You can move forward without hitting the wall of a crisis of dominance

When we share our moral and political beliefs, do we do it to show people who disagree with us that we are better than them, so that those who disagree with us will feel bad and shame them? Of course, it is important that we have goals that we sincerely believe in and that we want to share with everyone in order to make the world a better place. However, the undeniable fact is that there is something strange about us forcing ourselves on others for these purposes in order to achieve superiority.

Today, the desire for superiority infects all of us. Clinical psychologist Joshua Grubbs has an important point; “Maybe, just maybe, part of the reason most of us treat each other so badly has to do with our desire to brag to others who think the same way we do during most of our time here. In fact, we sometimes abuse people with opposing views in order to win the respect and dignity of people like us.”

Interested in this phenomenon from a scientific point of view, Grubbs conducted a survey of more than 6,000 participants, and his main conclusions are as follows:

• Those who score high on the moral highness questionnaire also tend to score high on narcissistic traits and also report status seeking as their main social motive.
• There is a link between moral superiority and political polarization: people who believe their opinion is the only truth are more likely to score higher on moral superiority traits than those who hold more moderate views.
• Those who tend to be morally superior are more likely to create moral and political conflicts in their daily lives. For example; “I lost friends because of my political/moral beliefs.” They often say that they are more likely to quarrel with others over their political or moral views on social media.
• They are more likely to attack others online or publicly embarrass those who hold different moral or political beliefs and are more hostile towards people.

Of course, when our anger manifests itself in society, it is not always associated with the pursuit of superiority. However, none of us are perfect. Therefore, the methods we use to express our anger can quickly get out of hand, and as our desire to seek solutions intensifies, we may begin to slander or be rude to others. The hysteria that this crisis of supremacy will cause could cut us off from what we truly stand for. The road to excellence is paved with arrogance and aggression. However, the real victory comes when our ability to communicate with others is on a healthy line. The people referred to in this article do not include those who have ever committed crimes against humanity; I’m just trying to explain what needs to be found on a common basis, so that the world becomes better and more holistic. Our common denominator is the human mind and conscience capable of bearing responsibility.

Although politics is very important, it is both a cause and a result of social polarization. Those who use the language of political extremism experience more hostility and less trust in what they call “the other side” than in generations. Social media itself also accelerates conflict, and this makes it easy for like-minded people to create reverb rooms that take action against others. By repeating this cycle, public participation in the discussion of important issues decreases. However, perhaps what we need in general is to use the policy in the new language. Because even our every breath is connected with politics and each of us needs to breathe freely. However, in these painful days we live, the air we breathe only burns our lungs.

How to break this cycle?

We need to evaluate what we say to others and why. When we strike up a conversation with someone who has a different point of view, are we doing it to really build a relationship or to prove we’re better than them? Because we must not forget the fact that the other person thinks that he is better than us. Despite this, sincere and honest behavior is an indispensable way to establish a connection.

We should not gather under the umbrella of mild oppression from social media alone. In our daily lives, we must communicate with everyone around us through sincere and compassionate language. We must not forget that the common desire of all around us is to have fair, safe, free and healthy days. Of course, this connection can only be made with mutual respect, but I personally never see the sensitivity that I see in society on social networks or in circles using politics in the language of extremism. If we are sure that great human achievements will come when the barriers to the free expression of differences are removed, and we convince ourselves that no one is less human than another, we will also promote a different type of social life. Could it be otherwise…

Resources:
Brian Resnick: “The moral game in public makes arguments only to raise your status.”
Brandon Wormke – The Psychology of Moral Behavior
Scott Barry Kaufman – Are you great morale?

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