Belief in zero-sum competition sustains group hierarchies

Evidence

Social Dominance Theory suggests that in most societies, socially constructed groups are hierarchically organized so that certain groups receive a disproportionate percentage of positive outcomes (e.g., money, power). To maintain these hierarchies, it is argued, ideologies are developed that sustain the stability of the system. For dominant group members, these ideologies include beliefs about the legitimacy of their position in society and beliefs about inherent zero-sum competition among groups (i.e., that for dominants to prosper, others must suffer and, conversely, that if other groups prosper, it is necessarily at the expense of the dominant group). A belief in group conflict and competition thus serves to maintain the group dominance and inequality in society. — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice, 1486 (#expands, via linked claim)

Freud gives an exhaustive account of the hierarchical element in irrational groups. ‘It is obvious that a soldier takes his superior, that is, really, the leader of the army, as his ideal, while he identifies himself with his equals, and derives from this community of their egos the obligations for giving mutual help and for sharing possessions which comradeship implies. But he becomes ridiculous if he tries to identify himself with the general’, to wit, consciously and directly. The fascists, down to the last small-time demagogue, continuously emphasize ritualistic ceremonies and hierarchical differentiations. The less hierarchy within the set-up of a highly rationalized and quantified industrial society is warranted, the more artificial hierarchies with no objective raison d’etre are built up and rigidly imposed by fascists for purely psycho-technical reasons. — Theodor W. Adorno, The Culture Industry, 194 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim
• XREF: connects to: Group status and competition determine which traits get projected onto which groups; Belief in zero-sum competition is an ideology that maintains hierarchy for dominant groups — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice: Fifty Years…, 1486; Belief in group hierarchy makes people see competition everywhere (+5 more)

Broader Connections

• Belief in zero-sum competition is an ideology that maintains hierarchy for dominant groups #expands (0.96) — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice, 1486
• Artificial hierarchies compensate for the loss of real hierarchy in rationalized society #complicates (0.72) — Theodor W. Adorno, The Culture Industry, 194