Familiarity - Profile of an Underrated Basic Drive
Ask around for help on understanding why people resist change and you'll likely hear the most common and obvious answer: Fear. Dig a little deeper and you'll hear about the fear based details:
Fear of the unknown
Threats to job security
Loss of control
Distrust of motives
Blame for failure
Loss of a predictable routine
Doubt about capabilities
It could be a lengthy and valid list of concerns. Anyone advocating a significant change to the status quo or someone's status in a group would be well-advised to understand and address the fears, particularly if this is a change at the workplace. People have their livelihoods and identity tied up in what they understand their purpose to be at work.
There is frequently a partner in the wagon with fear. People rely on the familiar to carry them through uncertain times. The familiar is comfortable and comfort is both King and Queen in the personal realm. We work very hard to confirm our opinions and beliefs so that they stay familiar. We leverage our rational skills not to seek the truth, but to keep our familiar personal truth from changing.
The real-time tragic-comedy being played out before our daily lives is that while most people will readily admit they don't know how a zipper works, they will nonetheless damn near come to blows arguing about the best way to handle a global pandemic or war being waged half-way around the world from them.
Image by Dr. Georg Wietschorke from Pixabay