In the 50s and 60s, John Calhoun, an American ethiologist, performed a series of experiments with rats, which described the collapse in behavior that can result from overcrowding. Even with unlimited access to food and water, the rats confined in these utopian conditions suffered from behavioral disorders and their social organization was severely disrupted. At the time, these experiments led to grim predictions about the future of humanity, and were regarded as evidence of what could happen in an overpopulated world. They were even the basis for science fiction movies such as Soylent Green.
There has always been a certain controversy among psychologists as to whether Calhoun’s results are applicable to humans. Now the quarantine imposed by the Covid-19 virus might very well provide at least a partial answer to this question.
In times of coronavirus, Spaniards are like rats in a vast laboratory experiment. Mandatory confinement in Spain means no outdoor exercise, no walks in the park, no car or bicycle rides and, of course, no golf or massages. Like Calhoun’s rodents, almost everyone has unlimited access to food and water, but the bad news is that because of the quarantine, many of us suffer from overcrowding in some form.
The type and degree of overcrowding not only depends on the number of people in the dwelling, but also on the level of interpersonal harmony between the occupants of the household. An example of physical overcrowding is when a family of 11 people occupies the same apartment. However, emotional overcrowding can also occur when the domestic space is inhabited by two people in a failed relationship.
In Calhoun’s experiments, various different behavioral disorders were observed in overcrowded rodents. Some female rats simply forgot about their babies and abandoned them. Many subordinate rats ended up becoming a vacant, huddled mass in the center of the pens. Other rats became violent and began attacking others for no apparent reason.
Not surprisingly, in times of coronavirus in Spain, after five weeks of confinement, some of these rat-like behaviors are beginning to surface. Although mothers here have not abandoned their children (despite the stress of having them at home all day) and the vacant huddled masses will doubtlessly emerge after confinement, there has been a dramatic upsurge in cases of domestic violence and spousal abuse.
Last night I talked to my daughter, who is a forensic doctor. She told me that as confinement lengthens, she is seeing more and more cases of domestic violence. This was not totally unexpected because every year over the Christmas holidays and summer vacation when families are together for an extended period of time, forensic doctors have a heavier workload. Enforced family togetherness can be a keg of dynamite with a short fuse.
My daughter had a case last week of a woman who jumped off her balcony to escape her husband who wanted to kill her. He blamed the episode on the stress produced by confinement. The fall damaged various vertebras, but she otherwise managed to survive and now wears a corset. Her husband was immediately taken to prison. She was obliged to remain in the hospital until a safe place could be found for her to recuperate.
Before times of coronavirus, her husband probably spent a lot of his time working, drinking with his friends, or having a fling with an occasional lover. Meanwhile, his wife managed things at home as best she could. Things went more or less smoothly until they were forced to be together for an extended period of time. In a mandatory 24/7 relationship, the holes in a marriage become glaringly evident. Frustration simmers and may finally boil over into violence.
During the 5-week confinement in Spain, the national domestic violence hotline has received 1854 more calls than usual. There have been 83,000 police interventions. This is hardly coincidental. Confinement is triggering a latent tendency for violence that is now surfacing. Women are the ones that usually pay the consequences.
This violence, however, can take many forms. My daughter told me of another case of a man who had been found dead in his apartment after twelve days. She knew this because of the maggots in his eye sockets. As it turns out, he was married (though not very happily). Since he worked as a hospital janitor, he was constantly exposed to coronavirus. So this danger of contagion provided his wife with a God-sent excuse to go spend confinement with her sister instead of remaining at home with him. She packed her things, went out the door, and never looked back. Fifteen days later, the neighbors reported a foul odor coming from the apartment. The man had apparently died of a heart attack. His wife had not been in contact with him since her departure. Presumably, she will not go into mourning.
During the Covid-19 quarantine in China, marriages also fell apart. When confinement finally ended, divorces skyrocketed, many based on allegations of domestic abuse. Now civil affairs offices in China have been deluged with divorce filings. Couples who would normally have received an appointment within a week now have to wait a month. Broken marriages are the collateral damage of the coronavirus pandemic.
However, not all behavior disorders in the rodent world involved rupture and violence. In Calhoun’s experiment, there was an even more curious group of rats, known as “the beautiful ones”. Taking refuge in the few secluded spaces in the pen, these rats did not breed or fight or do much of anything. They spent the day eating, grooming, and sleeping. They were fat and their fur was always glossy. Living in this type of confinement made them lose their sense of identity and purpose with the world at large. Though spared the violence and conflict in the crowded areas, they made no contributions to rat society.
All of us have acquaintances that resemble this type of rat. Many media idols also seem to respond to this profile. Other candidates for membership in this select rat group are those who participate in protest marches because they cannot have a pedicure, get their nails done, or go to the spa. People that place such great importance on hair, nails, tattoos, etc. (grooming) and dining at their favorite restaurants (eating) are the human counterparts of the “beautiful ones” in Calhoun’s experiment.
But okay, perhaps this behavior is the smartest. In a dangerous world, maybe it is the best strategy for survival. Could this be the way to go? To know the answer to this question, we have only to look at what finally happened to the “beautiful ones” after their rat universe finally imploded.
When the danger was over, the “beautiful ones”, all of whom survived the experiment, were removed from the failed rat universe to see whether they could live more productive lives. They were then released into a new more normal rodent society, free of social strife. Surprisingly, these rats never emerged from their asocial haze. They refused to mate or even interact with their new (normal) peers, and eventually died of natural causes still encased in their own private soap bubble.
Draw your own conclusions.
