There are queues at petrol stations, and there is a claim that some selfish punters are stockpiling fuel in jerry cans. This has made panic a common word for the UK's supply chain crisis. Clifford Stott, a social psychologist, says that something else is happening
Although the fuel crisis that broke out last month was caused by a shortage in HGV drivers, panic buying has been blamed for most of the media headlines and ministerial interviews since. Whatever the cause, it seems that panic buying by the public is what is responsible for the current crisis. If we all calmed down, it would disappear. Grant Shapps, the transport secretary, said that the crisis was a manufactured one and told Sky News: If people continue to buy petrol when they don't need it, then there will be queues. We appeal to everyone to be sensible.
This argument is so common that it is almost unremarkable. There is another viewpoint and there is substantial evidence to support it. Professor Clifford Stott is a Keele University social psychologist and member of Sages advisory committee on public behavior. He has spent his entire career studying the behaviour of crowds in person and online. He believes that panic-like descriptions of large groups reacting to stressful circumstances in a panicked manner are inaccurate. In fact, people work well together and can think about the best way to deal with the situation.
Stott states that there is no evidence of stockpiling in the current fuel crisis. Instead, Stott claims, the system has failed to meet the demands of people who need petrol every day. When panic is used to describe this behavior, those responsible for our infrastructure are easily blamed on those who depend on it.
Rachel Humphreys speaks with Stott in this episode about his ideas. He also discusses why panic is so prevalent in our thinking about shortage crises. Stott also discusses how a shift in mindset might help to address such problems in the future. He also explains why some politicians continue to believe a theory that is clearly false.
Archive: Reuters.
