Hyper-Cocooning in the Age of Coronavirus

The acclaimed futurist Faith Popcorn coined the term “Cocooning” to describe the idea of an individual staying inside one's home insulated from the dangers of the outside world. In her 1991 book, The Popcorn Report, Popcorn describes cocooning as "the impulse to go inside when it just gets too tough and scary outside. To pull a shell of safety around yourself, so you're not at the mercy of a mean, unpredictable world - those harassments and assaults that run the gamut from rude waiters and noise pollution to crack-crime, recession, and AIDS. Cocooning is about insulation and avoidance, peace and protection, coziness and control-a sort of hyper-nesting."

Fast forward to 2020 and the world may be entering an extreme hyper-cocooning phase as legitimate concerns over the coronavirus, global warming, fractious politics, and loose gun legislation drive people to stay home. The impact of hyper-cocooning on our society is enormous and warrants exploration of what it might mean for you, your family, and your business.

World events drive hyper-cocooning, and currently, the coronavirus pandemic is a key driver. In mid-February, the largest mobile technology conference, Mobile World Congress, closed its doors as thousands of technology professionals stayed home because of coronavirus concerns. A cancellation of Italy's and Venice's beloved Carnival followed suit for similar coronavirus related fears. Major sporting events such as The Tokyo Marathon, a precursor to this summer's Olympics, restricted participation to only elite/professional athletes. All in all, people are staying at home.

Sometimes, individuals do not have a choice. As coronavirus spreads, governments are asking citizens to work from home or simply stay home. China asked millions to work from home as the initial phase of the virus worsened. Individuals returning from stricken countries like Italy are being ordered to self-isolate.

This pandemic acts as an extreme catalyst for hyper-cocooning but such "stay-at-home" behavior certainly was already beginning. The acceleration of the home-delivery of everything and the scaled home-entertainment options provided by streaming services make the "chillin' at home" lifestyle the new norm. Companies such as Shake Shack are rewarded or punished based on how effective their home delivery applications function. And normal social events like going to the movies are made more treacherous based on the fear of mass shootings. For example, the release of the Joker led to hundreds of theaters needing additional security over the worries of a potential attack.

Such a dramatic change in human behavior could have far-reaching impacts on society. In a hyper-cocooned word, high-connectivity matters more than ever. Advances such as 5G would become even more important as all aspects of life become digitally synthetic. White-collar remote workers would demand ever faster connections for high-quality video-conferencing and virtual collaboration tools. Enhanced virtual reality game systems like Oculus would need more bandwidth. Events may all become media events. Imagine a Super Bowl with no attendees. Hyper-cocooning would lead to a raised focus on the digital YOU as internet or mobile app profiles become the first and sometimes the only impression of you. The companies that manage the operations and logistics needed for the hyper-cocooned world would surge in importance. Amazon would become everything.

Let us all hope and pray that the coronavirus worries abate and all will return to the semi-normal world we inhabit today. So far, 2020 appears to be a year full of challenges for our world that will demand great planning and action by all. But perhaps, let's also use the time at home to think about how we build a society where the dystopian elements of hyper-cocooning do not take hold.