Double Binds
Double binds appears to offer a person a choice but in fact limits it to two alternatives both of which are desirable for the person asking the question. A common example of this is “Would you like to pay by credit card or cash?” Note the presupposition in this question is that the person would in fact like to buy the product. But by not asking them this question you are already presupposing that they have accepted to buy.
An Example of Double Binds
Another example of double blinds would be if you wanted your children to wash the dishes. You could say “When will you clean the dishes, before or after you have done your homework?” Again this presupposes that they have accepted to wash the dishes. Provided that they make a choice one way or the other they will have subconsciously accepted the fact that they need to wash the dishes.
More Examples of Double Binds
- Would you like to have dinner now or later?
- Is 2:00 or 4:00 better for you?
- Would you like that in black or red?
- Would you like to see a movie on Friday or Saturday?
Can you identify the presuppositions in these double binds?
Milton Erickson made use of double binds when he was working with his patients. He would make statements such as “I don’t know whether you will make this change immediately, or within the next week.” or “I don’t know if you will first notice a sensation in your right hand or your left hand.” Again we can see that there is a presupposition that the person will make a change. Using double blinds is a much more powerful thank simply commanding the patient to make a change which will instantly either be excepted or rejected by the conscious mind. With double binds the conscious mind is bypassed and the presupposition is embedded as already having been excepted.
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