By Dr Samantha J. Brooks Ph.D.
Looking around Harfield Village of late, one cannot fail to
notice that many people are selling up and relocating. It appears to be a
seller’s market, which can be exciting. However, it can also be extremely
stressful with moving rated as one of the top three stressful life events alongside death of another and divorce.
But what are the brain processes that might underlie this sudden exodus
out of the village? Is it something to do with underlying stress-related
emotions concerning the country’s potential changing political
circumstances? Or is it rather that
Harfield Villagers are one of the top ‘up-and-coming’, ‘moving and shaking’
demographics in Cape Town? Whatever the reasons for the sprouting of for sale
signs around the village, how do our brains enable us to make that leap into
the unknown, to plan ahead and to secure the best deal on a house at the right
time? 
The first step to moving house is the actual decision to
move – a brain process that often occurs long before the move actually
happens. What causes this shift in the
brain? Usually, something is evaluated
as not quite satisfactory, and the brain often registers this disquiet
unconsciously at first. Or perhaps the
shift in the brain is more gradual and related to a positive evaluation, such
as keeping an eye on savings for a deposit until there is enough to buy a
better house. Decision-making,
regardless of whether it stems from disquiet or positivity, always involves
emotion – and according to Daniel Kahneman, a famous behavioural economist and
neuroscientist – decisions are either made by thinking fast or slow. Fast – or hot – cognitions are driven by
bottom-up, usually unconscious processes that can lead to impulsive decisions,
especially when our prefrontal cortex is overloaded already. Think about those times you might have made
an impulsive purchase at the shopping mall during busy holidays! Bottom-up, hot, unconscious brain activation
may drive us to make decisions we may later regret. In contrast, more important decisions – such
as buying or selling a house – should, according to Daniel Kahneman, be made by
slow – or cold – cognitions. This type
of thinking resides in the top part of the brain enabling us to carefully
examine our feelings and our planned actions before making the final leap into
the unknown. Top-down cold cognitions
are largely conscious, forcing us to stop and carefully deliberate on our
actions before deciding.
So then, is it hot or cold cognitions fuelling the exodus
and selling of houses in Harfield Village of late? If people are worried about transformational
politics and changes in land reforms, then it could be that hot cognitions are
encouraging people to suddenly sell up.
However, Cape Town has one of the fastest evolving housing markets in
the world, which allows more people to be aspirational and to get their first
step on the housing ladder. So, just as
people are selling, others must be making the decision to buy! And moving into one of the beautiful houses
of various price ranges in Harfield Village doesn’t need slow, cold cognition
to know that it is a hot choice for sure!
Dr Samantha Brooks is a neuroscientist at the UCT Department
of Psychiatry and Mental Health, and at Uppsala University, Sweden,
specialising in the neural correlates of impulse control from eating disorders
to addiction. For more information on
neuroscience at UCT and to contact Samantha, see www.drsamanthabrooks.com.
Note: Images royalty free, courtesy of https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki.
