity. Originally coined to describe military operations, it is now also used in non-milit ...

' for death—is a form of minimisation.

As a form of manipulation

Minimisation may also take the form of a manipulative technique: * observed in abusers and manipulators to downplay their misdemeanors when confronted with irrefutable facts.Simon, George K. ''In Sheep's Clothing: Understanding and Dealing with Manipulative People'' (1996)Minimization: Trivializing Behavior as a Manipulation Tactic
/ref> * observed in abusers and manipulators to downplay positive attributes (talents and skills etc.) of their victims. Typical psychological defences exhibited by

stalkers Stalking is unwanted and/or repeated surveillance or contact by an individual or group toward another person. Stalking behaviors are interrelated to harassment and intimidation and may include following the victim in person or monitoring t ...

and guilty criminal suspects include

denial Denial, in colloquial English usage, has at least three meanings: * the assertion that any particular statement or allegation, whose truth is uncertain, is not true; * the refusal of a request; and * the assertion that a true statement is fal ...

, rationalisation, minimisation and

projection Projection or projections may refer to: Physics * Projection (physics), the action/process of light, heat, or sound reflecting from a surface to another in a different direction * The display of images by a projector Optics, graphics, and carto ...

of blame onto the victim.Abby Stein, ''Prologue to Violence'' (2006) p. 6 A variation on minimisation as a manipulative technique is ''"claiming

altruistic Altruism is the concern for the well-being of others, independently of personal benefit or reciprocity. The word ''altruism'' was popularised (and possibly coined) by the French philosopher Auguste Comte in French, as , for an antonym of egoi ...

motives"'' such as saying "I don't do this because I am selfish, and for gain, but because I am a socially aware person interested in the common good".Kantor, Martin ''The Psychopathy of Everyday Life'' 2006

School bullying

School bullying School bullying, like bullying outside the school context, refers to one or more perpetrators who have greater physical strength or more social power than their victim and who repeatedly act aggressively toward their victim. Bullying can be ver ...

is one form of

victimisation Victimisation ( or victimization) is the state or process of being victimised or becoming a victim. The field that studies the process, rates, incidence, effects, and prevalence of victimisation is called victimology. Peer victimisation Peer ...

physical abuse Physical abuse is any intentional act causing injury or trauma to another person or animal by way of bodily contact. In most cases, children are the victims of physical abuse, but adults can also be victims, as in cases of domestic violence or ...

which has sometimes been unofficially encouraged, ritualised or even minimised as a sort of prank by teachers or peers. The main difference between pranks and bullying is establishment of

power Power may refer to: Common meanings * Power (physics), meaning "rate of doing work" ** Engine power, the power put out by an engine ** Electric power, a type of energy * Power (social and political), the ability to influence people or events Math ...

inequity between the bully and the victim that lasts beyond the duration of the act.

Understatements

Self-esteem/depression

Social minimisation

As a form of manipulation

School bullying

See also

References

Further reading