7 Silent Habits Of People Who Read Others Too Well

You can tell when someone's upset before they've said a word. And most of the time, you're right. So why does being this good at reading people make you feel worse around them? This video splits "reading people" into what it's actually made of: noticing a signal, deciding what it means, and carrying it home. The first part is a real skill. The other two are where it starts costing you. In this video: The seven silent habits of people who read others too well Why being right about the signal doesn't make you right about what it means The trap inside "just ask them," and how asking can push people away Four practical ways to keep the skill without paying for it Research mentioned: William Ickes: empathic accuracy research Aron & Aron (1997): sensory processing sensitivity Randolph Nesse: the smoke detector principle Ames & Kammrath (2004): perceived vs. actual skill at reading others Amir, Foa & Coles (1998): interpretation bias in social anxiety Kruger, Epley, Parker & Ng (2005): reading tone over email Clark & Wells (1995): post-event processing Batson et al. (1981): empathic concern vs. personal distress Dugas, Freeston & Ladouceur: intolerance of uncertainty Joiner; Starr & Davila (2008): excessive reassurance-seeking Eyal, Steffel & Epley (2018): perspective-taking vs. perspective-getting Klimecki, Leiberg, Ricard & Singer (2014): empathy vs. compassion training Boothby, Cooney, Sandstrom & Clark (2018): the liking gap Epictetus, Enchiridion This video is for education and reflection, not medical or mental health advice. If the scanning comes with constant dread, panic, or a feeling that you can't be around people, please talk to a doctor or therapist. What's one short message you decoded completely wrong, and what did it turn out to mean? Tell me in the comments. Subscribe to PsychAnimated for psychology that shows you what the research found, even when it makes the story less tidy. #psychology #overthinking #socialanxiety #empathy #highlysensitiveperson