Losing Everything to Save the World

Abstract

In the authors' research, it was discovered that when people lose a little of their many possessions due to a disaster, they become unexpectedly upset as though they were cheated out of their share. This happens even if those who behave indignantly are otherwise nice people. They grumble over having to make repairs instead of being grateful to have survived. But curiously, when they lose absolutely everything to a disaster (even though one would expect them to be even more upset), they become surprisingly grateful instead (almost relieved). The authors propose that the unexpected indignation at losing a little is really just the habituation of gratitude coming out at last, because long ago a little was all humans had to lose. But as humans have too much to lose these days, it is hard to get back to the sense of losing everything. Extreme loss is required to rediscover extreme relief, and this requires letting natural outcomes determine when and where one loses everything—not by greater control of outcomes, but by broadening the idea of faith.