What is cynicism: 7 main signs, pros and cons

What is cynicism?

Cynicism is a demonstrably dismissive or even contemptuous attitude towards generally accepted moral, moral, ethical, ideological, religious and cultural values, as well as ideas about decency and decency. Cynics believe that compassion, empathy, shame and other emotions prevent a person from using common sense and making good decisions.

When trying to understand the motives of another person, we usually judge by ourselves - we try to come up with a reason that would force us to do the same. Cynics, like most other people, tend to judge others by themselves. Therefore, they believe that everyone around them is guided solely by their own interests, hiding behind fictitious universal human values. In particular, they are reluctant to believe in selflessness, and when someone volunteers to help them, they try to find selfish interest or some other catch in it.

The word “cynicism” comes from the name of the ancient Greek philosophical school of Cynics (the most famous representative of which is Diogenes). The ideas of the Cynics were based on a rejection of social, moral and ethical conventions. They denied family values and did not accept the dogmas imposed by the state and society. The name of the school was derived from the word κύων (dog) or κυνικός (canine). Since the term entered European languages through Latin, its sound was distorted, and “cynicism” turned into “cynicism.”

What to do if you discover a cynic in yourself

You can live with cynicism. There is no need to try to suppress it in yourself if it helps you. If this character trait does not have a negative impact on your psyche, you just need to accept it, do not deny it in yourself and do not reproach yourself for it.

If possible, try to restrain yourself from sarcasm and dark humor, since people really don’t like it.

You need to learn to trust people, understand that not everyone is a hypocrite, not everyone is looking for profit. It is important to adhere to healthy cynicism, it helps in life. If possible, restrain yourself from various discussions and disputes.

Your arguments are too painful for people. Psychologists recommend learning to enjoy life. Turn off your mind more often, feel your heart, obey its will.

If you feel that this trait is causing you more inconvenience than benefit, consult a psychologist. He will help you work through the problem and find its causes. Afterwards, it will be easier for you to control cynicism and get along with it.

Signs of cynicism

To better understand what cynicism is in the modern sense of the word, let's consider its most common manifestations. Most often, a cynic can be identified by the presence of the following features:

Specific manners of behavior.
Cynics are usually quite rude in communication, disdainful of others and rarely consider their opinions. They also tend to categorically judge and speak out about various objects, phenomena and even people.
Disregard for spiritual, moral, ethical and cultural values.
The cynic does not understand why other people are so fussy about them. He himself values only that from which real benefit can be derived, and aesthetic pleasures are alien to him.
The absence of many human reactions and experiences.
A cynic does not express feelings, does not regret mistakes, is not tormented by remorse and does not burn with shame. He just doesn't understand why he bothers himself with all these negative emotions.
Mercantile attitude towards people.
People with a cynical attitude towards life, when making new friends, usually think in advance about how this will benefit them. Indeed, we spend a significant part of our personal time with friends and acquaintances. Cynics believe that this time should be spent with maximum benefit and benefit.
Skeptical attitude towards things that are dear to others.
This is the main reason why cynics have such a hard time making friends. They tend to speak in a sarcastic manner and even make fun of things that are important to people close to them. They criticize everything: faith, ideals, dreams, the desire to lose weight and attempts to quit smoking, new clothes and a new job. At the same time, they do not think at all about the discomfort they cause to a person.
Overthrow of authorities.
They do not understand why other people admire individuals who have achieved outstanding success in some field. Success matters to them, but increased interest in the very personality of a successful person seems strange to them.
A special form of compassion and empathy.
Sometimes a cynic can openly express sympathy and compassion, but he needs this more for self-affirmation. This is how he tries to show himself and others how highly developed a person he is.

Cynicism: what is its danger?

If you deeply need cynicism, you need to constantly make fun of others and thereby elevate yourself, then this is already dangerous. Someone who reacts out of pure love cannot and will not be cynical. A respectful attitude should never defame another or offend with cynical remarks. Excessive cynicism is dangerous!

Firstly, it is harmful to your health. Cynical people are more likely to experience stress, anger, and negative emotions
Unfavorable social, mental, physical health
Poor interpersonal relationships. Because many avoid cynical people
Higher risk of burnout, cardiovascular disease
Often negative beliefs about a certain area or person are justified. But a cynic will generalize, extend these beliefs to other unrelated aspects
It destroys actual and perceived kindness through negativity
Gives rise to a conspiracy theory
Counterproductive behavior affects thoughts, feelings, actions
A life full of cynical moments is toxic and miserable.

Interesting: According to statistics, cynical people are much less likely to advance in their careers and earn less than more optimistic and simple-minded people. And all because they do not know how to make contact, give in and trust others.

