By Andy Douglas
Would it be stretching things to say we’re living in a time of tremendous mental and social dysfunction? I don’t think so. Levels of mental illness are rising like floodwaters. Gun violence, especially here in the U.S., where I write from, rings out frequently. As the culture creates more violence, the violence in turn hardens the culture.
Social media has an outsized role to play in this dysfunction. Cynicism and sarcasm are for many the dominant mode of expression online, manifested by efforts to ‘cancel’ others or write off their opinions. Some of this is calculated. Media programmers tweak algorithms, encouraging sensational outbursts to keep people scrolling and clicking. Political operatives inject dissension into the discourse, as a means to sow chaos.
All of this fuels mental and social dysfunction, creating an unhealthy, unbalanced milieu that encourages selfish behavior and stokes alienation.
Political Dysfunction and Its Social Impact
Politically speaking, dysfunction is at chart-topping highs as we see the number of authoritarian-leaning countries rise, the U.S. near the top of the list. The U.S. government was shut down for two months in the fall of 2025, but even before this, both Congress and the President were mired in self-serving behaviors that left the public at large worse off.
Those feeling left out by modern society and left behind by the economy cast their votes for leaders who actively created chaos and dysfunction. Science, education, and a welcoming environment for immigrants were sacrificed on the altar of ignorant charisma.
Even within movements for social change, you find battles for territory or power. Activist groups often fissure, fracture and split due to interpersonal pressures and dynamics.
The Inner–Outer Imbalance of Mental and Social Dysfunction
Which might lead one to ask, how can we even begin to think of doing the work to create a better society when there is so much dysfunction around us?
P. R. Sarkar notes some of the roots of this mental and social dysfunction in his book The Liberation of Intellect: Neohumanism:
“Present-day humanity has, no doubt, made considerable intellectual progress. But in the external world, there is a lack of adjustment. This is the reason that among the educated people of today the number of people suffering from psychic/psychiatric disorders is on the increase: because there is no adjustment in the speeds of the inner and outer worlds.”
He goes on to say,
“Not only is there maladjustment in speed but also in rhythm; that is, the pattern of internal psychic rhythm is altogether different from the external rhythm of the objective world. Obviously, clash is inevitable, and the impact of this clash is felt much more in the psychic realm than in the physical sphere. As a result, human beings lose their mental adjustment.”
In other words, people’s internal worlds of thought and feeling do not sync up with the harsh realities of the outer world, and this leads to imbalance.
Personal Stories Within a Dysfunctional System
A friend of mine was a white-collar worker for many years, married and living an established life. It all fell apart due to his addictions, and he ended up living on the street. As human beings, we all want to be loved, we all want peace of mind. If we don’t understand how to productively meet those needs, it’s pretty easy to fill the void with things like meth, alcohol, or sex. Mainstream culture even encourages some of this indulgent behavior in movies and music.
For many people, materialism and accumulation of more wealth are the goals of life, but these, too, soon lead to mental illness. How else to explain the incessant desire for more on the part of those who already have so much? This desire to amass more and more can only be seen as a kind of mental illness.
We have to realize that people are shaped by their experiences, especially in childhood. Adverse Childhood Experiences can lead to trauma, and to life-long dysfunction. In treatment circles there has in recent years been a focus on trauma-based therapies which seek to heal these lingering wounds. Just like the Post-Traumatic Stress of a soldier in a war zone, traumatic events lingering from childhood need particular care and healing.
Poverty, homelessness, abuse, and absent parents are all contributors to mental and social dysfunction.
Overcoming Mental and Social Dysfunction
How can we overcome some of this dysfunction?
On a social level, working to create congenial living conditions for everyone is imperative. Social policy which ensures a stock of good, affordable housing, and economic policy which ensures full employment, are essential.
Education, too, goes a long way toward lifting people out of poverty, dispelling superstition, even instilling confidence that might head off some mental health issues. That’s why cuts to education funding and restriction of curricula, a curtailing of science and the arts can only lead to bad outcomes.
Reducing the vast disparity of wealth distribution through targeted public policies will also bring about a more balanced and less dysfunctional society.
Successful social change requires a shift in people’s values and, but also in fundamental psychic orientations, shifting away from self-centered or materialistic outlooks, to more community-minded ones. Spiritual practice is one way to help with this shift. As Sarkar says,
“One of the numerous benefits of [meditation] is that it keeps the mind free from psychic disease and encourages the natural growth of the mind.”
From these spiritual, well-adjusted individuals, leadership emerges. We only need a few good leaders who demonstrate that they really care about people to begin to turn the tide in a positive direction.
A Campaign for Cultural Value Change
We could envision a campaign for cultural value change, a campaign that focuses not on accumulation, but on connection, creativity and culture. Such a campaign could feature films, stories and music that celebrate values of community and service, instead of encouraging selfishness. These cultural expressions can help counteract mental and social dysfunction and build a collective movement toward wellbeing.
In the end, it’s about creating a congenial environment. We can exercise patience and empathy and inspire others to do the same. And we can fight against the injustice and economic exploitation that sustains social dysfunction wherever we encounter it.