As we are learning about the first person to die of Ebola on American soil, the level of panic seems to be rising. And as we hear that the first two members of the medical profession in the U.S. have acquired Ebola, it seems the situation continues to escalate. 

At more than 4,000 deaths worldwide, this is the largest Ebola virus outbreak to date. However, the number of infections and deaths in the United States is minuscule and is being addressed by medical professionals.

The panic reaction that many are experiencing outweighs the realistic danger of Ebola to the average American. Why, exactly, is that the case?

In developmental psychology, there is a concept known as the “personal fable.” This is a cognitive state associated with adolescence. Two of the main characteristics are the notions that the subject is 1) unique and 2) invulnerable.

We Americans have a national fable that America is both unique and invincible. Look at the reaction of Americans to the events of September 11, 2001. Many lives were lost, including that of a relative of mine, but more than that, we lost a sense of security. We were so desperate to regain that security that we sacrificed convenience, privacy and freedom.

As we see it, Americans do not get Ebola. We are rich, healthy, safe and untouchable. Except that’s not that the case. We must once again confront our vulnerability, which is, psychologically, a difficult endeavor.

Moreover, Ebola is associated with the Third World, especially Africa. It is natural for humans to engage in categorization, which leads us to create stereotypes and schemas.

Now, categorization is important to human survival. It would be overwhelming to the human mind if we saw every object and situation as unique. Take cats, for example. We expect cats to behave in a particular way and to have certain characteristics.

People, sadly, are categorized in the same way and suffer because of “cognitive laziness,” our tendency to want fewer rather than more categories.

Having two categories would be ideal for simplifying our lives. We behave one way toward category X and the opposite toward category Y. People are either good or bad, desirable or undesirable, criminal or noncriminal, associated with certain diseases or not.

Africans get Ebola. Americans only get Ebola if they choose, foolishly, to go to Africa and work with “those people.” All we have to do is keep “those people” out, and isn’t that what we are doing?

Finally, humans are reinforced by predictability and controllability. We rely on the sense that we can see things coming, on the notion that we can exert some control over our destinies.

Frankly, it is surprising to us that Ebola should have come to America. Our assumptions have been confounded — predictability has gone out the window, at least in any immediate sense.

We have been striving to attain controllability in its stead. Controllability describes an environment in which the subjects perceive their behavior as making a difference in results.

Steps were taken to treat Thomas Eric Duncan. He died anyway.

Steps, though perhaps insufficient, were taken to prevent the spread of the disease to anyone else in the United States. Two medical workers (at least) contracted the disease anyway. One might think that they would be successfully quarantined to prevent further spread. But one of them got on a commercial flight.

In individuals, long-term uncontrollability can result in a condition called learned helplessness, characterized by despair, depression and poor cognitive function.

It can also result in panic. When we believe that some can escape, but not all, panic is even more likely. Many of us will scramble to secure our own safety and that of our loved ones.

As initial efforts to contain the disease seem to be failing, the belief that the spread of Ebola is inevitable becomes stronger. Unless the spread is stopped now, the panic will continue and eventually result in a sense of helplessness.

Rita Smith-Wade-El is a professor of psychology at Millersville University.