Why would stores be interested in fomenting hysteria in feeble minded neurotics?

It could serve as a convenient distraction from rising prices or, more conveniently, risks introduced as a move to less staffing because of self-checkout.

It’s a bit easier to explain away the inconvenience of locked individual items as a response to a rise in crime rather than the store’s choices.

I doubt it’s a direct motivation but that isn’t to say it’s not a useful outcome either.