Next>><<HomeArticle about Big Brother printed in The Journal of the British Performing Arts Medicine Trust (Issue 2: Spring 2001) copyright©2001 J BrendPERFORMANCE PRESSURE ON SHOW Game On - High StakesA game show, £70,000 winner takes all. What followed captured phenomenal public interest. Big Brother Live - The Year 2000 Channel 4 created a television series called Big Brother. Ten people lived for nine weeks in a house with a garden, chickens and a vegetable patch. Their every move was under surveillance twenty-four hours a day. Each week the house mates privately nominated two others for eviction, then one individual left after public voting. Rules included no outside contact, no writing materials and no attempt to influence others. Money for food and drink was determined by successful achievement of challenges. Public vote determined the winner from 'a final three'. Continuous Internet viewing was available for public access. The competitors were Nick, Claire, Craig (winner), Thomas, Darren, Nichola, Anna, Melanie, Caroline, Sada. Theatre Over the centuries scholars learned to write down stories. Dance can be a celebration of the human state. Humans are programmed to use metaphor for understanding the world around them. The Human Givens perspective suggests that we seek to explain personal predicaments and search for meaning without which boredom, depression and despair may surface. Recent research shows some Human Givens are often neglected, misunderstood and overlooked. A sense of community is one of them. Stage performers can express powerful, lasting messages and even be audience driven. The idea of Big Brother seems almost Greek and Roman like - constant viewing and sudden death. Increasingly documented is how emotional arousal can become addictive; creating trance states. Behaviour becomes irrational even bizarre. Survival tactics begin to surface when people feel under pressure. In Big brother, Nick's blatant disregard for house rules was unfolding. He used manipulation tactics and mind games to influence voting. Consequently, verbal and written warnings were given to everyone. A need for autonomy and a measure of control over our lives is needed in order to function well. Cope states an individual within an organisation can influence in a positive or negative way. Dr Alice Greene describes a Model of Health Influences where the environment is outside our control, whereas diet, relaxation, exercise and attitude are self regulated physiological influences and the health effects that are autonomic and trainable include physical influences (e.g. Immunological, vascular, environmental). Ultimately all of these influence and interact with each other. The Nature of Stress Hans Seyle describes stress as the rate of wear and tear caused by all life. Another interpretation is 'an individuals response to different situations creates a psychological reaction in a positive or negative way'. (Paine Pensinger and Oliphant) 'Stress is any factor that disturbs the self/nonself barriers encoded in the fundamental quantum frequencies'. Classification of Stress In the 1930's Seyle began to study the syndrome of 'just being sick'. Various stressors provoked a series of non specific body responses. Three stages were identified:-
; Seyle believed that meeting challenges produces good stress which gives a rush or a high feeling. Good stress keeps us Motivated and Enthusiastic about life. Seyle recommended that we expose ourselves to as much good stress as possible without being overloaded. So, turn frustrating obstacles into exciting challenges. Warrior Mode Instantly responding to real or perceived threat, humans have a remarkable system for survival. 'Red Alert' Body Responses for instant fight or flight
Public
reactions included being awe struck with addictive, compulsive viewing.
This is exactly what the TV producers hoped to achieve. TV ratings soared.
Joe Griffin, a psychologist and Ivan Tyrell, a psychotherapist state that
awe is an emotion that can lock our attention and make us stupid. Many
contestants who apply to enter game shows are drawn by fame and fortune.
Nick said he did not enter for the money, yet he found himself to be extremely
competitive and behaving strangely. Nick tried to cheat the system, including
using pencil and paper. He said he adopted a game plan of 'live by the
sword, die by the sword'; a fight and flight strategy often used under
conditions of stress by our primitive ancestral brain. Nick went in fighting
and found himself with a quick death by instant dismissal.
