Re: Manipulation LO762

David E. Birren, MB/5, 608.267.2442 (BIRRED@dnr.state.wi.us)
Thu, 13 Apr 1995 08:53 CST

Replying to Mike McMaster (LO742):

Mike discusses the term "manipulation" and says that "before we got
obsessed with (mechanistic) pyschology we did not attach all of this
meaning where none was required. We had a much more empirical and
pragmatic language. How many words can we not use - updated to match the
times - because we can't confront the baggage that has been attached?"

I think it's easy to see how there really are two senses of the word
"manipulation". One is (from Mike's 1912 Scottish etymological dictionary
- what a treasure that must be!): "the act of working by hand; use of
hands, in a skiful manner, usually in science or art". This is neutral
when applied to objects, and I think it carries a clear connotation of
intentionality. (How can one work with the hands in a skilful manner
without *intending* to do so?)

When one extends the term, complete with this connotation, to human
interaction, it takes on another meaning. The manipulator has power over
the manipulatee, and (as I said in a previous message) no one likes to be
the underdog.

I don't think it takes a great deal of psychologizing to see that people
want to be valued. As someone on this list recently said, "every man
carries a sign around his neck saying he wants to feel important." The
act of manipulating another person sends a message that the other person
is not as important as the manipulator. If the manipulator does not
*intend* that, then he should examine his actions and his real motives.
The value in behavior, after all, lies not in our intentions, but in their
consequences.

So maybe we should just say that manipulation of objects is value neutral
but manipulation of people is not.

David E. Birren | To know,
Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources | and not to act,
Bureau of Management & Budget | is to not know.
Phone: (608)267-2442 | --Wang Yang Ming
Fax: (608)267-3579 | 9th-cent. AD
Internet: birred@dnr.state.wi.us | Chinese general