Understand the phenomenon of “desensitization” or “habituation,” which affects everything from our personal lives to our perception of world events.
When someone talks about “normalizing” something in 2024, they usually mean it in a good way.
On social media and beyond, I’ve seen calls to normalize everything from mothers’ bodies after giving birth to talking about mental health at work. The idea, of course, is to break these taboos, which can be useless and even dangerous.
But there is another type of normalization, which many people are not aware of. It is less conscious and more pernicious. And it can be harmful.
It is the normalization of trends, situations and events that, in fact, should not be considered “normal” at all. It can also be called “desensitization” or “habituation”.
Let’s take the wars in Ukraine and the Gaza Strip as an example.
The tragic events that occurred at the beginning of the conflicts were new and unexpected. These events capture the mind’s attention, as psychologists know.
Time has passed, media coverage continues, but these events now occupy less space in the headlines of many countries. And they also don’t appear as frequently in conversations.
Unfortunately, research indicates that when a war lasts months or years, each week of fighting has less impact than the week before.
And this desensitization also applies to our daily lives.
Urban youth who grow up side by side with violence, for example, are more likely to end up thinking that violence is normal. And people expressed more anxiety about Covid-19 when the death toll was low than when the death toll reached hundreds of thousands.
One particularly interesting study showed that people living in countries more exposed to the negative impacts of climate change believe that climate change poses fewer risks.
Other research has shown that we can even habituate our negative behavior.
When the volunteers lied repeatedly to get more money, their lies got bigger and bigger over the course of the experiment, activating the parts of the brain associated with emotions less and less.
The researchers concluded that the more we do something, even if we know it’s wrong, the less uncomfortable we feel.
In other words, just be exposed to anything for long enough and everything will normalize. Even if it’s something bad.
Of course, there are benefits to this process. To some extent, human beings need to adapt to new circumstances and situations, no matter how difficult they are.
Our species probably would not have gotten very far if we remained in a perpetual state of shock and anxiety or, at the very least, would not have developed the emotional capacity to imagine, create, and solve problems. But there are also some very obvious pitfalls.
For starters, this adaptability may be part of the reason why humans have difficulty dealing with what sociologists call “slow violence”: catastrophes that unfold slowly without seeming urgent. This makes it difficult to recognize the losses caused, which are only noticed months or even years later.
Just think of the decades that passed from chemical waste thrown into the Mississippi River, in the United States, until the creation of the so-called “cancer corridor” in the region. Another example is the increase in global carbon emissions.
This process can also perpetuate a vicious cycle. The study on violence in cities, for example, concluded that participants were more likely to commit violence if they thought it was normal.
And there are also more complex issues that can be damaged. If, for example, people don’t believe that climate change is a major problem, why should they be motivated to do anything about it?
If people’s awareness of humanitarian disasters weakens, will they still be willing to share their concerns with governments or donate to charities?
How normalization occurs
When it comes to media consumption, two important questions arise:
How can coverage of a specific topic prevent the public from being desensitized? And, as a smart, informed consumer of information, how can you follow the news with confidence that you won’t run the same risk?
Researchers have studied how repeated exposure to the same news affects consumers. One study concluded, for example, that news consumers may be irritated by coverage and even avoid it if they perceive it to be repetitive.
The reason isn’t just because viewers want novelty, according to researchers. In fact, people can get very angry when they realize that nothing is getting better.
“Some users are particularly negative about the lack of progress and the extensive and sustained coverage of the issue – which, in part, may involve the same political actors involved,” the researchers say.
This problem is worrying. There are several issues that cannot be ignored, otherwise we will protect the status quo and the authorities responsible for the situation.
Imagine how many companies and governments could reduce their actions to fight climate change, for example, if no one talked about the issue.
Ironically, this may mean that the more little progress leaders make on a given issue, the more upset people will be when they hear about it. And, in theory, this could mean that the topic receives less and less news coverage and that the pressure for any progress would also disappear.
Finally, there is another problem, very common when we observe reports of other people suffering: if we are very distressed by what we observe, we may feel burnt and move away from coverage as a whole.
How to avoid desensitization
What can we do about it? How can we follow the news without being overwhelmed or desensitized?
How can we keep up with the many issues facing the world today, finding a balance that allows us to move forward, but without accepting them as something “normal”?
When it comes to consuming news, researchers suggest doing so consciously – for example at specific times – when we feel suffocated by a particular crisis.
Since news is important, I would also suggest, to stay well informed, making sure your news offering is diverse.
Even if there’s a specific topic or crisis you want to know more about, expand your horizons beyond the same source or even the same type of media.
If you follow the war in the Gaza Strip, don’t just read headlines about the most pressing developments. Seek out foreign policy analysis and first-person accounts, watch documentaries, listen to audiobooks, and read poetry.
And, above all, follow the points of view of both sides in the war.
It is also important to remember to put events in perspective. Remember that thinking long term brings a different perspective on the present.
It may be important to look at the past and try to understand how we got here, replacing some of the daily news coverage, for example, with history books or documentaries.
Or you can look ahead: What might this problem mean for the future? To do this, look for analysis on what our current decisions might mean in one, 100, or even a thousand years.
What about our tendency to adapt to the circumstances that most directly affect us, even those that we should not simply accept as “normal”?
The first step is to recognize that this habituation is a fact. Take a moment to reflect on the things you’ve become accustomed to, at home, in your community, or in your country, that you actually wish weren’t normal.
Only then can you plan your actions. Some researchers suggest associating “slow violence” with “slow resistance” or “slow nonviolence.” This includes progressive daily actions, as simple as sharing knowledge on a certain topic.
The researchers in charge of the study on the habituation of advantageous lies also suggest establishing an emotional distance from the circumstances to observe them with new eyes.
If something you don’t like about your country starts to seem “normal” to you, try talking to someone who lives elsewhere, read about how the same problem is addressed in other countries, or even travel abroad if you can. .
I would also argue that if a particular issue is important to you today, don’t believe that you will have the same emotional commitment in a month or a year. Therefore, turn the action into a habit.
Put it on your calendar to regularly take five minutes to write to your political representatives, for example. Or plan a recurring monthly donation to an organization that represents a cause you care about, instead of giving piecemeal as the reason arises.
Research indicates that taking action on a stressful topic reduces the likelihood of experiencing burnout on that topic.
And above all, keep in mind that from the global slave trade to… racial discrimination There are countless horrific situations in South Africa that seem entrenched and impossible to change for decades and even centuries. And this, at various times, would have seemed like the “new normal”.
But eventually they changed. And even those circumstances in which we do not want to be part of the future, ours or our children’s, can change.
*Amanda Ruggeri is a science journalist and award-winning feature film author. She writes about know-how, media literacy and more on her Instagram account @mandyruggeri.
Read the original version of this report (in English).
Source: Terra
Ben Stock is a lifestyle journalist and author at Gossipify. He writes about topics such as health, wellness, travel, food and home decor. He provides practical advice and inspiration to improve well-being, keeps readers up to date with latest lifestyle news and trends, known for his engaging writing style, in-depth analysis and unique perspectives.
