Why are foreigners rushing to buy toilet paper under the epidemic? The real reason for this choking operation

Everyone knows that recently due to the impact of the epidemic, many prices have risen. People from all over the world are afraid of material shortages. They are crazy about all kinds of materials. You can think of robbing masks, disinfectants, alcohol, food and other items, but Australia, Canada, Japan In many countries, there have been many disputes over toilet paper in supermarkets. Is it true that foreigners love to be cleaner than us? For those foreign countries who prefer cleanliness, and that the main group of snatching toilet paper is otaku, it is completely fabricated and baseless. Today, I will talk about my views, hoping to solve your confusion.

Usage determines sales

You can first look at a set of data. A report published by the two major environmental organizations in the United States and Canada shows that the average American consumes 141 rolls of toilet paper each year, ranking first in the world; Japan ranks fourth, per capita per year Consume 91 rolls of toilet paper. Therefore, you can see that most of the residents in the countries that grab toilet paper use a lot of toilet paper. Therefore, toilet paper basically has the same status as rice in their hearts.

Speaking of this, some people may wonder how can toilet paper be equal to rice. This has to boast about our Chinese people’s energy-saving spirit. Every Chinese family must have many wipes for various purposes. However, foreigners are not interested in this stuff. In most cases, they like to use toilet paper. To put it simply, if a glass of juice is spilled, in China, you might see a woman wipe it with a rag, then wash the rag and use it; in foreign countries, it may be wiped with toilet paper and thrown away. Therefore, toilet paper is an indispensable necessity in their lives. On the contrary, we Chinese people don't have such a deep feeling for toilet paper, even if we rub a piece of hard paper in the toilet, we can use it.

Therefore, such a large use of toilet paper abroad determines his position in the hearts of the people in these countries to a certain extent. Therefore, they are selling toilet paper out of this mentality. Of course, it is very likely that they have never felt that toilet paper is in use. It is so important in their minds. But this is the secondary reason for the rush for toilet paper.

Fake news and media over-magnification

In fact, one of the main reasons why this rush of toilet paper was caused by rumors and over-promotion by the media. There were many rumors in the early days of the outbreak. There were rumors on the Internet that because the toilet paper is produced in China, the epidemic is likely to disrupt the production plan of China, a global toilet paper supplier, so it may not be available for purchase due to the epidemic. There are also rumors that toilet paper and masks are the same raw material, and the shortage of masks will inevitably lead to a shortage of toilet paper.

Therefore, due to the spread of these various rumors, some people began to snatch toilet paper wildly, and then the media began to report frantically as soon as they discovered such a phenomenon, so the last three became tigers, "Toilet paper will not be able to be bought due to the epidemic. "Has become a recognized "fact." So it caused a chain reaction, and then more and more people rushed to grab toilet paper. If you don’t understand it, you can use it as an analogy with the looting of "Shuanghuanglian" and other items during the epidemic in my country. The difference is that Chinese officials came out in time to refute the rumors. But foreign countries failed to dispel the rumors in time, and finally reached the point where the rumors were out of control, and no one believed the rumors.

After many toilet paper merchants see the benefits, they will be ready to move. In the eyes of these merchants, there are only benefits, and the foreign market lacks control. Unlike China, during the epidemic in China, for example, masks are severely punished if merchants increase prices indiscriminately. Different from other countries, these businessmen will use various methods and finally add fuel to the fire. This "toilet paper" turmoil is getting bigger and bigger, and then it creates the incredible situation of looting toilet paper that everyone sees now.

Follow suit

There is also a common psychological role for people to make trouble, that is, following the trend and following the crowd. Seeing that most people are doing it, no matter how firm they are, their heart will be shaken.

On the one hand, rumors and media have spawned, and the Internet has caused it. Mr. Lu Xun once said that there is no road in the world, and it becomes a road if there are more people walking. In the same way, every day I see toilet paper rushed everywhere on the Internet, and there is a shortage of news reports like this. Gradually, more people believe it, and it becomes a fact. There is also a Chinese idiom that can explain it well. This idiom is called "ears and eyes."

On the other hand, it is caused by offline follow-up, because although the Internet is popular now, many people are very new to the Internet. The offline reason has to start from the supermarket. If you pay more attention to life, your friends will definitely find that items such as toilet paper are usually placed in a more conspicuous place in the supermarket, because toilet paper has to be purchased in a large amount and basic It is a daily necessity for every household. So conspicuous changes in places are more noticeable, plus this special period of the epidemic. Maybe you didn’t even think about it at first. You have to buy a lot of these things. At first, you may plan to buy some of the daily necessities, but everyone is buying. Food is waiting for empty shelves. People may not pay much attention. . But the toilet paper that they didn’t pay much attention to was suddenly empty, they became curious, and then they sought answers through various channels, and finally misrepresented it. It was originally a thing that everyone was buying normally. It was mistaken for panic buying and followed suit. Operation, the achievement is now. The reason is that foreigners ignore the status of toilet paper in their hearts, and suddenly everyone buys them in large quantities and is mistaken for panic buying.

Panic

Of course, there is the psychological effect of following the trend, as well as the panic psychology of the residents. It can be understood that grabbing toilet paper is a way for them to vent their panic. When people face the coming danger, they always do something to alleviate such fear, as if you were hoarding a large amount of food and suddenly took a breath, feeling that you were not so scared for a short time. In this atmosphere of rushing to buy toilet paper, those who grab it will naturally "show off" their trophy in their own way. In order to get more psychological comfort, those who did not grab the toilet paper will panic more, and finally the positive feedback effect will make this atmosphere stronger.

Properties of toilet paper itself

Toilet paper can be stored for a long time, and there is basically no such thing as deterioration. Of course, I can’t help if you insist on using it to soak it in water. Therefore, most people will buy with the idea that "if you buy it, you don't need it, it doesn't hurt to use it in the future, it's better than buying it later." Therefore, the long storage capacity of toilet paper makes people willing to buy in large quantities in advance.

It is not recyclable. You have to throw away the toilet paper after you use it. Of course, I am helpless if you have to use the spirit of economy here. Anyway, for most people, it can only be used once and cannot be recycled, which also determines that people will buy a larger amount of toilet paper.

to sum up

A lot of content is actually duplicated, so let me summarize my personal views. Generally speaking, it is the rapid spread of rumors, the accelerated publicity of the news media, and the lack of correct guidance, coupled with the large usage of toilet paper itself, the characteristics of toilet paper preservation, and the people’s following trends and panic. With the assistance of vested interest groups, toilet paper is now in a frantic situation.