Don't go to extremes

Reasons for cynicism

From a psychological point of view, cynicism is a defense mechanism of our psyche, protecting it from severe stress. Cynicism is characteristic of successful representatives of many professions. Doctors, firefighters, bomb engineers, law enforcement officers and many other people regularly face severe stress. The presence of healthy cynicism protects them from emotional burnout and other negative consequences for the psyche.

And they do their work much better, turning off emotions. So the judge must be absolutely impartial, and the defendant must not evoke pity or disgust in him. Otherwise, he will not be able to make an objective verdict. Both the surgeon, who needs to concentrate as much as possible on his work, and the rescuer, who must always act rationally, must maintain impartiality.

People who choose such professions are not always cynics by nature. More often it happens the other way around - they are driven by an altruistic desire to selflessly help other people. But immersed in everyday work, they are faced with severe stress, due to which they gradually turn into cynics.

There are other mechanisms for the formation of cynicism in people who are not initially inclined to it. These can be various events that make a person question generally accepted values and ideals. The most common causes of cynicism are factors such as:

severe disappointment, betrayal by a loved one, pain of loss or other negative experience;
peculiarities of upbringing (rudeness and cynicism of parents);
strong intrapersonal conflict, existential crisis, loss of faith in justice, collapse of ideals, hopes and illusions;
loss of support, uncertainty about the future, feeling threatened;
pride and selfishness, inflated self-esteem, giving a person the confidence that he can judge everything and everyone from above;
rejection of generally accepted values in order to express one’s individuality and demonstrate non-standard views on life.

As you can see, the basis of cynicism in most cases is either a strong (or prolonged) negative experience, or excessive self-confidence, which allows a person to consider himself “the chosen one.” Most often, the cause of cynicism is various kinds of psychotrauma. Strong emotional shocks activate such a defense mechanism as denial, which leads to the development of cynicism - the denial of all values.

Examples

Ostap Bender is a character who wants to get the maximum benefit in everything. He believed that people liked a lot of cynicism.
Evgeny Bazarov is a character in Turgenev’s work. It was dominated by pride, skepticism and nihilism. Behind the cynicism of this hero was hidden the fear of loneliness.
Carlson is a cartoon character who was a true representative of selfishness.
Dr. House is the main character from the series of the same name. He practically did not notice people, saw only their illnesses in his patients, and happily solved riddles in order to determine the correct diagnosis.

Now you know what the word cynic means. Today cynicism is becoming fashionable. An individual may not be able to achieve the image that he has imagined for himself or, for example, having received a specialty that he does not like, he will encounter an intrapersonal conflict. In the eyes of some people, a cynic looks like an unusual and intelligent person.

Types of Cynicism

Psychologists divide all manifestations of cynicism into two categories:

Everyday cynicism
. This category includes various manifestations of cynicism in everyday life. This can be all kinds of immoral acts, disregard for norms of behavior and other people's feelings, ridicule of loved ones, demonstrative failure to fulfill requests and ignoring other people's interests. A significant part of manifestations of everyday cynicism is usually directed at the opposite sex (“They are all the same!”). Interestingly, a cynical attitude towards the opposite sex is common among both men and women.
Professional cynicism
. This form of cynicism is usually associated with moral overload and is a form of protection against stress. Therefore, it is often found in people whose psyche is regularly subjected to serious tests. These are doctors, law enforcement officers, firefighters, rescuers, as well as various employees whose job is to communicate with clients (in particular, dissatisfied ones). An interesting feature of professional cynicism is that in everyday life a person may not be cynical at all.

Brief description of a cynic

Cynical people oppose lofty ideals and feelings; they do not believe in love. They don’t think about shame, they are sure that everything in life can be bought, that there are no things or values that need to be treasured. Such individuals communicate with other people only when it is beneficial for them. He will reject everything sublime and does not believe in true love and friendship.

Sympathy, pity and compassion are not inherent in such people. They can only sympathize if they are trying to be superior. They can laugh at the values that are important to other people. Can communicate rudely, point out mistakes, criticize, make sarcastic remarks. For him there are no authorities, he can aggressively perceive the opinions of others, his own opinion is considered the only correct one. Such a person suffers from anxious thoughts, inner emptiness, complete confusion, and awareness of injustice.

Do not confuse cynicism with a complex personality

How to communicate with a cynic?

Communicating with cynical people is quite difficult, especially for people who are not cynics themselves and are sensitive to any rude jokes or disdainful attitude towards themselves. If you are one of these people, then it is better to avoid communicating with cynics. If you still have to interact, here are some useful tips:

Don't try to convince him.
A characteristic feature of most cynics is inflated self-esteem. Therefore, they consider themselves very smart and are always confident that they are right.
Don't get into a demagogic argument.
This is a space in which the cynic is strong and experienced, and it is useless to compete with him on his field. Any conversation should be as specific as possible, as well as short and concise - strictly to the point.
Don't allow yourself to be drawn into conflict.
Similar situations can arise when a stranger behaves cynically, which causes you justifiable indignation. However, any attempts to point out to him the inadequacy of his behavior will only lead to unnecessary hassle.
Gain trust.
If a person important to you turns out to be a cynic, try to find out in a conversation what motivates his cynical attitude towards life. Let him speak out, and he will begin to trust you, which means he will talk to you much more respectfully.
Don't try to "heal" the soul of a cynic.
Many people, having learned what events caused a cynical attitude towards life, turn on the “spiritual mentor” mode, trying to correct the situation. But such communication only irritates a cynic, so you risk losing his trust.

