The Dangers of Judgment and What We Can Do

“They judged me. I have been a victim of bullying for almost the entirety of my OHS life,” said one of nineteen OHS students in a survey about judging peers. Judging others is often about finding who you should associate yourself with. Is judging others really that important or helpful? I believe that it is important, but it is difficult to avoid using it wrongly. Without care, it is more detrimental than useful.

Using your observations about people to decide on their interests or how to approach them can create a stronger overall environment. In fact, it is useful to do so because you can then make a stronger connection with others. It is necessary, and without it, social atmospheres would be different. However, going too far in judgments can cause serious problems.

Depending excessively on early evaluations is ill-advised, and injuring others is easy, especially when it only takes a few key taps to send a message. Many students describe their methods for judging others as being “incorrect” or “subjective.” One 7th grader responded that OHS is (in comparison to B&M schools), “generally smarter and nicer,” but also ventures that “maybe OHS students are just better at pretending to be nice.” Connecting with others will help everyone. Like overreliance on judgements, using judgements in a wounding way is sometimes difficult to avoid. Even messages that might have started with good intentions can lead to problems because one’s tone is difficult to read online. You can easily only reach out to certain types and groups of people, but one of the best characteristics of OHS is its diversity. We are all unique, and that makes us stronger and better, but it also means that we should be – and are – inclusive.

Ultimately, judging others is focused on deciding whether or not to pay attention or connect to someone, or in other words, it is an analytic approach to finding potential friends. However, depending on just a few first impressions could cause you to miss out on opportunities. Instead, we can reach out and listen more. We can notice when others are hurt. We can help them. We can include each other and embrace our diversity.