Stealing (copying) directly from Science News: Why some chaos-seekers just want to watch the world burn
This article is an interview with political scientist Kevin Arceneaux of the research university Sciences Po in Paris, France. In it, he and the author Sujata Gupta discuss this very relevant aspect of human behavior. Arceneaux helps us understand why populism is rising and what drives it, the roots of the dissatisfaction of a population which already has a better standard of living than most people on earth today.
Perceived status loss can trigger some people to seek chaos as a solution, studies show
“Chaos is a strategy that some people use to account for a perceived loss in status,” says political scientist Kevin Arceneaux of the research university Sciences Po in Paris, France. “Their reaction to that is to then start to create trouble, as a way to turn the cart on its head and try to reclaim their place.”
Most people prefer order, Arceneaux says. But about 15 percent of the U.S. population gravitates toward chaos, or “a desire for a new beginning through the destruction of order and established structures,” Arceneaux and his team reported in 2021 in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B. The team reached that conclusion after developing a scale to measure people’s desire for chaos. Some 5,000 Americans rated their level of agreement with statements such as, “I think society should be burned to the ground,” “I get a kick when natural disasters strike foreign countries” and “Sometimes I just feel like destroying beautiful things.”
Makes me think of adolescent behavior where some act out by creating chaos in their lives and the lives of those around them.