Your phone just cracked. It fell off the table, it bounced off a wall, or it was just a classic case of wrong place, wrong time and was crushed under something weighty. Either way, there is no saving it, and you are left with the only option of buying a new phone. Here, your friends chime in, urging you to buy the latest iPhone. No matter that an Android is cheaper, has the same features and is less likely to meet the same fate as your previous phone. Your friends make their voices louder, more demanding, and you finally succumb and buy an iPhone. Congratulations, you are now a victim of herd mentality.
Disclaimer- this article has no intentions to slander Apple products, regardless of the authors’ personal views.
So, what is herd mentality?
Herd mentality, according to wikipedia, is a mentality that describes how people can be influenced by their peers to adopt certain behaviors on a largely emotional, rather than rational, basis. People usually ignore their own feelings in this process, and make different decisions than they would have individually.
When in Rome, be a Roman
Humans have always been social creatures. To fit in with the rest of the group and be accepted, social conformity was the norm. Thus, ’herd mentality’ was born. It was first coined by Gabriel Tarde and Gustave Le Bo in the 19th century. This herd mentality led to the process of groupthink, where members of a group pushed aside their own dissenting opinions just to have the appearance of unanimity.
This conformity can be something as simple as applauding when the other audience applauds, or something as problematic as bullying somebody just because everybody else bullies them.
Why do we follow the crowd?
To be plain and simple, it's comfortable. You don’t stand alone and you won’t be singled out. You have the comfort of the masses around you. There’s no pressure to be actively individualistic, you can just swim with the current.
In society, we are also encouraged to be ‘normal’ and fit in with everyone else. Those who don’t comply with the majority are shunned as outcasts. Therefore, to be liked and accepted in society, most people suppress their individuality and change aspects of themselves, adjusting to norms dictated by others.
It is also assumed that walking the road more travelled leads to higher rates of success, because hey, everybody else succeeded, didn’t they? But this is a misconception, other than in select few exceptions. Most people think that this is an easy short-cut, and try to get the best of both worlds. But success and comfort rarely go together. To succeed, one must go through the mortifying ordeal of actively being themselves and defending their opinion, which just isn't possible when they are part of the crowd.
In India
A perfect example of herd mentality, and a very relevant issue in society, is the Indian education system, and the stigma that surrounds it. A huge chunk of the population prioritizes the science stream and ostracizes those who choose the arts. It’s assumed that "smart" kids take up science and the "stupid" kids take up arts.
While we were having this discussion, we wondered why this was. The first thing that one of us mentioned was how science was relatively more rooted in logic, and perhaps due to this, people leaned towards science. But one of us argued that our culture was rife with superstitious beliefs, so it didn’t make much sense.
The most common reason that children are pushed into the science stream, and encouraged to become doctors and engineers, is that it pays well. These two professions, in general, lead to financial stability. Here, herd mentality comes into the picture- the people blindly believe that only engineering or medical professions will pay well, without doing actual research. There are plenty of other fields that can sustain your average nuclear family just fine. But this is food for thought that traditional Indian households find hard to digest. This is probably because, in such traditional Indian households, the men are usually expected to be the financial providers, and there is a certain comfort in having a stable 9 to 5 job, like a desk job. Of course, there is stable work to be had in any field, but herd mentality has played its role once again in spreading misinformation, and family members claim that financial stability is to be had only in the engineering/medical field.
Arguably, the cut off percentages for the differing streams is also to blame. The science cut off is much higher than for the art streams, and thus it is assumed that “smart” students opt for science, while the “stupid” students have no other option but to go to arts, as they couldn’t clear the science cut off. This leads to the notion that those who take up science are inherently smarter than arts students, which prompts the typical Indian family to force their child to opt for science.
This herd mentality extends to the students themselves- we often see science students dismissing arts students, claiming that they “have it easy” as they are in arts. This stereotype also feeds into the bragging culture. People would prefer to brag about their child who is studying in science, as it is also a subtle way to show that their child is “smart”.
Blind Justice
Another relevant problem would be the reaction of the masses in protest against the controversial CAA bill passed in early 2019. Thousands gathered on the streets, demanding both the CAA and NRC bills to be scrapped. However, when some of the protestors were interviewed by news agents, most didn’t even know the full forms of CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act) and NRC (National Register of Citizens). Yet they appeared in the masses, calling for justice. Others did away with the farce of justice entirely and stated that they showed merely up because their leaders told them to.
A more benign instance of herd mentality is showcased on social media, particularly Instagram. Whenever a human rights issue goes viral, for instance, the Black Lives Matter movement and the genocide in Palestine, there is a barrage of sympathy that is poured through Instagram stories and ‘black squares’. But these stories and black squares, while acts of solidarity, aren’t ones that are particularly helpful, and are generally used by ‘influencers’ more as tools of performative activism. Where does herd mentality fit into this? People put up these shows of support because everybody else is doing it, and they want to fit in, and want their sympathy to be seen. The ‘thoughts and prayers’ message has the same qualities. Instead, why not put up links to petitions and fundraisers, or donate?
To be sheep or to not be sheep
But even if we are aware of herd mentality, can we be truly immune to it? It’s simply not possible. A lot of times, we are forced to follow the ‘herd’, either because of lack of other options, or fear of repercussions. At the same time, one must also think for themselves, and approach each situation rationally. The most logical thing to do would be to find a balance between the two. At the end of the day, we must ask ourselves if we can use this mentality for good, but really are there sides to being human?