Cynicism towards women

A cynical man inspires confidence, alluring harshness, masculinity and sexuality. But this is only until he starts a relationship with a woman. She will either have to endure it or leave.

There is a common feature for all cynic men - they prefer to be in open relationships. They don't believe in love and deny romance. They are unapproachable, vulnerable, hiding their true feelings under the guise of coldness and sarcasm. They are afraid to trust and open their hearts.

If you, as a woman, are not satisfied with this attitude from a man. Don't try to re-educate the person. Accept that this is not your person.

Pros and cons of cynicism

Having understood what cynicism is, we can safely say that this model of behavior has both positive and negative features. It’s impossible to say that something clearly outweighs, so we’ll just look at the advantages and disadvantages in detail.

Pros of cynicism:

cynicism makes a person more courageous and decisive;
helps to act judiciously and make rational decisions;
makes a person more honest, open and straightforward (cynics are not characterized by hypocrisy);
eliminates false hopes and other experiences (both positive and negative);
provides protection against stress under any mental stress;
helps you not to worry about other people's opinions.

Disadvantages of cynicism:

bad character often interferes with communication;
tactlessness leads to a decrease in the circle of friends;
cynics often offend loved ones, even when they don’t want to;
cynics are often treated with prejudice, preferring not to deal with them;
It is difficult for a cynic to be happy and enjoy pleasant emotions.

Positive sides

Despite such a large number of uses of “negativism” near cynicism, this life position has many advantages:

You are free to call a spade a spade and speak as sincerely as possible. Neither you nor your interlocutors need to carefully select words or veil them. Because the latter type of communication leads to lies and misunderstanding.
Cynicism is only suitable for a realistic view of the world and each specific situation. Keeping your head in the clouds and sticking only to positive thinking will not work. Therefore, exponents of this life position often have a cold and sharp mind, just as is described in the series “Doctor House” (well, or Doctor Bykov, at worst).
A sound assessment of your strengths helps you set life goals correctly and move towards them, seeing every obstacle and downside.
At the same time, very kind people can behave cynically, because in this way they only express their opinion and do not want to offend anyone. It is possible that their empathy is poorly developed.

Psychology

People who ridicule social norms are perceived as aggressors . But from a psychological point of view, cynicism is not always a way of demonstrating dominant behavior.

Often this is a kind of defensive reaction of a person who tries to hide his own experiences behind a mask of indifference.

In such cases, the cynic turns out to be a soft and vulnerable individual who similarly builds a wall between himself and other people.

This allows him to protect his inner world from gross interference from the outside and to protect himself from possible suffering.

Thus, a man who has experienced betrayal may subsequently demonstrate disdain for all representatives of the fair sex for fear of being betrayed again.

If there is no internal psychological trauma behind such a life attitude, then we can talk about a conscious choice of this style of behavior.

Individuals with a rebellious character choose it to express a negative attitude towards the existing order of things in society.

How does it manifest?

Men and women have different psychological characteristics, so the manifestation of cynicism has its own nuances.

In men

For men, success, career, money are always in the foreground . It is important for a man to be fulfilled in life. Accordingly, cynicism is often characteristic of those representatives of the stronger sex who have not been able to achieve great heights.

Behind the mask of contempt for society lies a feeling of dissatisfaction with oneself and unfulfillment in the professional sphere.

In his personal life, a man’s cynicism can be justified by the traumas he has experienced. Resentment towards one woman can develop into aggression towards all women, which ultimately manifests itself in a mocking, dismissive attitude.

Women and girls are perceived as things that have a certain value.

Male cynicism can be caused by other reasons.

Thus, the desire for material wealth can gradually lead to a complete loss of spirituality and morality.

The habit of thinking rationally and looking for benefits everywhere is transferred to all areas of life: friendship, love, family.

Among women

Women primarily live by feelings and emotions. For them, personal life is usually more important than career achievements. Accordingly, women become cynical when they fail in relationships or family .

Failures in their personal lives make them tough, aggressive, and distrustful. Relying only on herself, a woman stops trusting others. All principles imposed by society irritate her.

Women's cynicism carries a greater danger than men's. He's angrier and tougher.

Representatives of the fair sex are created by nature for motherhood and family. This purpose implies the presence of spiritual qualities: gentleness, affection, kindness. Accordingly, a cynical woman moves away from her nature and approaches more the masculine essence .