Social contagion is a curious phenomenon. Scottish journalist Charles Mackay published a book in 1841 on popular delusions. He commented, “Men, it has been well said, think in herds; it will be seen that they go mad in herds, while they only recover their senses slowly, one by one”.

 

The American Psychological Association Dictionary of Psychology defines ‘Social Contagion’ as “the spread of behaviors, attitudes, and affect through crowds and other types of social aggregates from one member to another”. Social contagion can be compared to the spread of infectious diseases.

There are many recorded examples in history of social contagion. For example, in July 1518, Mrs Troffea began to dance in the streets of Strasbourg. During the next few days, more than 30 others joined her dancing. Town councillors built a stage and even employed musicians, hoping that the afflicted might ‘dance off’ the sickness. This only made matters worse, and around 400 others joined the mania. Reports say some danced until they died of exhaustion.

The witch hunts in the Middle Ages were another expression of social contagion that captured the popular imagination and resulted in the cruel deaths of many innocent women. The contagion re-emerged in 1692 with the witch trials in Salem, Massachusetts, resulting in the deaths of 20 innocent people accused of witchcraft.

What is known as the ‘Werther Effect’ is an example of the phenomenon of copycat suicides, often following a highly publicised case. The term comes from a series of suicides across Europe after the publication of The Sorrows of Young Werther in the 18th century. The novel is about a young man, Werther, caught up in a love triangle. Tragically, he eventually kills himself. As the book’s popularity grew across Europe, some readers shot themselves with the same kind of pistol Werther used in the novel. One woman even threw herself into a river clutching a copy of the book.

Closer to home, as the COVID-19 pandemic began in spread in Australia and the prospect of lock-downs loomed, there was panic buying, of all things, toilet paper.

Psychologists are aware that, given their developmental stage, adolescents are a population prone to social contagion not only because they may be especially susceptible to the influence of social media, but also to that of their peers. In relation to adolescent mental health studies have shown the influence of social contagion in relation to eating disorders, self-harm and suicide among young people.

It is true that as human beings we are influenced in our beliefs, feelings and behaviours by those around us.

Just as such influences can be good it is also true that others that spread from person to person can be irrational and harmful. This is the danger of social contagion when it involves dangerous ideas and behaviours as we see in the case of anorexia or self-harm among young people.

It is also true that social contagion can be fostered by interested parties who use manipulative psychological techniques. An example would be the methods used by Nazis to win the allegiance of the German people.

Some groups are more particularly prone to social contagion. Those who have been traumatised, or excluded from normal social groups, or who are emotionally isolated. Human beings seek to belong. A person in an ‘outgroup’ can rediscover their worth and identity in being accepted into a sub-culture which to them becomes an ‘ingroup’.

The way social contagion tends to spread is that a novel experience is embraced by a few (known as ‘early adopters’), they can become opinion leaders who spread the novel idea to their peers who then disseminate the ‘virus’ to wider networks. It can be as simple as a novel idea becoming the constant focus of conversation and discussion.

‘Co-rumination’ is a term used to describe the process of repetitive discussion and speculation on an issue within a peer group. This is especially common among adolescent girls whose sense of worth is strongly linked to their peer group.  When one person describes their personal experience others in their peer group become open to suggestion and become convinced that they are experiencing the same phenomenon.

This is often accompanied these days by pursuing the subject through social media sources. Social media is different from traditional broadcast media. The latter is passively consumed while social media engages the user directly who will become a source of the propagation of information they have embraced. Social media forms online communities that can validate a person’s new self-discovery.

There is much evidence to support the conviction that the dramatic rise in the numbers young people, especially girls in their mid-teens, who believe they are gender dysphoric can be explained in terms of social contagion.

This social contagion among adolescents has been allowed to spread so rapidly because professional bodies have endorsed it.

The medical profession, psychologists, legislators, the courts, sporting bodies and educators have been caught up in an affirmation process. Parents, aghast at what has suddenly happened to their children, have found themselves disempowered.

A good deal of this has to be attributed to the very effective campaign by the trans lobby. It has been singularly successful in convincing professional bodies that it is better for a child to transition than commit suicide. However studies are now revealing that transition does not prevent suicide, indeed, in many cases triggers it.

The growing number of those who now regret their decision to embark on a process of transition with drugs that have produced irreversible effects and with life-changing surgery and those who have become de-transitioners are testimony to the fact that they have been victims of a social contagion and not a valid personal reality.

The stories of de-transitioners are cautionary tales. We cannot but be deeply saddened by those whose lives have been so damaged by the phenomenon of transgenderism. Charles Mackay spoke of people coming to their senses one by one. This contagion will pass but great harm has been caused.