Let’s imagine that we place an egg on the top of a pyramid . Now let’s imagine we drop a cork in a river hatchery.

We will be able to know in which direction the egg will fall or where the cork will end up in the river once we have observed the result. However, could we predict it? Although with the final result we can elaborate numerous models regarding how the experiment has ended in one way or another, there are a great number of variables that may or may not influence the final result.

There is a theory that nature and the universe in general do not follow a predictable model, called chaos theory.

General approach to chaos theory

The chaos theory is, more than a theory, a paradigm that supposed in its moment a scientific revolution , reflecting that many systems until now considered determinist and predictable have severe limits in such predictability. That is, they were not as useful as believed when predicting future events. This is important, since one of the foundations of science is the ability to eliminate uncertainty about what will happen.

Initiated by Henri Poincaré as a precursor and popularized thanks to the work of mathematician and meteorologist Edward Lorenz, chaos theory has been used in fields such as mathematics and meteorology to explain the inaccuracy and difficulty in obtaining predictable results from reality.

The butterfly effect

This theory is widely known for what is called the butterfly effect, according to which “the weak beating of a butterfly’s wings can be the cause of a hurricane from thousands of miles away. This indicates that the existence of a specific variable can provoke or alter others, progressively influencing itself until it obtains a result outside of what is expected.

In summary, we can consider that the chaos theory establishes that small changes in the initial conditions create great differences with respect to the final result , with which a great majority of the events and systems are not totally predictable.

It is important to note that despite appearances, the chaos to which this theory refers does not imply a lack of order, but rather that facts and reality do not fit a linear model. However, chaos cannot go beyond certain limits. The egg mentioned in the introduction can only not fall or fall in any direction. In other words, the possibilities are multiple but the results are limited, and there are predispositions for the phenomena to follow each other in a certain way, predispositions known as attractors .

Chaos Theory in Psychology

Chaos theory was initially devised to explain the existence of divergences in the results of the application of mathematical, meteorological or astrological models. However, this theory is applicable to a large number of disciplines, including those linked to the health and social sciences . One of the scientific disciplines in which this theory has some applicability is psychology.

Chaos theory, as a paradigm that concludes that small changes in the initial conditions can generate a great diversity in the results, can serve to explain the enormous diversity that we can find in terms of attitudes, points of view, thoughts, beliefs or emotions. Although as a general rule most people seek to survive and self-realise in different ways, there is a very wide variety of circumstances that transform our behaviour and thought and shape our way of living life . For example, living a relatively happy and peaceful life does not ensure that a person does not develop a mental disorder, just as suffering a severe trauma may not produce subsequent disorders.

Differences between people

It can be helpful in trying to explain why some people may develop strengths or mental problems that others may not. It can also explain why certain treatments don’t work for certain people even though they work for most people. Or why two people with the same genes and life experiences do not react equally to a particular stimulus or event.

Behind this may be differences in personality, cognitive capacity, focus of attention on specific aspects, emotional and motivational situation at the same time or multiple other factors.

Likewise, some psychological processes such as anxiety could be linked to the chaos theory . For many people with anxiety and related disorders, not knowing what may happen when they act in the environment gives rise to a deep sense of unease, and with it a possible active avoidance of the feared.

In other words , the uncertainty generated by the difficulty in establishing reliable predictions, due to the multiple possibilities of a chaotic reality, arouses a feeling of concern. The same occurs with disorders such as obsessive-compulsive, in which the uncertainty that something feared may happen due to intrusive thoughts induces anxiety and may lead to the use of compulsions as a temporary protective measure.

Small details that change our destiny

Within psychology and this theory, genetics and culture could be considered as attractors, producing a certain tendency to behave in a certain way. But this does not imply that we all behave the same way or have the same ways of thinking. Behavioral patterns and habits are also attractors, which may explain why in some cases of mental disorders there are relapses.

However, there are also complete remissions of symptoms, due to the introduction of new elements and alternative reconstructions of dysfunctional internal processes. The simple fact of crossing someone in the street or not doing so can cause unexpected effects that make us behave differently.

Human groups and the effect of chaotic theory

The same happens in organizations, systems in which multiple elements are interrelated in different ways and with different objectives. In the case of the company, it is widely known that nowadays it is essential for it to be able to adapt to changes so that it can remain. However, this adaptability must be constant, since it is not possible to foresee all the situations that may occur. They must be able to cope with chaos.

There can be a large number of variables that can affect its operation and maintenance. An employee’s production level can be affected by his or her personal circumstances. Customers and/or suppliers of that company may be delayed in their payments and shipments. Another company may try to acquire the company or attract its workers. There may be a fire that destroys some or all of the work performed. The popularity of the company may increase or decrease due to factors such as novelty or the emergence of better alternatives .

But in any case, as we have previously indicated, the fact that reality is multiple and chaotic does not imply that it is disordered. Chaos theory teaches that science in general must be adaptable and not deterministic, always bearing in mind that an exact and absolute forecast of all events is not feasible.

Bibliographic references:

  • Lorenz, E.N. (1996). The Essence of Chaos. University of Washington Press.