I think I might have worked out why people are anxious and it has almost nothing to do with the economy. People are anxious because they don’t know what’s coming next. It’s not reality but uncertainty and volatility that’s the problem. People want a view of what lies ahead. A narrative if you like.
If instead of trying to individually predict the future we could collectively decide which direction we’d all like to travel in, I think the world would be a better place.
I think people would feel better about the uncertainty of what’s next if our society had a greater commitment to making sure that whatever that was, it wasn’t bad for them. In the USA, at least, there has been a strong movement toward “you’re on your own” over the past thirty years, which creates considerable unease as people worry: will I have a job next year? will I be able to take care of my family? will I become bankrupt for lack of health insurance?
It would be interesting to graph anxiety metrics against the commitment of the society to taking care of its citizens.
…or – to create a graph showing anxiety vs reality. E.g.:
1. Anxiety of a child being kidnapped
2. Anxiety of losing a job vs time taken to find a new job (i.e. is there something to worry about?)
3. Anxiety of identity thefty vs how many people do fall victim to it (how many of us **really** need to shred our documents?)