Your Attitude Is Showing: A Primer of Human Relations, Tenth Edition

Permitting Others to Turn You into a Victim

When people are unfortunate and become victims of automobile accidents or needless crimes, they often pay a high price. The consequences can be similarly serious when we become human-relations victims. Consider the following:

• Statistically, only a small percentage of people become direct victims of serious crime. Everyone eventually becomes a victim of a damaged relationship.

• Financial loss due to robbery, fraud, or physical injury can be high. So can the loss of a career opportunity that results from unrepaired relationships.

• The emotional and psychological damage of being a human-relations victim can sometimes be as traumatic as being a victim of crime. Becoming a victim of a damaged relationship can ...