Overcoming Learned Helplessness During Political Instability and Economic Hardship

News from social media, TV, or printed media is a great way to keep up with worldwide events. However, it’s hard not to be affected by endless distressing events, especially amid political instability and economic hardship.

It is common for people to feel powerless during tumultuous political and economic times. Failing to manage this distress could lead to “learned helplessness.”

This article will delve into the psychological mechanisms behind learned helplessness and offer practical ways to overcome it. So, navigate through these challenging times and reclaim control over helplessness.

What is learned helplessness?

The most accepted learned helplessness definition is that it is a behavioral response that occurs when individuals fail to use any control options toward any circumstances (even if they are changeable) due to exposure to uncontrollable stressors. 

The term “learned helplessness” was first coined in animal studies, particularly in a study on dogs. This study examined how exposure to inescapable shocks could affect the dogs’ ability to learn and perform escape and avoidance behaviors in new situations. 

The study shows that exposure to inescapable shocks can lead to a state of learned helplessness. This is when the dogs give up trying to escape or avoid aversive stimuli because they perceive them as uncontrollable. 

This shows how exposure to uncontrollable stressors can affect one’s behavior.  Humans could also show the same responses. When repeatedly exposed to difficult things you can’t control, you may eventually feel powerless and give up trying. The next sections will go into more detail about this fascinating phenomenon.

Causes of learned helplessness

Experiencing distress in life is inescapable. However, being repeatedly exposed to negative events does always lead to learned helplessness. Here are the factors that lead to this psychological state:

Exposure to uncontrollable stressors

Drawing from the findings in the animal studies, scientists further explored the concept of learned helplessness in psychology. They asserted that when experiencing uncontrollable events, individuals could become passive and helpless in acting to change their situations. 

Learned helplessness is not just a consequence of stress, but it is specifically linked to the uncontrollability of the stressors. Uncontrollable stressors cause changes in your neurobiological pathways, particularly in the role of the Dorsal Raphe Nucleus, serotonin, and Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone:

• Dorsal Raphe Nucleus (DRN). DRN is a part of the brain crucial to generating serotonin (a hormone vital in stress response). When faced with uncontrollable stress, the nerve cells in this area become more sensitive. So, when you encounter that stressor again, your brain releases excessive serotonin, leading to passivity and even depression.
• Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone (CRH). When experiencing stress, the CRH is released and kicks off the body’s fight-or-flight response (the immediate reaction to danger). When the stressor is uncontrollable, CRH could work more actively. This affects the serotonin-producing nerve cells in the brain, leading to feelings of helplessness.

Pessimistic explanatory styles

The American Psychological Association defines explanatory style as “an individual’s unique way of describing and explaining some phenomenon, event, or personal history.” These styles shape your interpretation and reaction toward any situation and event. Thus, it plays a crucial role in how you perceive those experiences. 

Explanatory styles could be divided into two categories : 

• Pessimistic/depressive explanatory style. Here, individuals attribute negative events as stable, global, and internally caused, while positive events are seen as temporary, specific, and external.
• Optimistic explanatory style. The explanatory style in which individuals attribute negative events as temporary, specific, and externally caused, while positive events as enduring, global, and internally caused

A pessimistic explanatory style is more likely to lead to learned helplessness. Attributing negative events this way could make you expect that your actions are ineffective in controlling outcomes, leading to a sense of helplessness.

For illustration, in a situation where the unemployment rates are rising in a country, a citizen with a pessimistic explanatory style may think that:

• “This situation will never get better.”
• “This country is beyond repair.”
• “It is caused by our country’s incompetence.”

On the other hand, an individual with an optimistic explanatory style may think that:

• “Things will get better in the future.”
• “This country still has many other sectors that are currently flourishing. Despite the current barrier, it does not mean that this is the downfall of this country.”
• “This country is not the sole reason these things are happening, as the global economy is a very complex matter.”

Learned helplessness due to political and economic instabilities

Among all other things, global events are stressors that could cause you to feel helpless.

