Monday, January 10, 2022

The Fear Pandemic

It’s important that we recognize what are real threats and when fear is being sold to us

By André van Heerden, Communications Director

The other day I saw a commercial for disinfectant wipes where two ladies in a restaurant watch in horror as a little boy puts his face against a plexiglass partition that separates one booth from another.

I’m guessing that most of us have at some point seen children leaning over restaurant seats or pressing their face up against windows. I’ve always enjoyed interacting with kids when they do this and getting a laugh or a smile in return. I remember my own children doing it and others smiling or waving back to them.

What struck me about this commercial was how it was selling its product through fear and how in the current pandemic world, we’re meant to be horrified by certain actions that kids have always done.

And fear isn’t just being used to sell products. It’s also being used to sell the news and either drive conflict or popular opinions.

Two recent headlines caught my eye: “I’m not boosted and I’m scared” and “Diabetes is a ‘pandemic of unprecedented magnitude,’ and experts fear COVID-19 may make it worse.”

Both headlines are selling the story through fear, and the media has been making the most of the pandemic for two years now.

A BBC article notes that “rarely has the threat of disease occupied so much of our thinking. Almost every newspaper has stories about the coronavirus pandemic on its front page; radio and TV programmes have back-to-back coverage on the latest death tolls; and depending on who you follow, social media platforms are filled with frightening statistics, practical advice, or gallows humour.”

But such coverage and such a promotion of fear comes with consequences.

The same BBC article writes, “As others have already reported, this constant bombardment can result in heightened anxiety, with immediate effects on our mental health. But the constant feeling of threat may have other, more insidious, effects on our psychology.

“Due to some deeply evolved responses to disease, fears of contagion lead us to become more conformist and tribalistic, and less accepting of eccentricity. Our moral judgements become harsher and our social attitudes more conservative when considering issues such as immigration or sexual freedom and equality. Daily reminders of disease may even sway our political affiliations.”

Similarly, a McGill University study found that “worries and anxiety over the COVID-19 pandemic can impair basic cognitive functions, leading to poorer decision making, delays in mental processing speed, and alteration of the perception of risk.”

A National Post article supports this study’s findings and notes that “polls keep showing that the public believes COVID-19 disease is way deadlier and more pervasive than it really is.”

This could lead many to not accept when the risks are really past. Just think about going swimming after watching the movie Jaws. Fear has an unpleasant clingy way of staying with us far longer than other emotions.

Fear, like all of our emotions, serves a purpose. Without a healthy fear of cars we might walk out into traffic. Without a healthy fear of heights we might ignore the risks of falling. Without a fear of embarrassment or fear of losing our jobs we might do something inappropriate at work.

But an unhealthy fear of these things would lead us to never cross a road, never venture past the first floor of a building, or never speak up.

You might be worried about computer viruses. There are a lot of them out there. The very best way to avoid getting a computer virus is to never use your computer. But then what would be the point of having it in the first place?

It’s important that we recognize what are real threats and when fear is being sold to us. And to also measure our fears against what we really enjoy and love about work and life.

No matter what I’m being sold, I don’t want to ever be frightened of kids being kids.

The Fear Pandemic

You might be interested in