The Monster Under the Bed, Coronavirus Conspiracies, and the Best Pizza Ever

As a young child, I was afraid there was a monster under my bed, that would grab my feet and pull me into its lair. Over the years, I have learned that I am not the only one to have imagined such a thing. It seems so common, that it’s a cliché in American culture and even others.[1] But how or why is that even possible? What could I have in common with all those other people to cause this experience? What does it mean for humanity?

First of all, how did I get the idea there was a monster under my bed to begin with? I’m pretty sure I never saw any such creature under my bed, though I know I had nightmares about one. Could I have learned it? I doubt someone told me. And at three years old, I doubt I had seen such a thing in a book or on TV, and then understood it enough to believe there was a monster under my bed. The monster in my nightmares happened to be based on a design on the clothes hamper in my bedroom, which further casts doubt on learning it. If I didn’t learn it, where could that belief have come from?

When animals do purposeful things that don’t result from learning, we often call those actions instincts. Not surprisingly, it occurred to me that if fear of a monster under my bed was not based on my memories, then it could be instinct. Well, not specifically the fear of a monster under the bed, but rather the attachment of some scary label to the unknown under my bed. I figured evolution – with its emphasis on survival – may have had some reason to invoke fear of the unknown in children. Turns out, Joshua Krisch discussed that same hypothetical connection between survival and a childhood fear of monsters under the bed, on the Fatherly web site.[2]

Yes, the unknown can lead children to believe strange things and to some extent adults as well. Fortunately it tends to only be extreme unknowns causing such beliefs, not something as trivial as the whereabouts of a lost sock. That makes sense, considering what things we tend to remember from experience. Educators and advertisers take advantage of us remembering things that are repeated, with repetition serving as a kind of amplification. Someone training a pet or a child tends to make use of penalties or rewards, depending on the subject’s behavior. Again, repetition is helpful. And then there are the extremes themselves and their corresponding strong reactions. A negative extreme might invoke a reaction like: “I won’t ever do that again.” A positive extreme might invoke something like: “That was the best pizza ever! Let’s order that again next time.”

Many strong reactions have been triggered by both the knowns and unknowns of COVID-19, the illness caused by a novel coronavirus.[3] It has definitely brought with it a lot of unknowns, regardless of someone’s age. Who currently has the virus? How long will they be contagious? When will we have a vaccine? Will someone I know get it? Will I get it? Fortunately, the illness itself is likely to be minor for a majority of the people who get it, but there’s still considerable concern for those who could have a more serious outcome.

With the goal of saving lives, the United States has taken many measures to help limit the spread of COVID-19, from denying travel in and out of the country, to various recommendations for the states to follow. Individuals from different households should avoid coming within 6 feet of each other and should avoid groups of more than 10 people in one place. Many states have closed restaurant dining rooms as well as businesses that are not strictly necessary for the functioning of society. Schools have moved to online learning, with their buildings closed until further notice.

This reaction itself by the federal government and governments all over the world to COIVD-19, is bringing its own set of unknowns. Though we strongly value freedom in the U.S., governments at all levels are limiting or even suspending the liberties we are used to, in unprecedented ways. These changes are enough to trigger conspiracy theories about supposed government plans to subjugate the masses of U.S. citizens. But other countries are experiencing similar restrictions and other changes brought about by the coronavirus. Accordingly, there are conspiracy theories all over the world. Quite a variety appears on the Cornell Alliance for Science web site, in its list of the top 10 conspiracy theories surrounding the coronavirus.[4]

The existence of conspiracy theories is nothing new. Why do we have them? Some believers might be labeled as crazy, but there are many others who are more arguably sane. I don’t think mental illness can explain all of the theories or all the believers. If it wasn’t clear before, we now know that unprecedented negative conditions can invoke unprecedented responses from governments and citizens. Some such responses help move forward for a better society, but again it’s fortunate that such responses are saved for extreme situations. After all, we obviously don’t want our freedoms limited or governments overthrown as a course of normal everyday life.

How much of our coronavirus conspiracy activity is from learning and how much is from instinct? There’s plenty of cultural context to somehow blame almost anyone for almost anything. Even the Star Wars movies touch on using circumstances as an excuse to seize power from the citizens, and it’s hard to argue with someone like Obiwan Kenobi.[5] But I’m guessing that at least some of the coronavirus conspiracy belief does stem from instinct. Like the uncertainty leading to “the monster under the bed,” maybe the coronavirus uncertainty is having us believe in enemies that aren’t (currently) there. Hopefully, any aroused aggression will be channeled towards freeing us from the coronavirus. Then maybe adults and children both can sleep more soundly.

References

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bogeyman

[2] https://www.fatherly.com/health-science/monsters-under-the-bed-childhood-fears/

[3] https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses

[4] https://allianceforscience.cornell.edu/blog/2020/04/covid-top-10-current-conspiracy-theories/

[5] https://www.starwars.com/films