We have growing numbers of people who may not have had an opportunity to learn that conclusions based on hearsay and indefinite sources may not accurately reflect the observed world. Sometimes observers who offer inadvertent allness claims do so with consistent omission. For example, based on observing one or two members of a race or religion, holding an unrecognized bias against a race or religion can contribute to concluding that all members of a race or religion do unacceptable things. These same inadvertent biases often do not materialize when one or two members of the observer s own race or religion behave unacceptably. Possibly helping people recognize that inadvertent allness claims do not necessarily represent events and people very well can also contribute to conclusions with merit.
Many people behave differently in stressful than in non-stressful situations.
Normally passive individuals experiencing fear and aggression can behave very differently than when calm and not threatened. Active and aggressive individuals feeling fatigued can display passive behaviors. Concluding that actions and comments displayed during unusual circumstances represent individuals probably makes no better sense than concluding that normal behaviors cannot change. Alerting web users to the potential for unusual circumstances to dramatically alter people s behaviors and comments can also possibly contribute to conclusions with merit. No doubt many other questions could also contribute to discovering the value of generalizations.