Social Traps
The textbook refers to Social traps as a form of social dilemma that “involve short-term pleasure or gain that over time leads to pain or loss (Platt, 1973)” (Gruman, Schneider, Coutts, 2016). Within this dilemma, people decide if they want to please themselves immediately and reward themselves with the awareness that the long-term outcome would be on the negative side of the repercussions of the reward they choose. Or they can decide if they want to hold off on the reward short-term and be able to have a long-term outcome that is positive.
For example, overeating or binge eating would be considered a social trap. I have personally been guilty of overeating or binge eating plenty of times in my life. If I’m studying or watching a movie or something, I sometimes snack on a whole bunch of foods and don’t even realize it at the time. I know a lot of college students who talk about “The Freshman 15” in reference to how common it is for freshmen to gain at least 15 pounds during freshman year from stress and snacking. Whether it’s true or not, I did end up gaining weight during my freshman year. There have been family parties where I’d binge eat, even if I felt full, I would just eat for the sake of consuming the good food laid out in front of me or to not let anything go to waste. Late night binge eating is a struggle too. I know that it’s not a good idea to do, but sometimes that initial enjoyment seems to be all that matters until the action is done and then there might be regret.
In this case, the immediate reward of overeating/binge eating is the pleasure of eating that extra food. If I’m upset or bored, I might binge eat. In my mind, initially this would be a form of comfort for me. I would find comfort in the food to make me feel better and give me the happiness that I’m trying to seek out. I have a friend who can be so insanely full, but doesn’t feel fully satisfied without some kind of sweets to eat after the meal. It’s great to feel comforted in that sense but only initially because as mentioned before, it could lead to long-term outcomes that are negative. Long-term outcomes could be obesity, eating disorders, and other health issues. So, the question that the individual would have to ask themselves is whether that immediate pleasure would be worth the possibility of the negative long-term outcomes. Or the overeater can choose a different route and deny that extra plate of food or say no to eating late at night which the textbook refers to as “short-term deprivation” (Gruman, Schneider, Coutts, 2016). Doing this would allow for more results of a healthier life, healthier body, less weight gain, etc.
With social traps like this, there are two issues that can be the cause. The results and outcomes that are considered long-term comes with uncertainty of those outcomes. Every single person that binge eats may not become obese and there are people who don’t binge eat or overeat who do struggle with obesity unrelated to food or have some weight to them but are still healthy overall. This is where rationalization occurs and since that possible long-term results like obesity seem to be far off into the future, an individual might just brush it off because the immediate reward is current and in the “here and now”. Another issue is that people might have the mindset that what they’re currently doing isn’t a big deal and just happening for the time being. I’ve found myself eating past 11pm at night, convincing myself that it’s okay because it’s just for one night and it’s not like I do it everyday and that one night isn’t going to affect me in the long run. That eventually becomes an often-done action without me realizing it and with me justifying it and therefore not being beneficial toward me or contributing to my life in a positive way.
An article by Very Well Mind discusses this social trap of overeating going in the direction of becoming an addiction if done often. It talks about how our bodies release something called dopamine. Dopamine is a chemical in our bodies and is involved with reward and pleasure feelings that individuals have and it could try to convince them to consume more, even though the person shouldn’t (Hartney, 2020). So, the decision is upon the individual to decide if the immediate reward is worth it in the long run. Thinking about the long run while in the present can be a big struggle but with more awareness and determination to do better for ones self, it is a good idea to do so.
Works Cited:
Gruman, J. A., Schneider, F. W., & Coutts, L. M. (Eds.). (2016). Applied social psychology : Understanding and addressing social and practical problems. Retrieved from https://ebookcentral.proquest.com
Hartney, E. (2020, January 14). How Overeating Can Become Problematic. Retrieved from https://www.verywellmind.com/ten-types-of-overeating-22170
I can relate to you so much, you have no idea. My biggest social anxiety issue is at work most of the time. I work a job where I have to sell our products and services to members when they come in to my place of employment. I know what I am doing, I have been doing it for 4 and half years and I can do most of it in my sleep but I still get so much anxiety when I try and sell something to someone. I love my job most of the time. I work for a credit union so sales isn’t #1 there are times when people come in with questions, concerns or just to talk about something that wouldn’t really lead to a sales moment anyway and I find this interaction to be fairly easy going. I wouldn’t say I like it but I can get through it. But when that opportunity for a sale pops up I get so nervous. I start to sweat, my hands get clammy, I feel like my stomach is spinning, my face I can feel it getting red and very hot and it is so frustrating because I have goals I have to meet so if I don’t do this then my work performance is going to suffer.
In my personal life I typically feel this way when I am in social gathers with people I don’t know very well. It could be going out to a bar, kids birthday party, out to dinner, wedding, baby showers etc. If I am around people I know I am fine, I am comfortable and I can be me. But when I don’t know or know well the people I am around I get into that mode again of worrying what everyone things. I truly dislike this about myself and I wish I could do something to change it. You mentioned therapy which is always a good thing to consider but something I have never done for my social anxiety though I have been to therapy for other things. One thing I do think works well for just clearing my mind all together is going to the gym. I really enjoy it. I don’t get to go no where near as much as I could like to but when I do go and get a good 45-60 minute work out in I really feel different.
I wish there was a simple solution for us. I wish we could just snap our fingers and it would just all go away. We both know sadly that it just isn’t that easy.