Panic and the Breakdown of Social Order: Popular Myth, Social Theory, Empirical Evidence

• Published in: Sociological focus (Kent, Ohio) Vol. 20; no. 3; pp. 171 - 183
• Main Author: Johnson, Norris R.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Taylor & Francis Group 01-08-1987; North Central Sociological Association
• Subjects: Banking panics; Banks; Collective Behavior; Disasters; Economic competition; Empirical evidence; Fear; Panic; Police; Social Disorganization; Social order; Social organization; Social theories; Suppers
• ISSN: 0038-0237; 2162-1128
• DOI: 10.1080/00380237.1987.10570950

Some myths concerning panic behavior in social situations are investigated, & an alternative theory of unregulated competition is advanced: when the social order breaks down, behavior becomes aggressive & selfish not as a result of irrational panic, but due to emergent definitions of the situation as one in which norms of civility are no longer required, & competition for individual advantage is legitimate. Three case studies of collective behavior are presented: the 1977 Beverly Hills Supper Club fire in Ky, & the 1979 Who rock concert surge & 1985 Home State Savings Bank run in Cincinnati, Ohio. Analysis of interview & observational data from police records reveals no support for either the unregulated competition or classical panic theories. Rather, there is evidence that the social structure continued to function, & individual behavior conformed to general societal norms; any competition that did develop was regulated & aimed at group safety rather than individual gain. Thus, the fundamental sociological premise that the social order constrains individual behavior & limits competition is reaffirmed. 44 References. K. Hyatt