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Image by Siouxsie Wiles and Toby Morris https://thespinoff.co.nz/society/09-03-2020/the-three-phases-of-covid-19-and-how-we-can-make-it-manageable/ |
Of course there is. Here’s a
podcast about Coronavirus Anxiety, already a little dated, perhaps
tragically so. Worldwide, it seems that anxiety is having more impact than disease
symptoms, and lots of articles have attempted to explain why. Too much
information from unreliable sources leads to ambiguity, and this has fuelled anxiety
this time round, and at least in the early stages, is thought to have led to increases
in racist behaviour, according to Ashley Abramson.
Another article in Forbes agrees that uncertainty is key to the impact of this
pandemic, and is responsible for the unusual panic we’ve seen all round the
world. Panic-buying seems to be the thing this time round, and there’s some
good discussions on it (and other aspects) on the BPS the
Psychologist website – for example, go and look at a discussion of panic-buying
as a kind of self-fulfilling prophecy: once the media report panic-buying,
people go and panic-buy.
There is an evolutionary explanation for this, though,
and this National
Geographic post describes the amygdala as the emotional centre of the
brain, arguing that it kicks in and takes over when a threat appears and a clear
solution is not easily available. Buying that seems hasty and irrational is really
a normal attempt to reassert control over the situation, one that we are more
likely to resort to under conditions of uncertainty, or after prolonged
exposure to stress.
In fact, this article argues,
the rush to buy toilet paper after the media report is best understood not even
as panic at all, but rather a reflection of an increased sense of shared
identity: an increased sense of bonding to our neighbourhood, coupled with our
awareness that supplies of antiseptic wipes, toilet paper, and dried pasta are
running low in the supermarket means that we’re following the norm, not panicking.
There’s a longer BBC article about the psychology of panic-buying here,
if you want to understand it in more detail.
Looking after ourselves and preventing social isolation
We’ve been reminded to look after ourselves, and there are
plenty of suggestions on how and why to do this. There’s even a behavioural
insights unit currently working with the UK
government on ways to influence people in desired ways and we’ll know more
about that soon. Of primary concern seems to be the potential for social isolation,
which was not really the goal of social distancing: we’re supposed to be
distancing ourselves physically, but that doesn’t need to mean exposing
ourselves to the dangers of loneliness.
A
review of over 3000 studies into the psychological effects of quarantine
suggests the most common are post-traumatic stress symptoms, confusion, and
anger. This review also identified key problematic features of the quarantine situation
as financial loss, frustration and boredom, fear of infection and of infecting
others, and inadequate supplies or information.
For those in the self-isolation now,
New
Zealand’s Mental Health Foundation suggests limiting exposure to news,
seeking contact with others, noticing more of what is around you, and spending
more time in nature. Similar advice is available from Mind
UK, with a note that, as much as handwashing is important, those prone to
anxiety might need to limit how much time they spend doing it. A detailed
explanation of why encouraging people to sing songs while washing, for example,
is a problem for some OCD sufferers, is available here. If you’re wondering why you should limit your exposure to news, this
article from the Psychologist explains some reasons, such as our tendency
to go foggy when faced with too many details and instead pay attention to our
emotional reaction – to how it feels instead of what it says. There’s more on this kind of bias
at Psychology
Today and about probability neglect here. The American
Psychological Association is briefer in their advice, but reminds us that
communicating with children is an important responsibility, and plenty of advice is around about how to do it.
Lots of people – kids, students, employees – have been sent
home, and the decision-makers behind this have a responsibility to make the
welfare of those people top priority. Matt East, CEO and Founder of GTS Alive
Group, even suggests managers should aim to increase
opportunities for soft, peer to peer contact
when sending workers home. Schools and universities sending students home need
to remember that online
courses are more effective with opportunities for good quality interpersonal interactions,
and all of us need to remember that the absence of social interactions
is harmful at any point in the lifespan (see some work
to remedy this with older people), leading to lack of
engagement with online courses and in general, among adolescents, an increased
risk of depression and even suicide. Home is not always an easy place to be,
and not all homes are safe, well stocked for meals, or wifi-enabled. And we
must care for educators at home too: this
article encourages self-care for educators, with a reminder, for example,
not to compare too closely with colleagues or others on the internet who are acing
this home-working lark.
So is there a theme to what psychology says about Covid-19?
It seems the two strands so far are these:
- Widespread anxiety is causing people to behave in ways that can be understood and explained
- We must look after ourselves so that we don’t suffer the damaging psychological effects of social isolation in our attempts to achieve social distance.
Running additions:
March 30th: Russ Harris, psychotherapist and ACT guru, has produced this practical guide covering steps you can take to "FACE Covid"
March 30th: Russ Harris, psychotherapist and ACT guru, has produced this practical guide covering steps you can take to "FACE Covid"
Alan Law, PhD