"The new transfer student seems unfriendly, don't you think?"
Kaito said. During lunch break, the four were in the courtyard.
"Why?" Sora asked.
"When I greet them, they're curt. They must be arrogant."
Mira wrote a note. "Jumping to conclusions?"
"No, their attitude is clearly..."
Leo interrupted. "That might be a cognitive schema."
"Cognitive schema?"
"A framework for interpreting new information based on existing knowledge and experience," Leo explained.
Sora added. "So Kaito has a schema of 'curt = arrogant' from past experiences."
"What's wrong with that?"
"That schema can distort reality."
Mira opened her book. It was the page on "confirmation bias."
"Confirmation bias," Leo read. "The tendency to gather only information that supports your beliefs."
Sora continued. "If Kaito assumes 'the transfer student is arrogant,' he'll only look for that evidence."
"But they really are curt."
"There might be other interpretations," Leo suggested. "For example, shy, tired, cultural differences."
Kaito thought. "True... maybe they're just nervous from transferring."
Mira wrote. "Perspective shift"
"Yes. Acknowledging that your interpretation isn't absolute."
Sora wrote in her notebook. "Cognitive schemas are efficient but sometimes wrong."
"Efficient?" Kaito asked.
"Processing all information from scratch would tire the brain. Schemas are shortcuts for quick judgments."
Leo gave an example. "When you hear 'dog,' you immediately imagine four legs, tail, barking. That's schema."
"That's useful."
"Yes. But there are various types of dogs. Schemas can be oversimplified."
Mira turned the page. "Stereotype"
"Stereotypes are social schemas," Sora explained. "Fixed ideas about specific groups."
"Like transfer student = arrogant?"
"That might also be a type of stereotype."
Kaito reflected. "Did I have prejudice?"
"Everyone does," Leo comforted. "What matters is noticing and correcting it."
Sora suggested. "Why don't you actually talk to the transfer student? Without preconceptions."
"But how do I avoid preconceptions?"
"It's completely impossible," Leo admitted. "But being conscious reduces the influence."
Mira wrote. "Open mind"
"Open heart," Sora translated. "Acknowledging the possibility that your judgment is wrong."
Kaito stood up. "Alright, I'll try talking to them."
"Wait," Leo stopped him. "One piece of advice."
"What?"
"Talk while being conscious of your schema. Not with the premise 'this person is arrogant,' but with the attitude 'I want to know this person.'"
"Got it."
Kaito headed toward the transfer student.
Sora, Leo, and Mira watched from afar.
"Kaito is growing," Sora said.
"His cognitive flexibility is increasing," Leo acknowledged.
Mira smiled.
After a while, Kaito returned.
"How was it?" Sora asked.
"Surprisingly easy to talk to. Turns out they're just shy with people."
"The curtness?"
"They were nervous. In a new environment, they didn't know how to interact."
Leo nodded. "Your schema was corrected."
"I completely misunderstood," Kaito laughed. "Assumptions are scary."
Sora summarized. "Assumptions simplify the world. But they also distort it."
Mira wrote. "Reality is complex"
"Accepting that complexity is growth," Leo added.
Kaito wrote in his notebook. "Before judging people, doubt your assumptions."
"Good lesson."
The four returned to the classroom. Escaping the cage of assumptions is difficult. But not impossible.
"I promised to invite the transfer student to lunch together next time," Kaito said happily.
"Wonderful," Sora acknowledged.
Mira quietly nodded. Assumptions distort the world. But dialogue opens the world.