The Munich Security Report 2022 highlighted a significant sense of helplessness among people across various countries in response to global events. This feeling of helplessness is tied to multiple risk factors, such as political instability and economic challenges. 

As the uncontrollable global events alone could be detrimental, being exposed to the news regarding these issues could further exacerbate the distress. Frequent exposure to distressing news is associated with increased negative feelings and decreased positive feelings. 

This shows how crucial it is to manage the stress from the political and economic landscape. Failure to do so would lead to learned helplessness. 

Consequences of learned helplessness

After getting a clear picture of learned helplessness, do you wonder if it is really that bad? Could it be just another niche topic within psychology?

Unfortunately, learned helplessness isn’t something to brush aside. In reality, it could cause real consequences for you and your loved ones. Here are a few examples to illustrate its significance:

Inhibits happiness

Life satisfaction, a key component of happiness, reflects individuals’ satisfaction with their lives. Achieving this requires personal growth or one’s gradual psychosocial change. The Personal Growth Process Model highlights autonomy as essential in this growth, which is the ability to take responsibility for one’s actions.

Thus, your autonomy is essential to your happiness. However, experiencing learned helplessness could inhibit you from achieving this. 

When faced with uncontrollable stressors (including political and economic instabilities), you may feel you cannot influence the circumstances due to external factors. Hence, your sense of autonomy diminishes. Due to that, your process of personal growth could be stalled and inhibit you from experiencing life satisfaction and happiness. 

For example, say there’s a person affected by widespread layoffs. With job opportunities becoming scarce, they may believe that their efforts to find new jobs are futile. With this sense of helplessness and diminished autonomy, it could be hard for this person to be satisfied with their life. 

This sense of learned helplessness can lead them to stop applying for jobs altogether, further diminishing their sense of autonomy. Consequently, their personal growth stalls, resulting in decreased life satisfaction and happiness as they struggle to cope with their circumstances.

Reduces achievement

In a study on Italian students, researchers from the University of Messina found that learned helplessness is associated with lower achievement. In contrast, higher levels of mastery orientation — the pattern of behavior where individuals take a proactive approach to challenges — are correlated with better achievement. 

This shows how important it is to overcome learned helplessness, as it could affect your achievement. In the case of political and economic turmoil, you may believe that your efforts to achieve your personal and professional goals are futile. Thus, you must foster mastery-oriented attitudes to enhance your ability to perform even in an unstable climate.

Introduces risks of depression

Learned helplessness is a risk factor for depression. When people perceive the world as uncontrollable, they may behave in a way that supports this perception of helplessness. This would exacerbate the possibility of depression.

Political and economic stressors should also be considered. The perception of uncontrollability from these could make you feel helpless and adversely affect your mental health. Thus, you need to overcome the learned helplessness to avoid the possibility of depression.

Ways to overcome learned helplessness

In a tumultuous political and economic state, one can’t solve these complex issues alone. Due to the uncontrollable nature of these stressors, what you can do is manage them to avoid the learned helplessness that may come from them. 

Here are a few ways that you can overcome the sense of helplessness that comes from political and economic instabilities:

Take a break

Constantly focusing on what’s wrong in the world could be exhausting. Plus, being preoccupied with this distressing information would further cause you to be helpless.

Instead of paying attention to one distressing news after another, switch off the TV and your phone and take a much-needed break. Focus on yourself first. Here are some ideas on how to better spend your time.

• Meditate. This practice helps you calm your mind and reduce the stress you experience. There are numerous varieties of meditation that you could explore. You could access these through YouTube videos or mindfulness apps.
• Take a nature walk. Walking in nature helps you reduce your stress and improve your mood. So, try to incorporate nature walks into your life, be it walking in the park, the beach, or simply admiring your own garden.
• Practice self-care. Engage in activities that nurture your well-being. These practices could include a spa treatment, binge-watching your favorite TV show, cafe-hopping, etc. Every person has different needs, so try to reflect and engage in activities that help you to feel fulfilled and balanced.
• Set achievable goals. It may feel hard to experience personal growth because of current political and economic news. By focusing on things you can change that directly affect you, you may reduce your sense of helplessness and regain your sense of control.

