Moral panic
A moral panic is the intensity of feeling expressed in a population about an issue that appears to threaten the social order. According to Stanley Cohen (sociologist), author of Folk Devils and Moral Panics (1972) and credited as the creator of the term, a moral panic occurs when "[a] condition, episode, person or group of persons emerges to become defined as a threat to societal values and interests." Those who start the panic when they fear a threat to prevailing social or cultural values are known by researchers as "moral entrepreneurs," while people who supposedly threaten the social order have been described as "folk devils."
Moral panics are in essence controversies that involve arguments and social tension and in which disagreement is difficult because the matter at its center is taboo. The media have long operated as agents of moral indignation, even when they are not self-consciously engaged in crusading or muckraking. Simply reporting the facts can be enough to generate concern, anxiety or panic.
Characteristics
Moral panics have several distinct features. According to Goode and Ben-Yehuda, moral panic consists of the following characteristics:
- Concern – There must be an awareness that the behavior of the group or category in question is likely to have a negative impact on society.
- Hostility – Hostility towards the group in question increases, and they become "folk devils". A clear division forms between "them" and "us".
- Consensus – Though concern does not have to be nationwide, there must be widespread acceptance that the group in question poses a very real threat to society. It is important at this stage that the "moral entrepreneurs" are vocal and the "folk devils" appear weak and disorganized.
- Disproportionality – The action taken is disproportionate to the actual threat posed by the accused group.
- Volatility – Moral panics are highly volatile and tend to disappear as quickly as they appeared due to wane in the public interest or news reports changing to another topic.
Examples
- Moral panics are considered to include some persecutions of individuals or groups, such as the Red Scare, antisemitic pogroms, Stalinist purges, the witch-hunts of Renaissance Europe.
- Most recently, various Muslim groups claim that some actions in Western countries following the September 11th attacks affecting Arabs, Muslims, or those mistaken for them have comprised a moral panic. A series of moral panics regarding Satanic ritual abuse originated in the U.S and spread to other English-speaking countries in the 1980s and 1990s.
- In the 1990s and 2000s, there have been instances of moral panics in the UK and the US related to colloquial uses of the term pedophilia to refer to unusual crimes of abuse such as high-profile cases of child abduction and murder.
- More information is available at [ Wikipedia:Moral_panic ]
| W. Parrot Model of Emotions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Primary emotions | Secondary emotions | Tertiary emotions |
| Love | ||
| Affection | adoration, affection, attraction, caring, compassion, fondness, liking, love, romance, sentimentality, tenderness, | |
| Lust | arousal, desire, ecstasy, lust, passion, infatuation | |
| Longing | longing | |
| Joy | ||
| Contentment | Contentment, pleasure, happiness | |
| Enthrallment | enthronement, rapture | |
| Pride | pride, triumph | |
| Optimism | eagerness, hope, optimism | |
| Relief | relief | |
| Zest | enthusiasm, zeal, less, excitement, thrill, exhilarating | |
| Surprise | ||
| Surprise | amazement, surprise, astonishment | |
| Anger | ||
| Irritation | aggravation, irritation, education, annoyance, grouchiness, grumpiness | |
| Exasperation | exasperating, frustration | |
| Disgust | disgust, revulsion, contempt | |
| Rage | anger, rage, outrage, fury, rat, hostility, ferocity, hate, loathing, scorn, Spike, faithfulness, dislike, presentment | |
| Envy | envy, jealousy | |
| Torment | torment | |
| Sadness | ||
| Disappointment | dismay, disappointment, displeasure | |
| Neglect | alienation, isolation, neglect, loneliness, rejection, home sickness, defeat, detection, insecurity, embarrassment, humiliation, insult | |
| Sadness | depression, despair, hopelessness, gloom, loneliness, sadness unhappiness, grief, sorrow, woe, Missouri, melancholy | |
| Shame | guilt, shame, regret, remorse | |
| Suffering | agony, suffering, hurt, malaise | |
| Sympathy | pity, sympathy | |
| Fear | ||
| Horror | alarm, shock, fear, fright, or Caarol, panic, hysteria, mortification | |
| Nervousness | apprehension, anxiety, distressed, dread nervousness, phobia, tenseness, uneassiness, tremor, worry, distressed, dread | |
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