Sidewalk Rage: Mental Illness or Altruistic Punishment

Ever find yourself shouting in your car at the person driving in front of you? Ever honk at them? Many people are familiar with road rage and some of us even have road rage. Something that caught my eye about this article was the title. Sidewalk rage. I figured people to be rude when walking behind a slow person who won't move but I never thought it would really become a big problem. This is especially true in New York City where their bodies are their cars. New Yorkers are descending into sidewalk rage. Sidewalk rage come from people who exhibit irrational and obstructive walking behavior because the person in front of them wont move over. What would you call this? Is this a sign of mental illness or "could it perhaps reflect an evolutionary adaptation that may have enabled the development of cooperation?" (Time Magazine) Sidewalk rage may indicate an illness but of course the idea raises a more interesting question as to why normal people feel the same intense emotion of sidewalk rage when they have to move around slow people.
Altruistic Punishment is what researches are calling this. AP is basically how the social norms get enforced. They give this example:

When you expel a huffy "Excuse me!" to the rude sidewalk clogger in front of you who has stopped midstride to check his Blackberry, you're trying to discourage behavior that endangers other members of the society. It's called "altruistic" punishment, because your efforts to protect civility come at personal cost with little chance of personal benefit: you are far more likely to get an obscene gesture or even a punch in the mouth than a thank you.

Scientists did a recent study that explored whether altruistic punishment was an act of deliberations and self control or is it an emotional impulse. They found a connection between impulsiveness and altruistic punishment suggesting that it is more a result from an emotional impulse rather than just because.

I thought that this was a great article to read and it was very interesting. I think that now-a-days this makes total sense that people act like this. It is annoying to hear people behind you huffing and puffing because your not running down the street to keep up with everyone else. At the same time, people need to be courteous and move over so others can get by. I have to admit that I have done this myself. I have gotten irritated with people driving slow or walking right in the middle making it impossible for others to get around you. I think that it goes to show that people are in too much of a hurry with life and are always on the move. Take some time to stop and smell the fresh air!


To read the full article go to:
http://healthland.time.com/2011/02/17/sidewalk-rage-mental-illness-or-altruistic-punishment/