⚠️ Status of this model: This is an explanatory framework and working hypothesis, not an official DSM diagnosis or scientific claim. It is offered as a supplementary conceptual tool.
What is context blindness?
Our brains work as prediction machines (Karl Friston, Free Energy Principle, 2010). They combine sensory input (~30%) with context, memories and expectations (~70%).
Context sensitivity refers to how well someone integrates that broader context — including the emotional state, intention and perspective of others.
| Low-contextual | High-contextual |
|---|---|
| Literal, black-and-white thinking | Nuanced, relational thinking |
| Focuses on facts, not intention | Strong in Theory of Mind |
| Difficulty taking another's perspective | Sometimes takes too much responsibility for others |
| Transactional | Empathetic |
Context blindness and controlling behavior
Low-contextual thinkers structurally struggle more with:
- Theory of Mind — imagining how the other person experiences the situation
- Emotional nuance — recognizing subtle signals of pain or discomfort
- Outside perspective — estimating how one's own behavior looks to others
In a relationship, this leads to: repeated boundary-crossing behavior, extreme reactions to small stimuli, rigid blame assignment.
The link with personality disorders
Personality disorders can be understood as pervasive low-contextual thinking styles — rigid, egocentric patterns that the person has difficulty leaving.
This explains why confrontation rarely works and why behavioral change is exceptionally difficult.
Practical implications
- Always treat the perpetrator and victim separately
- Don't expect empathic insight from the perpetrator as a starting point
- Explicit, concrete language works better than nuance
- Mentalization-based therapy or schema therapy can structurally change something long-term
- Protect the victim first
Further reading
- contextthinking.org — complete knowledge platform
- YouTube: Complex Denken
- Peter Vermeulen — Autism as Context Blindness
- Vivienne de Vogel — Violence by Women (Van der Hoeven Kliniek, Utrecht)