Protecting the tribe from dominant leaders

Within (and often across) species, individuals have very similar demands for survival, growth, and reproduction, and their combined demand for resources eventually exceeds supply. This creates competition between conspecifics for commonly desired resources. In turn, variances in traits that aid in the claiming and holding of limited resources have resulted in the emergence of social hierarchy as the primary means of social organization for the vast majority of group-living animals. While for groups and tribes, hierarchy can be functional – helping individuals coordinate more efficiently and effectively toward shared goals – social rank and associated rewards and privileges also motivate individuals to establish dominance over others for personal advantage, often at the expense of their tribe. In response, the anthropological records suggest tribes developed “leveling mechanisms” – criticism, ridicule, disobedience, desertion, removal, or even assassination – intended to level the hierarchy and limit the power of leaders. However, because groups at times compete with each other, there are also times when tribes themselves benefit from the presence of dominant individuals and dominant leaders, and so we see contextual plasticity in tribal tolerance of, and support for dominance as a strategy for navigating social hierarchy. As the global population grows and societies become increasingly polarized, competition between tribes intensifies. In this chapter, the author draws from the past to explore how this new era of tribal competition might shape the social hierarchies and leaders of the coming decades.