Emotional Overload
Part of human nature is to trust others. When this trust is misplaced, then strong feelings emerge as shown by the group. Initial reactions described by the contestants were, feelings of shock, anger and pity. Many groups can become split at this point into: those who are angry or hate, feel disappointed, rejected, those who want to love, give care and support. Idolising someone can become destructive or possessive. Either way a difficult image to live up to. Another emotion is pity, by making others feel sorry for you. Nick was clever in using this tactic early on, inventing a sad story, saying he had a wife who was killed in a car crash. Later, he tried to excuse his behaviour, by suggesting that he was badly advised. After all it is a game show, although it may be viewed as a life and death opportunity by some. Keeping In Touch With Reality Restrictions can be experienced as stressful. Every person adapts differently. The group began to miss their family and friends. Some Performers do likewise, especially on tour. Modern communication is helpful to keep in touch. Interestingly Craig had some outside contact (doctor/dentist) due to a knee injury and a broken tooth. Sickness creates attention to personal needs. Nick's interview, following dismissal, gave some insight into his feelings. On the question of winning and money, he said that he would have given part of the money to cancer research because a friend had cancer. He showed a moment of irritation by saying, he thought that not enough money was spent on cancer research. Nick showed early symptoms of stress: fidgeting, lying, feeling ashamed, rapid inhaling on a cigarette, making mistakes, suggestions to compromise. He talked about his job as aggressive with a cut throat dog eat dog environment. Nick said he was a Reiki Master and used healing to help others. Many people go into the caring professions. Research shows many people in the entertainment and caring professions become stressed. What they sometimes become addicted to, is the feeling of power to influence other people and make decisions for them. Believing in the power to control the event by any means is justified by black and white thinking. It may be 'only a game show' but £70,000 is a lot of money. In this situation Nick used the power of authority to create an awe. Money and fame can do the same. Many people, like Nick, have been brought up with strong leadership ideals. Underneath they may be genuinely nice people, caring, often witty and humorous. In the heat of the moment, the cleverest of people can be swept along by emotions such as greed, anger, fear, lust, even depression. Depression is a very strong emotion, excessive fight/flight response resulting in tunnel vision and distorted REM sleep. Griffin and Tyrrell recommend problem solving, humour, relaxation and lowering of the arousal levels because 'in depressed people the levels of the stress hormone cortisol in their blood are much higher than normal'. Survival The human brain has evolved to create flexibility of thought and action rather than reacting automatically to stimuli that poses a real or imagined threat. Mentally healthy people who can think in a flexible way, will limit their damage of a setback by not globalising in an all or nothing way. They accept what is in their control and what is not. They don't get sucked into the illusion of no control or total control in any situation - view expressed by The European Therapy Studies Institute. The public had the opportunity to cheer or boo the evicted person. It was like being at a pantomime where the plot unfolds, the hero is rewarded while the bad guy gets his just desserts. Nick was evicted by the back door and taken to a secret location. Many well wishers supported him. Newspapers headlined the story. The Vigilant Mind Relaxing With Nick gone, the house atmosphere changed. Tension seemed to dissolve. New blood in the form of replacement Claire injected a spark of life. There was more a sense of fun. However, some distrust is natural when a newcomer joins a group. Changes create an emotional response with strong feelings of what's fair and right for self preservation. As non smokers, Craig and Claire used hide and seek - hiding cigarettes belonging to others. Sometimes tension and anxiety can be masked by diverting attention onto other people. Smokers were driven to search the house without success. Thomas used his designer skills to illustrate oppression in the house. He came across as sensitive and caring. One morning a Jacuzzi was placed in the garden; opportunity for the group to unwind so releasing tension. Stress shows itself in different ways and sexual tension can be difficult to hide. Evidence of sexual longings began to surface in the group. I would liken the entertainment value to a fairy story with a bit of romance thrown in for good measure. Outside, the public let off steam as the mood gripped them and the plot thickened. Unlike a book no-one could read the ending. Public votes were record breaking, mobile phones red hot with use. The public greeted Tom's eviction as a hero returning home from a long campaign. Seen in the flesh, like a movie star, the cheers, adulation and euphoria were huge. Bobby Davro Humour as Stress Release Every house mate talked about the tension during nominations. Arousal responses were felt in anticipation of the event. Nichola and Anna described their reactions in graphic detail; feeling sick, anxiety, shaking, biting fingernails, wanting to pee in the pants and unable to sit still. Short term adrenaline kicks also create an exciting buzz and a quick fix. Long term, some people turn into adrenaline junkies with prolonged stress taking its toll such as illness, accidents and difficulty in sleeping. Arousal is governed by different chemicals in the brain stem. Emotions or illness sends signals to modulate the workings of many circuits of the brain cells. Caton, physiologist, was first to measure these electrical signals, the EEG, 1875. Brain activity when relaxed with eyes closed shows a predominance of the alpha rhythm. Nichola began to realise that she wanted to win but her ability to co-ordinate let her down during the circus tasks. Nichola said she missed her family and friends. Anna used the unicycle to vent her frustration. Darren, a married family man, kept himself busy cooking, cleaning, playing the guitar and caring for the chickens. At one point, the group got bored and asked Big Brother for things to do. Boredom is the other side of the coin to overwork, equally stressful for some people. Performers often spend long periods of time waiting around. One reward offered to the group, was to watch a Bobby Davro video. Research shows that laughter is an excellent stress buster. The opposite to the stress arousal state is the parasympathetic division concerned with relaxation, to restore and conserve energy which Dr Greenfield describes as peace mode. Darren and Craig chose to watch the video and Craig said he had the best night's sleep ever. The others chose to go to bed and sleep. Sleep helps to rejuvenate the weary. Performers may experience frequent disruption to normal patterns of sleep. Social experiment Stress prone individuals may resort to alcohol, smoking, drugs or other risk taking activities to relieve pressure and tension. Overall the group may have consumed a large amount of alcohol and dehydration is another possible factor implicated in the stress cycle. Big Brother tested the contestants' ability to withstand unusual challenges. Darrren overcame his chicken phobia with Melanie's help. When Craig was nearly voted out and felt rejected, Darren was supportive by saying that Craig was wanted. Feeling wanted is a powerful influence. Melanie approached Nick, after the confrontation, urging him to face the group. The possibility of rejection is something that performers face as part of their work. A sense of community and close friendships provided support during the ups and downs. Finally, Craig gave his winnings to a friend who needed an operation. A friend indeed! The Big Brother game show created discussion, communication and perhaps, some sense of meaning for those who watched the programmes. Written scripts can be edited. Filming 'live' may serve as a metaphor for understanding our personal stress responses. References
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