Psychology of First World Problems

You stare into the graying sky as outrage bubbles in your chest. You were deceived again, and now your day teeters on the brink of ruin. A raindrop lashes your cheek, and now you’re sure: the forecast was wrong.

This is a first world problem (a FWP).

I’ve been thinking a lot about these subtle sufferings thanks to the Hawaii/Siberia vacillations we’ve been getting in New York these past few days.

And unlike the rest of the Internet, I’m not going to shame you about your FWPs. I want to acknowledge that they are very real. Even though a splash of perspective can remind us we’re overreacting, it doesn’t stop us from feeling rage when we’re in traffic or despair when we have no cell reception.

Laughing away FWPs is one way to cope, but I’d like to go deeper and explore the psychology behind these pesky privilege pickles. Why do we react so much to so little? And how do we stop?

Let’s begin by examining our reaction to unexpected weather.

Is the problem real?

Recently, I got to ask severe weather researcher, Joshua Wurman: “Is weather becoming more or less predictable?” Are we justified in freaking out every time it’s hot in the spring or freezing in the fall? According to Wurman, weather has never been less surprising. Just think: the recent weather disasters in the U.S. were all forecasted.

So why are we perpetually surprised?

Reason #1: We suck at stats

Wurman suspects it’s because we have a short memory for unusual events. For example, bad storms happen every decade. Statistically, they are not surprising but, thanks to Tversky and Kahneman, we know that we’re not very good at internalizing stats. Even if something is normal, it still feels unusual if it’s rare.

Reason #2: Learned empowerment

How about when it comes to non-severe weather? Why do we react to a flurry with fury? As we discuss in an episode of our podcast, Talk Psych to Me, Seligman demonstrated that we can be taught helplessness. I suspect the opposite is also true: learned empowerment. If our smart phones usually give us accurate forecasts, our brains adjust to this expectation. Challenge the expectation and you get a neurochemical backlash.

So can we stop blaming the meteorologists and the Technology Gods and spare ourselves the emotional turmoil?

Solution #1: Always ready

Wurman points out that only twenty years ago, people rarely reacted with such intensity to weather because they were ready for surprise. You couldn’t rely on the forecast, so you carried an umbrella. I agree with the Coast Guard on this one: Semper Paratus.

Solution #2: Get hardened

Even in the U.S., not everyone responds to atmospheric surprise in the same way. Wurman is studying an area in Colorado that is constantly flooded. “People there don’t overreact,” he says, “They’re hardened.” To harden your edges, go a few weeks without checking the forecast so your brain can re-calibrate to expect unexpected changes in weather.

I’ve focused only on weather-related FWPs, but the same principles apply to just about any modern-day misery. It feels awful because our expectations are set so high. To cope: readjust your expectations, don’t rely fully on any one tool (e.g., if you always carry a book, you won’t suffer if the wifi signal is weak), and let yourself be surprised more often.

What are your worst first world problems and how do you cope with them?