This week on Radio 4 they were discussing the power of the social isolation kind of bullying - 'sending people to Coventry'. Through experimentation it was found that the need to be part of a group is a primitive core instinct - in the animal world to be outcast is to be condemned to death. Humans usually react in the following way to try gain re- acceptance into the group or into a new group:
- Behave in a more conformist manner
- More likely to be helpful like loan money
If this doesn't work the victim behaves in an opposite manner and becomes aggressive and possibly even violent. Apparently a solution is to work hard on gaining just one friend - as it is often found in institutions such as school the outcasts will bond - sound familiar?
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| Smile - Things can only get worst! |
some people take comfort in conformity:
ReplyDeletemaybe it's a tribal thing, wanting to be part of a similar crowd:
unthinking and hiding among the mundane:
herds:
it's not for me:
I prefer to kick back!
"Democracy gives every man the right to be his own oppressor" ...James Russell Lowel
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