Culture

Life after coronavirus: will we emerge as better people?

Unthinkable: The crisis may make us less consumerist, says psychologist Bruce Hood

Cognitive scientist Bruce Hood: “Non-essential goals seem increasingly hollow” against the backdrop of Covid-19. Photograph: United Agents

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Joe Humphreys
Thu Apr 9 2020 - 05:00

The scaling back of economic activity in recent weeks has given us a glimpse of an alternative reality. Unpolluted skies, car-free streets and the disappearance of conspicuous consumption are things that were unimaginable – until the coronavirus pandemic came along.

"I think we might come out of it a much better people," says President Michael D Higgins. "There will be a wonderful opportunity to do things better."

Economists are forecasting not just a recession but a change in buying habits during the recovery period. Some believe that, having suppressed our materialist ways, we will be reluctant to go back to carefree spending – even if governments try to incentivise it.

Nothing is guaranteed, says psychologist Bruce Hood, but "I believe the crisis has us more mindful of the fragility of life and the need to spend our precious time more carefully."

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As we face the extreme loss of life and livelihoods, non-essential goals seem increasingly hollow

His recently-published book Possessed: Why We Want More Than We Need (Allen Lane) is the perfect manifesto for the post-Covid-19 world, setting out the science behind our obsession with accumulating stuff while also highlighting its ultimate futility.

“Ownership may be in our nature, but it is not in our best interests. We need to exorcise this possession,” he writes.

Recent weeks have produced mixed evidence of spiritual maturation. On the one hand, there has been panic buying – a “natural” but counterproductive response to the crisis, says Hood. On the other hand, there has been a realignment of priorities and this gives him hope. Hood explains further as this week’s Unthinkable guest.

How do you explain the sudden panic buying over Covid-19?

“People panic when they enter the ‘fight, flight or freeze’ mode – ways of coping. It leads to confrontation, aggression and competition with acute anxiety about escalating perceived threat. These are autonomic responses that are evolved deep in our evolutionary past but continue to shape our behaviour in the modern world.

“In the case of stockpiling, people are trying to deal with the perceived threat of shortages by making sure that they have more than enough. Even those who do not consider themselves as panic buying are contributing to the problem by just adding a few more things to the shopping cart in a phenomenon known as the ‘tragedy of the commons’.

“This is why the enforced shopping quotas on what you can buy are necessary to prevent the collapse of the distribution system.”

Does an obsession with ownership rise at a time of crisis?

“I am not sure that there is a lot of evidence here but you might predict different patterns depending on whether individuals see themselves as independent or part of a collective group.

“It appears that when individuals identify with a group they shift from being self-focused to more group-focused. I believe this is what we will witness over the coming months. At least, that is what I am hoping for.

“There will always be selfish individuals who do not contribute and even exploit the situation, but eventually they will be ostracised and penalised by the group.”

Does the crisis show that no one has full ownership of their own body?

“If you think about it, ownership controls our movements – where you can and cannot go. Land property and trespassing are enacted by laws.

“In the current crisis, our movements are restricted and if needs be, under the total control of the state. They even have to power to take land and property away. Thus, ownership is a convention that is agreed upon by society and policymakers.”

Some commentators believe the crisis will help to reboot society’s values and start a shift away from consumerism. Is that too optimistic a view?

“I think that relentless consumerism is a core component of the crisis that we are currently enduring as well as the one that our planet faces in terms of climate change. The current crisis is a pandemic – a global epidemic. In the past, infectious diseases spread rapidly in highly condensed populations but these were largely restricted to isolated groups because we did not travel as much.

“Today, however, travel is a cheap form of non-essential consumerism. I am sure that Covid-19 would have escaped out of China in any event, but I expect history will show that it transmitted quickly through those undertaking non-essential travel.

“A second impact of the crisis is to change our priorities. Many of the goals that we pursued in the past were linked to consumerism – business – accumulation of wealth and so on. But, as I argued in Possessed, we want more than we need because, as a highly social animal, we have deep-seated drives to be accepted and respected in a group.

“Those with the wealth to consume are admired and we are all susceptible to the desire to be admired or accepted, which is why advertising often sells us stuff we don’t need because we are made to feel inadequate unless we buy their products.

“Material possessions are a way of demonstrating our status and so we consume to signal our success. However, I think that as we face the extreme loss of life and livelihoods, these non-essential goals seem increasingly hollow.

“As the basic necessities to survive become scarce, we will appreciate what is, and is not, important.

“Then there is the inevitable unemployment and world recession which will impact on every family because even the wealthiest need a relatively stable world economic structure for their wealth to be of value. I expect many businesses will fail, especially in the holiday industry.

“After painting such a dire picture, I remain optimistic. We have been through one major pandemic 100 years ago and we will get through this one too. But, there are still greater crises to overcome. ..

“Humanity may have been given a precious opportunity to change for the better so that our children have a brighter world. Ultimately, that is why all of us are here but somehow we lost sight of that.”

***

Ask a sage:

Are humans inherently selfish?

Adam Smith replies: "Man naturally desires, not only to be loved, but to be lovely."

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