nonvegans think differently than vegans

Some vegans watch Earthlings or Meet Your Meat and go vegan overnight, but most vegans went vegan slowly. I've long believed that the path most vegans arrive at veganism - the path that begins with reducing or eliminated consumption of mammals and then extends to birds and then to sea creatures and then extends beyond flesh to milk and eggs - is a path that follows a natural or logical progression of empathy extending out from our own kind to those who are similar to us.

That is, it is common for humans to feel some empathy for cats, dogs, dolphins, horses, rabbits and other mammals like cows and pigs. Some people act on that empathy by eating only certain types of animals that they think of as dissimilar to humans (such as chickens or fishes). Some people act on that empathy by eating only animals who have been treated according to certain "humane" standards. Vegetarians extend the empathy and choose not to eat animal flesh. Vegans extend that empathy to reach all sentient species and refrain from intentional and unnecessary harm to them.

But what gets someone who cares about animal suffering to make the leap into veganism?


A recent study on empathy compared omnivores, vegetarians, and vegans. The study looked at the brains of vegans and nonvegans while showing them images of human and animal suffering. Among other findings, they discovered "a distinctive pattern of empathic response and emotional control in vegans."

"while omnivores are characterized by a greater activation of the bilateral posterior MTG during both human and animal negative valence scenes, vegetarians and vegans have constantly an higher engagement of empathy related areas while observing negative scenes, independently of the species of the individuals involved" [...]

"Collectively, our results reveal that distinct brain responses are evoked by emotionally significant pictures of humans and animals in people with vegetarian and vegan feeding habits, as well as between vegetarians and vegans, suggesting that different motivational factors might underlie their preferences and moral attitudes."

What can a vegan advocate learn from this? The take-away, as I see it, is that nonvegans think differently than vegans. We don't just have different beliefs, habits, education, resources, etc. though we may have those, too; we literally process the knowledge of others' suffering differently. We literally think about animal suffering differently than omnivores.

Hence, if we want to effectively advocate for animals, we can't rely solely on the reasoning that is most compelling to us. Nonvegans don't think like us. So we must include discussions that appeal to nonvegans. We must find ways to encourage animal rights that fit into nonvegans' paradigms.

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Crossposted at Vegan Soapbox

10 Animal Activist Tips

From The Vegan Dietitian, my thoughts interspersed in italics:

1. Try to understand the public’s current thinking and where it could be encouraged to go tomorrow. Above all, keep in touch with reality. Activists sometimes lose their feel for what the average person in the street might think, and this impacts their ability to know what is possible right now.

I think that's true. But I think a better suggestion is to simply ask people what they think and start from there because it can be insulting to assume someone knows nothing about the issues. If you treat everyone the same and relate to them like they all have the same ideas, it's extremely easy to be insulting or offensive.

I am constantly annoyed by activists who try to have the conversation with me - preaching to choir - without even asking what I think first.

2. Select a target on the basis of vulnerabilities to public opinion, the intensity of suffering, and the opportunities for change.

3. Set goals that are achievable. Bring about meaningful change one step at a time. Raising awareness is not enough. When Henry took on his first campaign, the anti-vivisection movement had no goal other than raising awareness in the hopes that this would bring about total abolition of animal experimentation. Henry noted “I want to abolish the use of animals as much as anybody else, but I say, let’s do what we can do today and then do more tomorrow.” He looked at successes as stepping stones toward bigger targets and more significant victories.

Realistic goals are HUGE! If you try to do too much too soon, you'll burn out.

4. Establish credible sources of information and documentation. Never assume anything.

Credible sources are great, but we all have different ideas of what that means. It's not so simple.
A better idea, IMO, is to stick to one subject at a time. Become an expert on the topic and use all kinds of sources. Be careful about your language and don't claim something as fact if you can't back it up with a source that others would perceive as credible, but don't ignore the effective sources just because some people don't think they're credible. For example, celebrity.

5. Don’t divide the world into saints and sinners. Henry said “People can change. I used to eat animals and I never considered myself a cannibal.”

You can divide between the sin and the sinner.
People are good. Their actions sometimes aren't.

Another similar concept: Be quick to forgive.

6. Seek dialogue and attempt to work together to solve problems. Position issues as problems with solutions. Present realistic alternatives.

Remember that what you see as realistic won't be the same as what they consider realistic.

7. Be ready for confrontation if your target is unresponsive. If accepted channels don’t work, prepare an escalating public awareness campaign to place your adversary on the defensive.

Said another way: Have a plan B.

8. Avoid bureaucracy.

9. Don’t assume that only legislation or legal action can solve the problem.

Laws should work in tandem with other activism.

10. Ask yourself: “Will it work?”

Then be honest. And get input from others.

On Being Radical

Noah Lewis explains why it's important for vegans to talk about honey:

If we think our ideas are too radical to be accepted, the solution is not to water them down to make them more appealing, but rather to present our ideas that are even more radical. [...]

Rather than retreating as society changes, social movements like veganism need to keep in front of it. [...]

Only by being "radical" animal rights activists can we actually create social change. Our movement need not to pander to what people already believe in order to succeed. By simply articulating and implementing our alternative vision its wild fullness, the radical becomes the mundane, and the world shifts by our presence.

The Six Principles of Persuasion

In the book Influence by Robert B. Cialdini, six principles of persuasion are listed. Here they are:

1. Reciprocation
2. Commitment and Consistency
3. Social Proof
4. Liking
5. Authority
6. Scarcity

For a more in-depth review of the principles, read the book and also read the rest of this website :)

Stages of Change

The Stages of Change were touched on briefly in Knowing Our Audience. Let's go more into depth on this subject...

