How Do You Handle Ambiguity?
Back when I was in graduate school 50 years ago, Ambiguity was a hot topic. I don’t think that graduate psychology students today spend too much time on the topic as newer concerns and concepts evolve all the time and receive greater emphasis, but I still consider tolerance of ambiguity to be an important issue to informally assess in working with individuals.
Being comfortable with ambiguity definitely enhances your chances of success in a creative career. It also helps when you are in a situation that calls for brainstorming, and it can even be beneficial when taking an essay test.
The opposite isn’t bad. People who are uncomfortable with ambiguity are often drawn to careers and other types of settings where there are definite guidelines and right and wrong answers. They tend to follow the rules and draw between the lines.
The world needs both types of people! I would argue, however, that the extremes are wrong. A person who is so comfortable with ambiguity that nothing phases him or her can get into trouble personally, financially, legally, or on the job by not paying sufficient attention to deadlines or other requirements. But a person who is intolerant of ambiguity can become dogmatic, close-minded, rigid, prejudiced, and prone to follow an authoritarian leader.
Tolerance of a certain amount of ambiguity is an index of health. Not everything goes our way, and we can’t control every situation that we would like. No matter how well you prepare, you will sometimes be late or get the wrong answer or have to deal with unfairness. It is reasonable to want to control every situation, but there are disappointments in life, and if an inability to tolerate ambiguity leads you to define a disappointment as being tragic when a situation spins out of your control, your response is likely to cause you emotional pain as well as not leading to a productive adjustment.
Do an honest assessment of yourself and your ability to tolerate ambiguity. If you see yourself as an individual who is too rigid to adjust to situations that you are unable to control, recognize that we are dealing with a behavior – and behaviors can be changed. You may not want to deal with ambiguity very much, but it’s a good skill to have – as it can make many situations more tolerable, and maybe even fun.
