False perceptions of hurricanes

COMMENTARY BY MARIE WEISSON, STAFF WRITER

FLORIDA IS in the middle of another catastrophic hurricane season, and as always, social networks are full of jokes and memes about the latest tropical cyclone. As a result, misinformation is spread, creating a lack of seriousness regarding these types of incidents.

Floridians often act as if there is no immediate danger when dealing with hurricanes. A clear example of this is the ever-popular hurricane parties. This is when residents will use an incoming hurricane as an excuse to throw a party, seemingly the exact opposite of what one should do in this situation. Students at Florida State University are among the many who partake in this dangerous tradition, according to FSU News. This disregard for the harm of these storms can be attributed to the optimism bias.

The “could never happen to me” mentality, also known as optimism bias, refers to the tendency to see future desirable outcomes as more probable than undesirable ones, according to the National Library of Medicine. This tendency can be seen in the Floridian attitude towards hurricanes.

“These obviously negatively impact society because now no one takes literal natural disasters seriously anymore,” junior Catherine Puello said.

This does not affect the seriousness of the hurricane itself but instead the perception of how it will impact people’s own lives. As a result, people are not often prepared for when a hurricane does have disastrous effects.

Trends in hurricane severity do not align with trends in people’s mentality towards these storms. The severity of the most recent storm coastal residents experience often guides their perception of future hurricanes, according to the International Journal of Climatology. This is what leads to the growth of harmful mentalities, where people disregard the danger of hurricanes.

“I’ve never experienced any catastrophic damage from a hurricane so sometimes I forget their danger,” senior Hamyail Bokhari said.

Misinformation is an effect of social media, as it generates different perspectives and opinions. According to the National Library of Medicine, social media can influence one’s perception of the truth. From the jokes made on Florida-based pages to blatant misinformation, the perspective on hurricanes is shifted toward less serious.

“Social media posts on hurricanes positively affect society because they help others not to take it so seriously and get scared,” senior Mikaeyla Betancourt said. “Other times it affects us negatively because then no one wants to act serious about it when it’s time to.”

Furthermore, excessive optimism has significant effects on perspective, yet it is frequently used as a coping mechanism for disastrous events, like hurricanes. According to the National Library of Medicine article, being optimistic is a way of hiding the fear or terror that people usually have.

“Maybe a little humor can help people not worry too much or stress too much about it,” sophomore Eliem Salazar said.

On May 31, AAA’s hurricane season survey found one in four Floridians say they would ignore hurricane evacuation warnings. These residents are putting themselves in harm’s way, despite the deadliness of hurricanes due to a false perception of their impact.

It is more important than ever to be vigilant for misinformation online since erroneous information can be found about these catastrophic events.