The Last Moral Panic

Abstract

Moral panic is rarely defined in ways that move us beyond an unwillingness to accept alternative viewpoints or hierarchies of credibility. This paper outlines a definition of moral panic that maintains the analytical framework of studied groups and reads as collective, corrective-intended behaviour based on an irrational belief that exaggerates the threat posed by a social problem. After describing that which constitutes a social problem and differentiating concepts from theories, we continue to deconstruct the definition in reverse order before presenting moral panic as a two-stage process and testing an empirical example. The paper ends with a discussion of how advancements in artificial intelligence may limit the concept’s use.