“Learned helplessness”, Manufactured Fear & the "Risk Society": Concerns for Security and Risk Management Professionals.

Social sciences and psychology are significant factors for the application of security sciences and security risk management professionals. 

They influence both our benefactors (the people we protect from harm) and our adversary (those that seek to gain or cause harm).

We are not neutral in this equation either. 

Learned helplessness is one of many factors to consider and integrate into security risk evaluations and strategy. 

Consider this:

A child may search for 30 minutes to find the remote control to the television. 

This is in part because in their lifetime; they have never had to walk over to a television screen and adjust the volume, channel or even turn the device on or off, using buttons affixed to the television. 

Many still don’t know this is an option. 

Conversely, they many never have ever seen anyone use anything other than the remote control to manipulate the television. 

This is just one of the many ways learned behaviour renders people and groups “helpless”, which is then amplified in times of emergency or crisis. 

Research and studies into this area have also found that people and animals can be manipulated, conditioned and even punished into developing similar “learned helplessness”.

Tired of innovations? Learned helplessness and fatigue in the context of continuous streams of innovation implementation

Theoretical framework of innovation implementation based on the stream of continuous innovation processes (Chung, et al., 2017)

What is learned helplessness?

How many of you have been repeatedly prevented, obstructed or even disciplined from doing something you saw as necessary, only to be discouraged or also sanctioned for even attempting the task? (See: response initiation deficit, (Maier, 2014))

Consider how that takes place every day in our communities and work environments. 

People, employees, and even management have developed many “learned helplessness” (LH) traits that become amplified in times of emergency or disaster. 

"People suffering from LH accept that bad things will take place and they will have little control over them. Those who are exposed to complex problems for an extended period learn that responses and events are unconnected. Learning attained in this situation weakens imminent learning and leads to inactivity. Consequently, they will be unsuccessful to resolve any concern even if there is a possible solution for the concern." (Nuvvula, 2016)

Making the job of security risk management, crisis management, and business continuity even more difficult. 

Many of you know this as I do because it is you and your department that is then overwhelmed with “routine” requests and demands that more resourceful and resilient individuals or businesses, that would have in the past,  self-managed or had the skills and patience to help themselves. 

Annual “nuisance” calls to 911, 000 or the respective emergency services number in your country reveals this to be a growing concern.

Emergency services are our forward radar for the public’s learned helplessness, which then becomes a corporate burden. 

Emergency services are continually overburdened with non-emergency requests thanks in part to learned helplessness. 

Medical emergency departments are equally overburdened with non-emergency treatment requests and demands. 

Poor problem-solving skills and ability are just part of the cognitive restructuring requirements. 

For example, learning that when your phone runs out of charge, it is not the end of the world. 

Even in challenging or threatening conditions. 

It is a thankless task and often a cause of resistance or conflict, but increasingly, security risk management professionals must address and assist in capacity building within our communities and organisations. 

Look around you. 

Take note. 

How many behaviours or actions do you see daily that result from “learned helplessness”?

How can you make your business and your people more resilient and resourceful? 

Don’t forget though; you may have your learned helplessness traits too. 

Paradoxically, many individuals and departments within the security and risk management sector are hyper resilient and resourceful, because of past vocations, conditioning or being the first and last resort call for the growing number of “helpless” individuals and organisations. 

"Under conditions of growing interconnectedness of the global economy, more and more stakeholders are exposed to risks and costs resulting from business activities that are neither regulated nor compensated for by means of national governance. The changing distribution risks poses a threat to the legitimacy of business firms that normally derive their legitimacy from operating in compliance with the legal rules of democratic nation states." (Schneider and Scherer, 2012)

The emergence and creation of a majority through learned helplessness may then be considered as the manifestation of the 'risk society'.

"Accordingly the political potential of the risk society must be elaborated and analyzed in a sociological theory of the origin and diffusion of knowledge about risks." (Beck, 1992)

The oxygen or fuel for such grow is commonly referred to as FUD (Fear Uncertainty and Doubt).

FUD has become the currency of the media and news outlets (governments at time also) that at times seeks to stun communities into inaction or fear of everything as there seems to be a new reason not to act, stay at home or feel helpless, each and every day...if you watch the news.

"wherever there is the threat of FUD activities emanating from a rival, there is also the propensity for a crisis to arise." (Elliot et al., 2010)

In short, the abundance of FUD leads to crisis.

Learned helplessness is a precursory to the phenomena.

Too much acting on behalf of others, that leads to a form of 'learned helplessness' creates the ideal conditions and paradoxically, the 'crisis' department becomes busier, not because there is more crisis but because individuals and organisations have become less capable and responsive.

These vulnerabilities undermine resilience and high reliability organisations.

The risk society is now a reality.

Tony Ridley

Enterprise Security Risk Management & Security Science

Note: Not to be confused with 'enhanced interrogation techniques'

References:

Beck, U., Lash, S. and Wynne, B. (1992) Risk society: Towards a new modernity (Vol. 17). Sage, p.24.

Chung, G.H., Choi, J.N. and Du, J. (2017) Tired of innovations? Learned helplessness and fatigue in the context of continuous streams of innovation implementation. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 38(7), pp.1130-1148.

Elliott, D., Swartz, E. and Herbane, B. (2010) Business Continuity Management (2nd Edition) Abingdon, Routledge, p.6

Maier, S. (2014) 'Learned Helplessness: Even Covariation and Cognitive Changes', in Klein, S. and Mowrer, R. (eds.) Contemporary Learning Theories: Volume II: Instrumental Conditioning Theory and the Impact of Biological Constraints on Learning. Psychology Press.

Nuvvula S. (2016). Learned helplessness. Contemporary clinical dentistry, 7(4), 426–427.

Schneider, A. and Scherer, A. (2015). Corporate governance in a risk society. Journal of Business Ethics, 126(2), pp.309-323.