"Why can't they understand!"
Kaito raised his irritated voice. In the club room, Hiyori and Leo exchanged glances.
"Who?" Hiyori asked calmly.
"A friend. What I said was taken in a completely different meaning."
Leo sat down. "Specifically?"
"I just said 'I'm tired today,' but they said 'you only complain.'"
Hiyori thought. "That's a misunderstanding."
"Why do they misunderstand? I only said something normal."
Leo began explaining. "Human cognition has many biases. Misunderstanding has unavoidable aspects."
"Bias?"
"Tendencies to perceive things in a distorted way. Everyone has them."
Hiyori supplemented. "For example, confirmation bias. The tendency to collect only information that supports your beliefs."
"What do you mean?" Kaito asked.
Leo gave an example. "If your friend believes 'Kaito is a negative person,' they interpret all of Kaito's words and actions negatively."
"The neutral statement 'I'm tired' is received as 'complaint,'" Hiyori continued.
Kaito was surprised. "Isn't that prejudice?"
"Exactly. But the person does it unconsciously."
Leo introduced another concept. "There's also fundamental attribution error."
"Attribution error?"
"When explaining others' behavior, the tendency to overly seek causes in personality or internal factors."
Hiyori gave a concrete example. "For instance, someone was late. You assume 'they have a sloppy personality' instead of external factors."
"But maybe the train was delayed," Kaito understood.
"Yes. But people tend to underestimate situational factors."
Leo added, "Conversely, you blame your own actions on circumstances. This is called actor-observer bias."
Kaito was convinced. "Lenient on self, harsh on others."
"Not intentional, but how cognition is structured."
Hiyori asked. "Kaito, what's your relationship with that friend like?"
"Recently, a bit awkward."
"That might be influencing it," Hiyori said. "When relationships are good, you interpret favorably. But when relationships deteriorate, you tend to interpret maliciously."
Leo explained. "The reverse of the halo effect. Overall impression influences individual judgments."
Kaito thought. "So what should I do?"
Hiyori suggested. "First, make efforts to clear the misunderstanding. Explain 'that's not what I meant.'"
"But that might sound like an excuse too."
"It's difficult," Hiyori acknowledged. "But it's better than saying nothing."
Leo said from another angle. "Start from the premise that complete mutual understanding is impossible."
"Huh?" Kaito was surprised.
"People can't directly know others' internal states. We're always guessing."
Hiyori supplemented. "So misunderstanding is unavoidable. Accept that, then consider how to deal with it."
Kaito asked. "How to deal with it?"
"One is clear communication," Leo answered. "Avoid vague expressions, communicate concretely."
"Not just 'I'm tired,' but 'I'm tired because I had many tests today.'"
"Yes. By providing context, you reduce room for misunderstanding."
Hiyori said, "Another is confirming the other's interpretation."
"Confirm?"
"Ask 'how did you take what I said?' If there's a gap, you can correct it immediately."
Leo added. "Metacommunication. Communicating about communication."
Kaito looked troubled. "Sounds complicated."
"Communication is complex," Leo acknowledged. "That's why misunderstandings occur."
Hiyori said gently, "But continuing to talk is better than staying silent out of fear of misunderstanding."
"The more you talk, the deeper the understanding?"
"Not necessarily. But opportunities for dialogue increase."
Leo said, "Misunderstanding can either break or deepen relationships."
"What do you mean?" Kaito asked.
"In the process of clearing misunderstandings, you learn each other's ways of thinking. That leads to mutual understanding."
Kaito had a bit of hope. "So this misunderstanding is also an opportunity?"
Hiyori smiled. "You can think of it that way."
Leo said seriously, "However, if the other person refuses dialogue, you can't force it."
"One-sided communication doesn't work."
"Yes. Mutual effort is needed."
Kaito stood up. "I'll try talking properly once more."
"Good choice," Hiyori encouraged.
Leo said lastly, "Misunderstanding is unavoidable. But you can face it."
Kaito nodded. "Got it. Thanks."
The two watched Kaito's back as he left the club room. People misunderstand. But the effort to clear misunderstandings nurtures relationships. That was the essence of human relationships.