The supposed voice of Osama bin Laden, heard once again around the world this week, has many people anxious that his rumored demise was greatly exaggerated. An audiotape played on November 13 depicts the al Qaeda leader condoning recent terrorist attacks in Moscow, Bali and elsewhere around the globe. The White House is treating the tape as a real threat, but how should the average person take the news?
"Basically, bin Laden is the lingering bogeyman," says Stuart Fischoff, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at California State University. "Anything that suggests he is alive or making increasing threats is going to increase public stress." Yet for all practical purposes, there is little the average citizen can do if bin Laden is alive.
Stuart notes that this type of anxiety can be unhealthy and suggests that people take a moment to think about their emotions as they relate to bin Laden. "In some way, you have to confront the bogeyman that he is," advises Stuart. "Tell yourself to not respond to it."
