OPINION:Our problem lies with a golden circle, not within the Irish psyche, writes GERALDINE MOANE
IN AN opinion piece on October 4th (Ideas for recovery cannot ignore cultural dimension, Opinion and Analysis), Michael Casey argues that the Irish psyche must be taken into account in looking for solutions to the present crisis. He lists several examples of patterns that he considers to be characteristic of the Irish psyche, and that can be linked to our history of colonisation.
It is notable that the patterns he describes are all highly problematic and that these patterns are invoked to partly explain the financial difficulties in which we now find ourselves.
It is particularly worrisome that a former chief economist with the Central Bank and former member of the board of the IMF is setting out a view of the Irish psyche that includes: an “obsession” with “owning bricks and mortar”, “bureaucratic inertia and reluctance to take responsibility”, “people pleasing” and a “lurch” from mania to despair. These are linked to our colonial past, which is also linked to the “diffidence and deference” shown by the financial regulator.
Such characterisations of the Irish psyche are both costly and dangerous. If these views are being expressed in international financial circles is it any wonder that “the markets” lack confidence in the Irish Government, manifest in the cost of exceptionally high interest rates?
The national and international coverage of the Taoiseach’s drinking behaviour would also seem to be part of a willingness to invoke stereotypes that seem to imply that “the Irish” are somehow to blame for the current crisis. Such discussions of the Irish psyche are linked to longstanding colonial stereotypes about the Irish that also include lazy, impulsive, irrational and fantasy prone, stereotypes that have been applied to other formerly colonised groups.
It is a short step to argue that the cause of the present crisis lies in the Irish psyche, and not in the greed of an elite of financial and political decision-makers.
If there are legacies of our colonial history that may be linked to our current crisis, these legacies lie in economic underdevelopment, and in political and cultural institutions that rendered us vulnerable to continued global domination and facilitated the emergence of crony capitalism, or a small elite of financiers and politicians.
Such an elite, or golden circle, must continue to be held largely responsible for the current crisis. It is their policies and incentives that shape the environment in which people make financial decisions. Unfortunately, their policies continue to be motivated by the desire to protect their interests and are bereft of a vision for the future.
The negative characterisations of the Irish not only undermine international confidence but also national confidence. Feelings of fear, despair and insecurity are a realistic response to a drastic situation, not manifestations of disordered bipolar behaviour.
A realistic assessment of how we got here rather than the invoking of a shadowy postcolonial psyche is essential if we are to find a way forward. This must involve a clear analysis of political and economic structures and their serious flaws. This in turn can pave the way for strategies for transformation that can create a better future.
If there is any legacy of colonisation that can be of help, it is our histories of resistance and of the visions that have been set out. This history includes mass mobilisation and community and cultural forms of resistance, as well as values of equality and social justice that can form the cornerstone of new visions.
Many of these values and traditions are evident in the community and NGO sectors that are being undermined by government policy and that are too often ignored by mainstream media. An example of this is the forthcoming Claiming our Future event, which aims to provide a forum to explore the values of equality, inclusion, sustainability and human dignity as the basis for a thriving Ireland. If we are to draw on our colonial past, let us draw on legacies of resistance and vision, rather than resorting to blaming the victim.
Geraldine Moane is senior lecturer at the school of psychology in UCD. Claiming Our Future takes place on Saturday, October 30th, at the RDS in Dublin; further information via www.claimingourfuture.ie