Why Do People Avoid Changing Their World?

[Valiance]

Submission, laziness, helplessness, mental-helplessness, acceptance, etc...

Honestly, I know my school board is corrupt, my town's government is corrupt, my town's police department is corrupt, my country is corrupt, my country's government is corrupt, etc.

I don't really think there's much I can do, and honestly, I don't really care at this point because I can still get up in the morning and have food to eat and a place to sleep. It's just not as bad as it sounds, whatever 'it' is.

 

[ScarlettRage]

It's easier to complain about a problem than to actually try to go fix it.

yes its easier for them to move their mouths then anything else..
makes me kind of sad.
but then i'm happy for the people acualy trying to make a difference.

 

[Tartarga]

Change is bad?

 

[Chipperz]

Maybe, just maybe, the other people at college were more concerned with their grades than the canteen food? We had a mantra at uni - the canteen's shit, don't eat there unless you're starving. Did it change the world? No. Did we get our assignments done? No. Did we get in hundreds of hours of Soul Calibur 2 and eventually just drop out? Oooh yes.

The point remains that for every person like me, there's ten that care about their grades. For every person like you, there's ten people like me. There's many, many things more worth it than changing a tiny piece of the world, like making sure you get into a position to change a large part of it, or not caring enough either way.

 

[sharks9]

Laziness and fear of failure

 

[Uszi]

Probably because people are lazy

Or people trust in the "Old ways," which have been shown to work before.

Or, to broaden the topic slightly, people are depressed. When you're depressed, you just want life to leave you a lone for a bit--and you're not in a position to change anything. Which can potentially create a bit of a vicious cycle, especially if you're depression is the result of something that is within your power to change, but you don't, because you are depressed.

I think laziness is an over-used excuse. I think that a lack of self-efficacy [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-efficacy] is often a better explanation. And those are too different things, though they superficially look the same and produce the same result.

The difference for me is that "lazy" people are unwilling to change because they don't want to work hard, etc.

People with low self-efficacy, on the other hand, are unwilling to change because they believe they are incapable of changing.

The latter paints a much more accurate picture of the people I know who seriously need to make changes in their lives, but refuse to, for what many people might call "laziness."

 

[Amnestic]

It's a matter of priorities. I could spend my time shutting down anti-disabled people Facebook groups or studying for my universitiy course and going out with my friends. Frankly, no matter what I do or say, there will still be some who hate disabled people for whatever reason and I'm not one to do something when my time could be better spent elsewhere.

And the Canteen food serves unhealthy stuff? OH NOES STOP THE PRESSES. Frankly, the fact that you had to resort to bribery and threats is far more disgusting and offensive than the fact that somewhere was serving unhealthy food.

Perhaps we should all rally against you to change your ways?

 

[JemJar]

This thread is a perfect example of why no-one steps up to try to do anything to better the world around them.

Because all that happens is that people flame you for making the effort even to do little things. Sure, you're not going to personally save the planet with this stuff but being massively apathetic isn't going to help either.

The problem is, you look like a holier-than-thou busy-body and no-one likes those guys.

Whether the various people criticising you are right or wrong about your motivations or the success or failure of your endeavours I'd take the guess that you're a damn sight better off doing those things than leaving the little changes unmade. I'm reminded loosely of the saying that evil will truly triumph when good men sit idle and do nothing.

Don't razz on the new kid for sticking his neck out.

 

[Angerwing]

If I make a change to my little nook of the world, it's going to be personal. Either changing how I deal with certain people, or even explaining to someone any problems that people have with their behaviour (in a constructive way, I'm not just being 'that guy'). These minor, personal changes affect people more strongly than changing canteen food. You don't have to change others to change the world.

 

[beddo]

So, yes, people of the Escapist, I have this to ask of you:-
Why do people avoid changing the world?

I personally enjoy switching myself "on", as it were, and make a place, thing or person mine. I've done it on Facebook, by shifting moderator and administrative opinion on anti-disablist groups ( getting hundreds of IPs banned in the process for repeated harassment of disabled people and their Facebook groups ) and I did it in college ( the college had an canteen inside it which claimed to sell good quality "healthy" food, which I proved to be unhealthy and forced them to change the products they sold ) and with a creation of a student union.

However, I had to really work with other people to get these things working. I had to use coercion, bribes and threats to get enough people to run the student union and collecting the figures for the canteen was ridiculously unbelievable. Facebook was probably the easiest.

I have a mild suspicion that it's due to my physical appearance ( I am really not a skinny or truly attractive person ), and that's what's causing the trouble of convincing others, but I'm not sure.

So, yes, why do people actively avoid changing their little piece of the world?

NB: I have no doubt I sound a little bit crazy. I probably am.

I don't think people do avoid changing their world, you appear to be making significant assumptions about people.

"I personally enjoy switching myself "on", as it were, and make a place, thing or person mine."

"I had to use coercion, bribes and threats to get enough people to run the student union and collecting the figures for the canteen was ridiculously unbelievable."

You sound bizarrely obsessive and possessive. Do you believe that it is acceptable to use unethical behaviour such as 'bribes' and 'threats' do force people to do things for you?

Why did you feel the need to interfere in the canteen's menu? Are you a nutritionist? I imagine people know what's good and/or bad for them and it's their responsibility to work these things out for themselves.

I tell you what, I will make a change, I'll do this by telling you that it is not acceptable to use unethical means to attain what you perceive as ethical ends.

 

[JimmerDunda]

It's really hard to fix a world that is based on perspective. People have different views of what is right and wrong. I see some people in this thread say people are "blind" yet someone with a different view of opinions would disagree with them.

 

[TheMatt]

I'm tired.

 

[Inverse Skies]

Personally I don't see the need to change much, I'm happy with the way the world is going and I'm happy with my little corner of it. If I'm happy, then why do I need to change anything? It's a question of comfort I guess more than anything else. I'm comfortable with who I am and what I do, I don't need to alter anything.

 

[Nemu]

Probably because people are lazy

I'm so lazy I quoted.


But I agree completely. It's infinitely easier to be lazy and apathetic-folks don't want to be inconvenienced, they just want to get through their day and do it all over again tomorrow.

 

[SomethingUnrelated]

Because they can't be arsed. If it isn't directly their problem, no need to solve it. Sad, but true.

 

[historybuff]

Probably because it's hard.

 

[McClaud]

Sometimes people don't want change because change goes outside their comfort zone.

Psychologically, people who find their comfort zones hate to leave them. Mostly because things get more difficult and uncomfortable when they do. Also, things seem less stable when operating outside the "norm" for most people.

Face it - people like to be comfortable and have stability in their lives. Asking for change may breach this comfort zone and create an unknown that threatens their stability.

That's just one reason out of dozens why people hate change that I hadn't really seen addressed yet.