Fred Guttenberg’s behavior at Capitol Hill

Fred Guttenberg’s behavior at Capitol Hill

Introduction

The event involved a protestor who interrupted President Donald Trump when he was delivering his speech on the state of the union in Capitol Hill. The man who was later identified as Fred Guttenberg and had lost her daughter in crowd shooting that occurred in Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school, Florida, in 2008 urged the President to do something about gun violence. Guttenberg’s behavior is of particular interest because it is unusual to interrupt the speech of the President of the United States without fear considering the degree of penalty that may follow the action. This essay uses different psychological theories to analyze Guttenberg’s behavior that led him to interrupt the President’s speech.

Theory of learning

The constructivism theory of learning describes Guttenberg’s behavior, which, according to Qasem (2015), refers to the ability of individuals to create their understanding of their surroundings in the world by linking previous experiences with new information. This theory focuses on how humans make decisions concerning their ideas and experiences. Having lost her daughter in a tragic incident, Guttenberg knew that the only way to prevent any future occurrence of the same event was to air his views directly to the President. Through the experience of losing his child, he was aware of the painful moments people go through and did not wish any other person to face the same situation. He, therefore, took this bold step of representing the people who were losing their loved ones through gun violence and directly told the President to take action on the vice. Guttenberg might have learned this behavior from other similar cases, such as in 2009, when President Obama’s speech was interrupted by Joe Wilson when the President was outlining his proposals for improving healthcare. Guttenberg, therefore, knew that this was a sure way of getting the President’s attention.

Theory of emotion that applies to Guttenberg’s behavior

The James-Lange theory of emotion best applies to Guttenberg’s action. This theory states that an individual experiences a feeling of fear after experiencing mental stimulation( Cannon, 1987). The death of Guttenberg’s daughter transpired him to champion for actions against gun violence. He feared that if no proper measures were taken, then the same mistake would probably be repeated, and there would be loss of lives again. This was evident when he firmly interrupted the President’s speech because probably he knew that he might not have been given a chance to talk to the President. According to him, gun violence was a very crucial issue that needed an immediate response.

Theory of stress. Stress is a more dynamic process that involves transactions between a person’s multiple systems, which includes their psychological and cognitive systems and their environments ( Wundt, 2013). The stress influenced Guttenberg’s behavior that he had been undergoing after losing his daughter. Losing a loved one is one of the awkward moments of any person, and the pain is always accompanied by intense stress that, if not adequately controlled through counseling, may lead to a change of behavior for some people. The person’s environment plays a significant role in shaping a person’s life after the loss of beloved ones through encouragement and company. Stress is a gradual process that Guttenberg may not have easily noticed, and the result was his determination to end gun violence. His behavior was a clear indication of a stressed person who was determined to pass information about ending gun violence to the President despite the consequences that may follow the means he was using.

Social psychological phenomena

Some people may have assisted and encouraged Guttenberg in his fight to end gun violence. Gun violence is a social phenomenon that affects not only the families involved but also decreased the economic growth of different states through the loss of productive individuals (Esposito & Finley, 2014). Various organizations, such as Americans for Gun Safety Foundation, are always at the forefront in creating awareness against gun violence. The actions and determination of most people and organizations to curb this vice might have encouraged Guttenberg to continue with his plan of interrupting the President during his speech.

Conclusion

The interruption of the President’s Trump speech was a result of discontent by Guttenberg on the measures that were in place to prevent gun violence. The behavior of Guttenberg was a result of the long time stress that he had faced following the shooting of his daughter in school. I, therefore, believe that his actions were a result of nature, which was due to the experience of losing one of his family members. Many states in the United States are struggling to contain acts of gun violence, and Guttenberg believed that it was his chance to confront the President to address the issue directly.

References

Cannon, W. (1987). The James-Lange Theory of Emotions: A Critical Examination and an Alternative Theory. The American Journal Of Psychology, 100(3/4), 567. https://doi.org/10.2307/1422695

Esposito, L., & Finley, L. (2014). Beyond Gun Control: Examining Neoliberalism, Pro-gun Politics, and Gun Violence in the United States. Theory In Action, 7(2), 74-103. https://doi.org/10.3798/tia.1937-0237.14011

Qasem, M. (2015). Constructivist Learning Theory in Physiotherapy Education: A Critical Evaluation of Research. Journal Of Novel Physiotherapies, 05(02). https://doi.org/10.4172/2165-7025.1000253

Wundt, W. (2013). Introduction to Psychology. Read Books Ltd.