Here's an overview of the stages:

1. Precontemplation is the stage at which there is no intention to change behavior in the foreseeable future. Many individuals in this stage are unaware or underaware of their problems.
2. Contemplation is the stage in which people are aware that a problem exists and are seriously thinking about overcoming it but have not yet made a commitment to take action.
3. Preparation is a stage that combines intention and behavioral criteria. Individuals in this stage are intending to take action in the next month and have unsuccessfully taken action in the past year.
4. Action is the stage in which individuals modify their behavior, experiences, or environment in order to overcome their problems. Action involves the most overt behavioral changes and requires considerable commitment of time and energy.
5. Maintenance is the stage in which people work to prevent relapse and consolidate the gains attained during action.
   

An article about sticking to New Year's resolutions describes the change process:

"In this model, change occurs gradually and relapses are an inevitable part of the process of making a lifelong change. People are often unwilling or resistant to change during the early stages, but eventually develop a proactive and committed approach to changing a behavior."

Most vegans get to a point where they "gave in" and ate the cheese (or the sausage or whatever). They feel guilty and wonder if they can be vegan again. These people need encouragement. Of course they can get right back up on the wagon and be vegan again! Relapses "are an inevitable part of the process," remember?

Moreover, the presence of a few ex-vegans is not necessarily a sign of our movement reversing course, as some might say, but rather is simply a normal, natural process of change wherein some relapses occur. Over all, we're making great progress. For example:

• "Nearly one-quarter of Americans say that they sometimes go meatless at restaurants" ... "10% of consumers say they largely follow vegetarian-inclined diets and 5% more are “definitely interested” in shifting to vegetarian-based diets in the future." (source)
• “2008 per capita [meat] consumption stands to be at the lowest point in seven years” (source)
• “The [poultry] industry has never cut production to this degree before, but demand for chicken has never contracted to this degree either,” (source)
• "Fishermen are hurting and quitting the business" (source)
• "demand for dairy products is stalling amid a global economic slowdown and credit crisis, even as supplies have increased."(source)
• "[Americans] have become less accepting of medical testing on animals, and the use of animal fur for clothing" (source)
• "A quarter of Americans say animals deserve the same rights as humans, while almost all of the rest agree that animals should be given some protection from harm and exploitation."
• "38% of Americans express support for the idea of banning horse and dog racing altogether" (source)

More to come on this topic of "Stages of Change"... stay tuned.

Best Selling Animal-Friendly Books

The Amazon sales ranking is an indication of how many copies a book has sold. Let's compare the rankings for some animal rights books. Perhaps from there we can draw a conclusion about what kinds of books are more appealing, and thus what kinds of animal rights arguments are most persuasive, or at least what kinds of animal rights arguments are most well known:

1. Vegan Freak: Being Vegan in a Non-Vegan World by Bob Torres & Jenna Torres
   #22,225 in All Books, #1 in Animal Rights
2. Redemption: The Myth of Pet Overpopulation and the No Kill Revolution in America by Nathan J. Winograd
   #23,881 in All Books, #2 in Animal Rights
3. Bottomfeeder: How to Eat Ethically in a World of Vanishing Seafood by Taras Grescoe
   #25,531 in Books, #3 in Animal Rights
4. Animal Liberation by Peter Singer
   #27,212 in All Books, #4 in Animal Rights
5. Meat Market: Animals, Ethics, and Money by Erik Marcus
   #28,745 in All Books, #5 in Animal Rights
6. Nim Chimpsky: The Chimp Who Would Be Human by Elizabeth Hess
   #32,209 in All Books, #6 in Animal Rights
7. Best Friends: The True Story of the World's Most Beloved Animal Sanctuary by Samantha Glen
   #36,253 in Books, #8 in Animal Rights
8. Thanking the Monkey: Rethinking the Way We Treat Animals by Karen Dawn
   #41,392 in All Books, #9 in Animal Rights
9. Dominion: The Power of Man, the Suffering of Animals, and the Call to Mercy by Matthew Scully
   #54,405 in All Books, #14 in Animal Rights
10. Making A Killing: The Political Economy of Animal Rights by Bob Torres
    #117,099 in All Books, #33 in Animal Rights
11. Striking at the Roots: A Practical Guide to Animal Activism by Mark Hawthorne
    #264,227 in All Books, #72 in Animal Rights
12. The Case for Animal Rights by Tom Regan
    #290,776 in Books, #80 in Animal Rights

Some basic "genres" of thought from the list above:

• Theory: Animal Liberation, Making a Killing, The Case for Animal Rights, Dominion
  
• Practical: Striking at the Roots, Bottomfeeder, Vegan Freak
• Stories: Best Friends, Nim Chimpsky
  

But take a look at this:

1. Skinny Bitch by Kim Barnouin & Rory Freedman
   #131 in All Books, not listed in Animal Rights section
2. The Food Revolution: How Your Diet Can Help Save Your Life and Our World by John Robbins
   #15,316 in All Books, not listed in Animal Rights section

Even though these 'diet' books are in the food section, they have a clear animal rights and environmental perspective. And they SELL BETTER.

Regardless of what is most compelling for us personally, we ought to be aware of the other perspectives, particularly if they're more popular. This way we can tailor our discussions and activism for the audience.