When the pandemic made its way to the US it was understandable that hand sanitizer, cleaning products, thermometers and masks were snapped up from stores. However, when the "stay at home" orders were issued certain isles in stores seemed to empty immediately. Most notably missing was toilet paper. If you didn't already have a supply on hand you were up the proverbial creek.
The mixed messages from State and National officials created anxiety and psychologists say that when people feel anxious and threatened behaving irrationally is common. Articles describe that the stockpiling of toilet paper wasn’t necessarily a selfish act of hoarding, it was an attempt to create order in a disordered situation. The cautious and anxious began a stampede panic buying is contagious. Being social animals we take cues from others, and when we see panic buying it causes fear and we tend to do the same.
Stockpiling became a national past time. Some companies reported a 700% increase in their sales of toilet tissue. To appease dissatisfied customers retail companies restricted the amount that could be purchased at one time. The day you could put a few rolls in your shopping cart you felt victorious.
When worries of the second wave of infections built, it happened all over again! The run on cleaning supplies and pantry staples makes sense, but I still don’t get it, why TP?
