It seems difficult to believe that in the 21st century there are many individuals who are intolerant of others. It is shocking when you turn on the news and see that Donald Trump, candidate for the presidency of the United States, has a large number of followers. You think: “something seems wrong…”
Intolerant people express it in different ways, for example, in a conversation about homosexuality, making it clear that they still live with a primitive (or perhaps atrophied) mind supporting ideas full of prejudices. But above all, they make their discomfort evident with an aggressive, resentful and impolite tone. Without a doubt, it is better to keep intolerant people away.
Whether we like it or not we have to live with these types of people. But what are these characters like? Intolerant people have a series of characteristics (if you can call it that, because I would call them defects) that you can find below.
1. They are full of prejudices
Intolerant people have too many prejudices, that is, they prejudge a person or situation based on a previous opinion or something that is poorly known. And, furthermore, they allow themselves to be influenced by stereotypes, ideas of something or someone accepted as a pattern of qualities or behaviors.
In a sense, first impressions and biases make these types of people attack the interests of others before informing themselves about what they really are.
2. They discriminate
This thinking model based on prejudices and stereotypes leads them to become discriminatory and intolerant people, who get angry at the slightest. They often discriminate based on race, sex, sexual orientation, disability or other disorders. Any identity categorization is a good excuse to offer unequal treatment.
3. They are fans
Intolerant people are people with a high degree of fanaticism Since these people firmly believe in their ideas, they also defend them with exaggerated and excessive passion. Group fanaticism also favors the formation of prejudices towards other groups of people, and is a breeding ground for intergroup conflict, but also interindividual conflict.
4. They are uncompromising
It may seem that the words intolerant and intransigent are the same, but, despite being closely related, they are not exactly the same. Intolerance is not accepting the ideas of others, believing that you know everything and openly debating these ideas; while intransigence is not giving in to the demands and requests of others. Intolerant people are also, very often, intransigent
5. They don’t listen
Intolerant people defend their ideas, but not only that, they they don’t listen to the opinion of others Because they think they are right about everything, their idea is the only one that counts, and they consider knowing what other people think to be a waste of time. In practice, it is as if the opinion of others does not exist.
Authoritarian personality is a set of individual characteristics that are generally learned during childhood and that include antidemocratic and intolerant traits. Many times, those who have been raised in an environment with many rules and in which the expression of ideas and feelings is restricted, end up adopting a domineering attitude when dealing with others.
When you come across an authoritarian person, it doesn’t matter if they are right or wrong, The opinion of others has no value and you have to obey them or become angry.
7. They have problems with their interpersonal relationships
And of course, taking into account the previous characteristics, it is clear that Intolerant people have serious difficulties maintaining interpersonal relationships and they come into conflict with other people quite frequently. They always try to be right and put others down.
At the base of these conflicts, lack of communication, unilaterality and domination normally play a determining role.
8. They have dichotomous thinking
For intolerant people, it is either white or black, there is no middle ground They are people who want to have everything under control, because they have grown up in families that have generally raised them this way.
Therefore, those who are intolerant tend to categorize as “enemies” people who do not take a position in their favor on certain issues.
9. Fear of uncertainty
Since they are people who want to have everything under control and think that everything is black or white, They are afraid of uncertainty and do not want to accept that there are other points of view and that in life everything is not always well tied up. They hate spontaneity and the unexpected.
One of the causes of the previous point is their rigid thinking and that they only think that there is one truth: theirs. There are no other options, and when someone tries to confront their opinions, great anxiety is generated within them. It is this fear of the unknown that makes them behave like this, in an intolerant way. This is your way of ensuring that the only truth that exists is yours and no one else’s.
11. They explode at the slightest
Intolerant people they see other people as threats, and when someone tries to contradict them they act in a hostile manner. Having a discriminatory mentality and being fanatical about their ideas, they tend to be aggressive towards other individuals or groups.
12. Criticism does not fit
These people don’t know how to take criticism, and as mentioned in the previous point, they act in a bad manner when someone tells them that they are not doing well. At some point, we have all received criticism. Sometimes it may not be true, but on other occasions it can help us consider what we are doing wrong. Intolerant people do not engage in self-criticism.
Resentful people: What are they like?
In addition, these types of people also tend to be spiteful and vengeful. Resentment is a negative feeling that can be very harmful to your psychological health.
