RPG Chairman Harsh Goenka gave an example of a society where, despite sufficient resources, overpopulation resulted in social breakdown, behavioral problems and violence. The example emphasized the importance of social structure, purpose and adequate space for social well-being rather than a mere focus on material needs.
Referring to John B. Calhoun’s “Mouse’s Paradise” experiment, where the mice initially thrived with abundant resources, but eventually faced social collapse when overpopulated.
In a post on social media platform X, Goenka wrote: “In the late 1960s, Dr. John Calhoun built a ‘Mouse Paradise’ – unlimited food, water, shelter. No fear, no scarcity, no predators. Only abundance.”
He added: “At first the mice flourished. But when the colony exceeded 600, society collapsed. The strong hoarded space. The weak were bullied. Mothers abandoned their young. Violence increased. Mating stopped. Purpose disappeared.”
Emphasizing the accuracy of the experiment, Goenka said: “Calhoun repeated the experiment 25 times. The result never changed: When a population loses sense, purpose and social ties, it dies long before the body.”
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Netizens react
Several social media users responded to Goenka’s post and shared their thoughts on Calhoun’s mouse experiment.
One user wrote: “Good point. But to realize that abundant people make revolutions, wars, destroy countries and societies with it. Not having it and having it anyway leads to destruction.”
Another added: “Right! Progress without purpose creates fragile societies.”
One user said: “True. AI would create abundance, but humanity should always pursue peaceful purposes.”
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What is Calhoun’s mouse experiment?
Ecologist John B Calhoun shared the findings of a series of experiments conducted at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) in a 1962 issue of Scientific American.
He placed several rats in a laboratory housed in a converted barn, where they were protected from disease and predators and provided with food, water and bedding, allowing them to reproduce rapidly, according to a report released by the National Institutes of Health.
The only problem they faced was lack of space, a problem that became more severe when what he called his “rat city” and “rodent utopia” became overrun with animals. The frequency of unwanted social interactions increased, causing more stress and aggression.
The violence quickly spiraled out of control, leading to cannibalism and infanticide. Calhoun described this cycle as a “slump in behavior”. Their numbers rapidly declined, eventually leading to extinction. At the end of the experiments, only animals with immense psychological costs survived. Although reintroduced into the normal rodent population, the creatures remained isolated until death.
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What was the impact of experiments on mice on humans?
However, the experiment on human beings showed inconsistent results, the report said. In a remarkable series of experiments by psychologist Jonathan Freedman, participants performing tasks in different clustering conditions showed few problems.
The focus has shifted from simply recognizing the harmful consequences of density to understanding the factors that influence its effects. This shift was supported by the distinction between “density” as an objective physical measure and “crowdedness” as an individual’s subjective experience.
The feeling of crowding results from various social and psychological factors, such as individuals’ preferred level of privacy, their control over situations, or their social roles. While higher density may be inevitable, people are able to adapt to the crowd, the report said.
