Psychology of panic buying

MONA, not her real name, a resident in Davao City regularly does weekly groceries for her family. She’s fully aware that during weekend payday, supermarkets usually have more foot traffic as the purchasing power of general public is higher than usual. But last Friday, March 13, was quite odd.

“Daghan man gyud tao pag weekend especially pag payday pero lahi ra gyud last Friday, very obvious gyud na ga-panic buying ang tao. Makita man nimo kay usually dili man mahurot-hurot ang mga displays sa grocerihan,” she shared.

(It is usually crowded in supermarkets during weekend most especially if it’s payday. But last Friday was unusual, it is very apparent that people are panic buying. Under normal situation, displays in the stores won’t get empty.)

Mona’s usual quick errand turned into an hours-long ordeal as long queues of shoppers can be observed at cashier counters in a local supermarket.

For Dabawenyo shopper Ricka, not her real name, she admitted that news over the spread of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) and declaration of President Rodrigo Duterte of the State of Public Health Emergency made her buy more essential goods than usual.

“I wanted to be prepared because we do not know what will happen next, it is better to be prepared. For me, I bought a two-month worth grocery last Friday,” Ricka said in vernacular adding they are five in their household with a one-year-old son.

Dabawenyos have been sharing on social media their struggle to buy sanitary items because majority of the stores are running low on supplies.

SunStar Davao monitored some pharmacies and supermarkets in the city. Six pharmacies have posted “out of stock” signage after running out of supplies of alcohol and face masks. Meanwhile, five convenience stores also reported running out of alcohol and hand sanitizer stocks.

Moreover, a security guard in a shopping mall within downtown area recalled how customers immediately rushed to the alcohol stands when the mall opened.

This made shopping malls to implement regulation measures to limit each customer to purchase only two bottles to keep up with their supply.

With these established, one question arises: Are people simply preparing, or irrationally panic buying?

SunStar Davao spoke to psychology experts to explain the current buying behaviors of the public and weigh in on why people do panic buying even when authorities told them to refrain from doing so.

According to Jereco Oliverio Paloma, a psychologist and professor from the Jose Rizal University, there’s a thin line between preparation and panic buying.

“When you buy way too much for your personal or family needs, that becomes irrational. Is this normal? Well, that is a normal response to an abnormal situation,” he said.

He added most of people's reactions are way unreasonable, considering how panic buying can impact the community-based prevention. However, he emphasized that it is totally fine for families to prepare supplies enough for a family consumption.

Jessa Marie Catada, also a practicing psychologist, for her part, views the present public’s behavior as not proper preparation in fighting this crisis but a manifestation of irrational behavior.

She defined “panic” as a strong feeling of anxiety and fear that can hinder logical thinking.

Why do people resort to panic buying?

Covid-19 being a novel coronavirus creates fear. Paloma said panic buying is one of the manifestations of fear.

“Studies have shown that fear of something that you don't totally know can sometimes lead to anxiety and people start to feel that they're losing control. So how people gain control? They do things such as panic buying, especially functional things,” he said.

Catada also put that mass hysteria and spread of negative and false news about Covid-19 globally contribute to this phenomenon. Even terms like "pandemic", "quarantine", and "public health emergency" had a share to public’s distress.

“People are over-exposed to information about Covid-19 that may further make them give in to panic buying. In times of crisis, they want to do something about it which is a normal human behavior. They are anxious and do not want to be passive in handling this problem. Too much reaction in the society about this intensifies their feeling of vulnerability. Panic buying gives them a sense of power over Covid-19,” she said.

Catada also introduced that panic buying gives people the so-called “retail therapy”, a positive psychological effects brought by shopping or purchasing items.

“People who panic buy feel retail therapy and will have a false sense of readiness against Covid-19. They overthink that there will be scarcity of goods in the long run and hoarding goods make them feel more secure. It makes them feel more in control and less anxious about this national health emergency,” she said.

Fear contagion

Authorities repeatedly assure public there is no need to panic buy, but more people witness others doing the opposite.

This is more likely a “fear contagion” phenomenon.

Fear contagion is a type of social influence when people tend to repeat behavior of others driven by fear.

“When they finally resort to panic buying, it satisfies their psychological need to be right as influenced by others especially in the midst of uncertainty about dealing Covid-19. It also makes them feel having social support if they succumb to their shared plan in fighting this crisis: panic buying,” Catada said.

Paloma added the proliferation of fake news and inconsistent information add to this phenomenon.

“The key in addressing this matter is to equip the public what causes their fear. If you are properly informed about Covid-19, then it is likely that your reaction to it will be commensurate to its risks,” he said.

Hoarding and overpricing

While majority’s panic buying response to Covid-19 fear is quite understandable due to fear, some other people’s response are beyond comprehension like those who take advantage of the situation and resell products at higher prices.

For instance, various social media posts of individuals using dummy accounts selling alcohols priced three times than its suggested retail price have earned the ire from netizens.

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) already warned individuals who will be hoarding and overpricing medical devices and products like alcohol, medicines, N-88 and N-95 masks, and similar face masks.

Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, in an interview via 87.5FM Disaster Radio on Friday afternoon, March 13, said she already instructed police authorities and the City Prosecutor's Office to hunt down individuals hoarding rubbing alcohols, face masks, tissues, and other sanitary items.

Paloma explained that some people see this as an opportune event. Researchers call this as opportunistic thinking, one of the most common thinking errors.

“The disturbed character, or the person who sees opportunities for themselves, has a main objective – to exploit the weaknesses of others or to take advantage of the situation for their own gain. If left unchecked, this can have a detrimental impact to the society as a whole,” he said.

Catada, for her part, explained that people showing this behavior may be used to a lifestyle of capitalism, getting ahead of others, and being absorbed into self-interest which can be attributed to their background or early experiences.

“In the midst of the virus outbreak, people nowadays are very vulnerable that they become victims of purchasing overpriced products. This is the opportunity of those people reselling to manipulate their consumers psychologically,” she said.

Downside of panic buying

The most apparent downside of panic buying includes public chaos and increasing public health risk.

When panic buying continues, more consumers will be deprived access from vital supplies that are essential in community level prevention.

One immediate negative effect is the shortage of Personal Protective Equipment like surgical masks for frontline health workers who need most the equipment than the general public.

“People who panic buy overlooked its consequence that has a negative impact on the equal distribution of goods to all consumers. Moreover, they have forgotten that this can cause deprivation to other people of the chance to protect themselves especially the healthcare workers, frontliners, and those at-risk people in acquiring this virus,” Catada expounded.

Both experts concluded that while it is understandable that people will be anxious or afraid of this highly-infectious disease, panic buying is never the answer. Too much panic and anxiety can even worsen the situation.

In health crisis, Paloma said fact-based and timely information is one of the effective weapons to fight the pandemic.

While for Catada, she said, public’s dramatic response that is unnecessary in facing this crisis has underestimated the simple yet most effective ways to prevent Covid-19 spread: observing proper hygiene, washing hands properly, boosting immune system, and social distancing.