第1555期:Why do people stockpile?

Have you ever watched one of the many TV shows set during the apocalypse - a dystopian future where life as we know it is over and people are only focussed on survival? If it’s not zombies, it’s viruses or natural disasters. One thing that seems to be a quintessential part of these series is survivors searching for food and resources. Is that why people stockpile food when things go bad?

你有没有看过天启期间的许多电视节目之一——一个反乌托邦的未来，我们所知道的生活已经结束，人们只关注生存？如果不是僵尸，那就是病毒或自然灾害。似乎是这些系列的典型部分的一件事是幸存者寻找食物和资源。这就是人们在事情变糟时囤积食物的原因吗？

What is stockpiling? Quite simply it’s when people accumulate a substantial number of goods, for example food or water. According to psychologist Judy Rosenberg, stockpiling perishable goods like eggs and milk is a positive sign that people believe a crisis will be over soon. When people stockpile tinned goods, it can be a sign that people fear that the crisis will endure.

什么是囤货？很简单，就是人们积累了大量的商品，例如食物或水。心理学家朱迪·罗森伯格 (Judy Rosenberg) 表示，囤积鸡蛋和牛奶等易腐烂商品是人们相信危机很快就会结束的积极信号。当人们囤积罐头食品时，这可能表明人们担心危机会持续下去。

But why do we do it? Consumer psychologist Paul Marsden puts it down to three factors that relate to retail therapy. Firstly, ‘autonomy’ – the idea the people feel the need to be in control. Secondly, ‘relatedness’ – panic shopping helps people to feel connected to the community or other shoppers who are doing the same.

但我们为什么要这样做？消费者心理学家保罗马斯登将其归结为与零售疗法相关的三个因素。首先，“自治”——人们觉得需要控制的想法。其次，“相关性”——恐慌性购物有助于人们感受到与社区或其他正在做同样事情的购物者的联系。

Lastly, ‘competence’ - people want to feel like they are ‘smart shoppers’ and doing the right thing. Sander Van der Lindon, an assistant professor of social psychology at Cambridge University, said that a phenomenon known as ‘fear contagion’ can take hold. People’s decision making is hampered when stressed, so they follow the actions of other people. If they are panic buying, you will too.

最后，“能力”——人们想要感觉自己是“聪明的购物者”并且做正确的事。剑桥大学社会心理学助理教授 Sander Van der Lindon 表示，一种被称为“恐惧传染”的现象可能会占据上风。人们的决策在受到压力时会受到阻碍，因此他们会跟随其他人的行为。如果他们恐慌性购买，你也会。

So, can you stop people from stockpiling? Well, supermarkets can ration the amount of products consumers purchase, and governments can try to reassure people that there is no need to panic. However, it seems that it goes against our basic psychology to try and stop people from panic buying.

那么，你能阻止人们囤货吗？嗯，超市可以对消费者购买的产品数量进行配给，政府可以尝试向人们保证没有必要恐慌。然而，试图阻止人们恐慌性购买似乎违背了我们的基本心理。

So, the next time a virus, natural disaster or zombie apocalypse starts, remember that panic buying is probably a given, thanks to our need for retail therapy to manage our emotional state.

因此，下一次病毒、自然灾害或僵尸大灾难开始时，请记住恐慌性购买可能是必然的，这要归功于我们需要通过零售疗法来管理我们的情绪状态。

词汇表

apocalypse 大灾难

dystopian 反乌托邦的
survival 生存，存活
quintessential 最典型的
survivor 能在困境中生存的人
accumulate 积攒
substantial 大量的
perishable 易变质的，易腐坏的
crisis 危机
tinned goods 罐头食品
endure 持续
retail therapy 购物疗法
autonomy 自主
relatedness 关联性
competence 能力
phenomenon 现象
fear contagion 恐惧蔓延
hampered 受阻碍的，受限制的
ration 定量，配给量
a given （定将发生的）假定事实