Is There a Lesson for us Here?

The following article is about a study done by https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_B._Calhoun John B. Calhoun. It was published by Farnam Street May 1, 2022. I found it to be quite interesting and relevant to our times in terms of our “social evolution”.

Insight

“In July 1968, four pairs of mice were introduced into the habitat. The habitat was a 9-foot square metal pen with 4.5-foot high sides. Each side had four groups of four vertical, wire mesh “tunnels.” The “tunnels” gave access to nesting boxes, food hoppers, and water dispensers. There was no shortage of food or water or nesting material. There were no predators. The only adversity was the limit on space.

Initially, the population grew rapidly, doubling every 55 days. The population reached 620 by day 315, after which the population growth dropped markedly, doubling only every 145 days. The last surviving birth was on day 600, bringing the total population to a mere 2200 mice, even though the experiment setup allowed for as many as 3840 mice in terms of nesting space. This period between day 315 and day 600 saw a breakdown in social structure and in normal social behavior. Among the aberrations in behavior were the following: expulsion of young before weaning was complete, wounding of young, increase in homosexual behavior, inability of dominant males to maintain the defense of their territory and females, aggressive behavior of females, passivity of non-dominant males with increased attacks on eath other which were not defended against.

After day 600, the social breakdown continued, and the population declined toward extinction. During this period females ceased to reproduce. Their male counterparts withdrew completely, never engaging in courtship or fighting and only engaging in tasks that were essential to their health. They ate, drank, slept, and groomed themselves—all solitary pursuits. Sleek, healthy coats and an absence of scars characterized these males. They were dubbed “the beautiful ones.” Breeding never resumed and behavior patterns were permanently changed.

The conclusions drawn from this experiment were that when all available space is taken and all social roles filled, competition and the stresses experienced by the individuals will result in a total breakdown in complex social behaviors, ultimately resulting in the demise of the population.“

—John B. Calhoun

One of the lessons you can draw from this is that human situations are no different. At our core we are animals. When things are abundant, it’s easy to get along. When times become lean, however, our biological tendency towards self-preservation takes over. Scarcity—real or imagined—triggers our unconscious mind to take over and react without reasoning. And when we react without reasoning, we are no better than other animals. In fact, in these moments, we’re told we are “behaving like an animal.”

We’ve been living in an era of ever-increasing abundance since WWII.

Tiny Thought

One of the biggest things working in the background over the past few years is the mindset gap.

At the onset of COVID, one group of people, became paralyzed and waited. They waited for someone else to take the lead and tell them what to do. They waited for schools to go online and figure out how to educate their kids. They waited for the government to tell them what was safe and what wasn’t. They waited for clarity. Whey waited for certainty. And they waited for other people to solve problems so they could continue with life.

Another group of people refused to stop. While they might have slowed down, they kept adapting. Inch by inch they did what they could and moved forward. They hired teachers of turned to Khan academy, or learned to homeschool for their kids. They kept the expectations of themselves and their kids high. They pushed forward at work and home. They solved problems. And they learned new skills.

The difference between these two groups comes down to mindset.

All the energy you put into things you can’t control comes at the expense of things you can control. And because they focus on what they can control, the second mindset is far more resilient and adaptable than the first. And that makes all the difference.

People often bring up the wealth gap. They say things like, “It’s easy for the rich to hire tutors and teachers and childcare and keep their kids working hard.” Yes… and that misses the point.

It’s easy to overestimate the role of money and underestimate the role of mindset. Often, we convince ourselves that if only we had the resources, we would apply the second mindset. But the second mindset isn’t a luxury of the rich, it is a necessity to build wealth in the first place.

Focusing on the money misses the leverage of mindset hiding in plain sight.

A lot of people without a lot of money figured out ways to focus on what they could control. While they didn’t control what the schools did, they did control giving their kids extra work or putting them in Khan academy, or upskilling themselves and homeschooling their children.

Mindset gets applied to life many times, every day. At the end of a day, one day, the difference between the first and second mindset is indistinguishable, but at the end of a decade, the gap is too large to catch up.

Everything comes down to mindset.

When you focus on what you can control, there is always an action you can take to put yourself in a better position. When you focus on things you can’t control, you tend to freeze, unsure of what to do, and you wait while those with a more constructive mindset pass you by.