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Sounds like they do understand panic buying. The issue is that it's completely rational on an individual level. "Panic" buying isn't really a good term for it

• kipchak 5y ago
  In the northeast it was typically bread and milk (and also toilet paper) people would stock up on before a big storm often causing shortages. I've seen "French Toast Alert" used but it's a bit too cute to quite capture it. [1]https://www.universalhub.com/french-toast https://www.universalhub.com/french-toast
• thinkingemote 5y ago
  The issue is that everyone thinks they are rational, there's not a bunch of people panicking and another bunch of people reacting to them. There's just one bunch! So yes the term is wrong but also people don't know what it is, and how they negatively contribute to the cycle. People don't panic when they "panic buy". People don't see themselves as panic buying and they are not reflective
  • fallingknife 5y ago
    They don't just think they are rational, they are rational. When there is a run on the bank, the rational thing to do is join the run, because if you do, you have a chance of getting your money, but if you don't, you have no chance. That is why this behavior is so hard to stop.
  • yifanl 5y ago
    I'm sure game theorists have studied this problem extensively so I could be very wrong and just showing off my ignorance, but I would think that the rational/utilitarian thing in a situation where a large number of actors are acting selfishly is to also act selfishly, assuming you have no effective method of influencing those other actors.