The External Locus of Blame: How Casting Responsibility
Outward Fractures the Self
There is a particular pattern I’ve watched unfold in people
over the years, friends, strangers, family, and sometimes even in myself. It’s
the reflexive habit of placing blame anywhere but within. A kind of
psychological sleight of hand where the mind says, “This isn’t my fault,” even
when the evidence points directly back to the self.
This is the external locus of blame: the tendency to assign responsibility for one’s problems, failures, and emotional reactions to other people, circumstances, or fate itself. And while it may feel protective in the moment, it quietly erodes a person’s ability to grow, understand themselves, or live with any real sense of agency.
