5 ms·
I forget where I heard this but I once read a saying that “communication is only possible between equals.” I think that’s too extreme as a blanket statement bu
by api 3y ago
I forget where I heard this but I once read a saying that “communication is only possible between equals.”
I think that’s too extreme as a blanket statement but it’s definitely true that when there are major wealth or position differences communication becomes difficult and all kinds of perverse incentives come into play.
If you wonder how, for example, George Bush II thought it really was “mission accomplished” in Iraq or Vladimir Putin thought they’d conquer Ukraine in a few weeks, the mechanism you describe is the answer.
“Yes sir. Everything is great sir.” Nobody wants to contradict or bear bad news.
The larger the power/wealth differential and the larger and older the organization the worse it gets. Older matters because it means there has been lots of time for these perverse incentives to take root. Large matters because the organization is too big for most people to really know one another.
This is probably a major mechanism of civilization decline. Eventually you end up with layers of leadership that become increasingly detached from reality as you go up.
It’s pretty incredible that primate social behaviors evolved for small hunting bands and tribes can scale this big at all, but they certainly don’t do so very well. The inefficiency and error rate is incredible.
- cratermoon 3y agoThe inimitable Systemantics terms this the Hireling's Hypnosis.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- lazystar 3y agospeaking truth to power is difficult when the survival of your social structure depends on your continued income. ironically - or perhaps intentionally - the fact that no one feels safe due to random firings of "top performers", new hires, "underperformers", etc, could result in a work envoronment where everyone finally speaks the truth, because they dont have a guarantee that lying will continue to protect their paycheck.
- api 3y agoWorks the other way too. Higher ups have an incentive to provide a rosy outlook, explain away problems, and over promise to those under them to stay there. So really everyone in a hierarchy is incentivized to blow smoke.
- kinggrowler 3y agoCeline's Second Law, from the Illuminatus! series: Wilson rephrases the [law] himself many times as "communication occurs only between equals". Celine calls this law "a simple statement of the obvious" and refers to the fact that everyone who labors under an authority figure tends to lie to and flatter that authority figure in order to protect themselves either from violence or from deprivation of security (such as losing one's job).... https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celine%27s_laws https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celine%27s_laws