Read more: Love Languages and Self-Care: Nurturing Yourself According to Your Unique Needs

Identify and address sources of helplessness

Next, reflect on the aspects that cause you to feel helpless. This is crucial as it allows you to see and resolve the issues instead of succumbing to helplessness. The steps are as follows:

• Identify the issues. Reflect on the political and economic issues that make you feel helpless. List it down and analyze the causes of these specific issues,
• List down the uncontrollable and controllable factors. Once you have identified the issues and the causes, the next step is to list down factors you can and cannot control. For example, you cannot control other people’s behavior, the economy, and other people’s decisions. On the other hand, you can control your own behavior, reactions, and decisions.
• Review the factors. Once you have identified the factors, examine if you feel attached to the outcomes related to these uncontrollable aspects. Investigate the reasons behind these attachments. Instead, you should concentrate on managing and improving the controllable aspects of your lives.
• Create a letting go statement. Write a statement summarizing the decision to let go of the event, decision,  relationship, or memory causing your helplessness. Post the statement somewhere visible (e.g., above the desk, on the refrigerator) as a constant reminder.

Reframe negative thoughts

A pessimistic explanatory style, or attributing negative events as stable, global, and internally caused, tends to exacerbate learned helplessness. 

Therefore, regarding the unstable political and economic states, you should reframe the thoughts to fit more into an optimistic explanatory style. This means that you should attribute these thoughts as something that is:

• Caused by other people or circumstances outside of yourself
• Something that will change over time
• Having a limited impact on a specific situation.

Martin Seligman, an American psychologist and the author of Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life, proposed the ABCDE model. This model could help you to reframe your negative thoughts. The steps are as follows:

1. Adversity (A). Identify and describe the negative event or situation you are facing. This could also apply to the political and economic issues that made you feel helpless.
2. Belief (B). Recognize the negative beliefs or thoughts that arise in response to adversity.
3. Consequences (C). Observe and record the emotional and behavioral outcomes resulting from holding these negative beliefs.
4. Disputation (D). Challenge and dispute the negative beliefs using the following techniques:
   • Evidence. Provide evidence that contradicts the negative belief.
   • Alternative explanations. Consider alternative reasons or explanations for the event.
   • Usefulness. Assess whether the belief is useful or helpful.
   • Implications. Evaluate the implications of the belief and its accuracy.
5. Energization (E). Note the shift in your emotional state and energy level after disputing the negative beliefs. You should also record how this change affects their ability to handle the situation.

Practice small acts of kindness

Changing the world could feel impossible, knowing that this huge place has endless complex issues that a person cannot solve alone.

Instead of being helpless about what is happening in the world, you could make an impact on a smaller scale. And a small act of kindness could be a means for that. 

Here are some small acts of kindness that, in some ways, could help in making an impact in the broader political and economic instabilities:

• Promoting a local business on your social media account
• Donating some amounts of money to charity
• Encouraging people around us to donate
• Sharing job opportunities with people who need it

Read more: Why Kindness Matters

Seek support and connection

When the world starts to take a toll on you, seeking help from your support system will always be a great help. Having someone to express your frustrations and sense of helplessness can help to take the load off your mind. 

So, reach out to friends and family that you feel comfortable with. And when it is still not enough, consider getting the help you need from professionals.

In conclusion

Politics and the economy often become significant sources of stress. Due to its uncontrollable nature, it often causes individuals to experience learned helplessness. This sense of helplessness can lead to various problems, including inhibited happiness, reduced achievement, and even the risk of depression.

Indeed, the world is too big to handle alone. However, you can overcome the sense of helplessness by addressing things under your control. By following the practices above, you can gradually shift from a state of learned helplessness to a more empowered and proactive mindset. Ultimately, this helps you nurture your happiness.

So, despite the uncontrollable and difficult circumstances, reclaim the control and alleviate the helplessness!

If you would like to see more resources on learned helplessness, check out the Happiness Science Labs. The lab uses the research of the Institute for Life Management Science to produce courses, certifications, podcasts, videos, and other tools. Visit the Happiness Science Labs today.

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