In 2013 stories emerged of gangs stealing plasma TV screens to use to make street drugs. It’s a myth, but it tells us something about South Africa’s social anxieties.
Social media platforms can be put to great use when it comes to promoting sexual health. But invoking threats and fear limits information reach and impact.
The majority of front page reports were negative in tone, seeing very little possibility for individual agency and self-efficacy. This can amplify public anxiety and fear.
The strong disapproval of the South African government’s handling of the pandemic is a warning that crafting persuasive pro-vaccine messages is not enough.
Despite moments of hope, worries about the present and fears that the future may be even worse have been rising for decades. What can geopolitics teach us about the global impact of fear?
Irrational behaviour during difficult circumstances is rooted in deeper cognitive and evolutionary psychological mechanisms. Many reflect what are called emergency decision and purchasing contexts.
Fear is very much a part of humans’ survival. Demagogues and others who want to manipulate have learned that this human trait can be exploited, often with disastrous consequences.