meritocracy
A meritocracy ( Latin : meritum , the merit and Greek : κρατεῖν , kratein to rule ) is a system of rule in which the officials (rulers) are selected on the basis of a so-called or as such defined “achievement” or “special merit ”. Ideally, every member of society has a "deserved" position.
The idea of meritocracy can be applied in states as well as in political or economic organizations, in a weakened sense it is also used to describe a form of government that emphasizes competence and formal training.
The meritocracy is opposed, among other things, by the idea of egalitarianism , which grants individuals equal influence and equal access to goods regardless of performance, commitment and competitive advantages .
Origin of the term
The term meritocracy was first used in 1958 by Michael Young in his satire Rise of the Meritocracy (German title: Long live inequality: On the way to meritocracy ). Young used the term to describe a future society in which the social position of the individual is determined by intelligence (measured by the IQ ) and commitment. The utopian meritocratic society develops into an elitist society, whose leaders see themselves as standing above the masses and are ultimately deposed by force. Such a society, which only sorts people according to their talent and effort, becomes a performance dictatorship and then ultimately destroys itself.
Evaluation of the idea
Regardless of the originally negative concept formation , there have always been advocates of meritocratic systems.
The idea that higher performance should be rewarded underlies many meritocratic arguments. It is also claimed that meritocracy offers an incentive to contribute to the building of society and thus benefits society as a whole.
While the social position is historically handed down in the aristocracy , the status of a person in the meritocracy should be legitimized exclusively by the current, individually measurable earnings. Privilege based on origin such as class and social class should be avoided here as well as disadvantage based on belonging to a religion, an ethnic group or a gender. The “ideal meritocracy” thus requires complete equality of opportunities, such as independence of performance from relationships, origin, etc., and socially effective recognition of factual differences in performance.
Critics, including Michael Young himself, see a meritocracy as an unsuitable model for a stable society . On the one hand, an objective and fair measure of "achievement" or "merit" for assigning individuals to positions is difficult to establish; there is even a risk that the elite will shape the measure in such a way that they legitimize themselves (and their descendants). Then society would become an oligarchy .
The Indian mystic Osho (1931–1990) adopted the term meritocracy for his vision of the “new man”. Only the best in their respective field should therefore - delegated by their colleagues - be responsible in their area. This should apply to all areas of living together. This “rule of the best” should overcome the previous “power of the rulers”. Real expertise always takes precedence over the power politics of elitist circles.
“Democracy is not the highest goal. It is better than dictatorial regimes, it is better than monarchies, but it is not the end of the journey - because democracy basically means government by the people, of the people, for the people, but the people are retarded. So let us say: government by the retarded, for the retarded, of the retarded.
Democracy cannot be the highest possibility man can attain. It is good in comparison to other forms of government that have preceded it, but not something that can succeed it. I call that meritocracy. I want a government by the people of merit. And merit is a very rare quality. "
application
A completely meritocratic society has not yet been realized anywhere. Many modern forms of government, however, emphasize the priority of formal training and professional competence in the bestowal of office over membership of a certain group.
When peer review is used in the policy making process or when military organizations use merit to establish the hierarchy of command, meritocratic principles are also used.
The science refers to the meritocratic principle of the best selection. Social science studies, e.g. B. from the field of gender research, however, have made it clear that performance can in certain circumstances also be the result of social ascription processes, which in science and other areas of social life can lead to women being disadvantaged compared to men.
In the work Die Internet-Galaxie by Manuel Castells the thesis is put forward that among the Internet pioneers the meritocratic principle played an essential role for the structure. The greatest reputation is enjoyed by those who have stood out for their excellent performance and positive reputation in terms of innovations in the field of network media. Mark Shuttleworth , founder of the Linux distribution Ubuntu , also relies on a meritocratic system of decision-making for the development of Ubuntu, and The Document Foundation , which develops the LibreOffice office suite, claims to be a meritocratic foundation, as does the Apache Software Foundation .
Historical examples
Confucius
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"In teaching, no distinction should be made between the classes."
- - Analecte XV. 39th tr. Legge
Western admirers of Confucius ( Voltaire , HG Creel) saw in his writings a revolutionary idea in which the blood nobility is replaced by that of virtue. A jūnzǐ (君子), translated as "noble man", for example, could be a simple person who used his skills. Confucius accepted students from every social class, an indication that he did not fully support the feudal system of ancient China.
Chinese civil servant examination
For a long time in the Middle Kingdom, passing the Chinese civil servant examination was a prerequisite for being able to hold high state offices. Since candidates (at least in theory) could come from all walks of life, this strict examination system had a strong meritocratic character. Successful graduates (only a few per thousand of the candidates prevailed) usually achieved fame, power and prestige.
Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan occupied leadership positions in his Mongolian Empire because of the performance of the officials. The way was also open to relatives of defeated enemies, as long as they were loyal. For example, Jebe was an enemy soldier who shot and killed Genghis Khan's horse in battle before becoming a Khan .
Napoleon
In the French Revolution , the elite was largely eliminated. Napoleon's regime could not fall back on an existing hierarchy, but chose the new elite first on the basis of performance, but later also on the basis of loyalty and kinship.
Modern examples
Singapore
In the Republic of Singapore , the government lists the meritocracy as one of the fundamental principles of the political regulatory system and emphasizes it vis-à-vis other countries. Accordingly, all citizens should have the same chance of access z. B. get to universities and government offices. Only performance should be decisive, not relationships. To what extent this official principle of equal opportunities is actually found in Singapore is, however, controversial.
See also
- Aristocracy , gerontocracy , kleptocracy , plutocracy , timocracy
- Educational elite , performance society
- Power Structure Research
- Social darwinism
- Transhumanism
- Utopia
literature
- Michael Young : Long live inequality. On the way to meritocracy. Econ, Düsseldorf 1961.
- Heike Solga : Meritocracy - the modern legitimation of unequal educational opportunities. In: Peter A. Berger , Heike Kahlert (Ed.): Institutionalized inequalities. How education blocks opportunities. Juventa-Verlag, Weinheim et al. 2005, ISBN 3-7799-1583-9 ( articles on the sociology of education ).
- Arne Heise : Unemployment and Inequality in Different Models of Capitalism. In: work. Journal for work research, work design and work policy. Vol. 15, Issue 4, 2006, ISSN 0941-5025 , pp. 273-289, online (PDF; 1 MB) .
- Andreas Hadjar: Meritocracy as a principle of legitimation. The development of the acceptance of social inequality in the course of the educational expansion. VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2008, ISBN 978-3-531-15629-3 .
- Rolf Becker, Andreas Hadjar: Meritocracy - For the social legitimation of unequal educational, employment and income opportunities in modern societies. In: Rolf Becker (Hrsg.): Textbook of the sociology of education. VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2009, ISBN 978-3-531-14794-9 , pp. 35–60.
Web links
- “Meritocracy and the Erosion of Self-Respect” , audio lecture by Sjalling Swierstra and Evelien H. Tonkens.
- “Unemployment as a means to an end” ( Memento from June 26, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) - Interview with Arne Heise (2006) about abstract performance concepts in German politics
Individual evidence
- ↑ Michael Young: Comment: Down with meritocracy. In: theguardian.com. May 8, 2017, accessed November 13, 2017 .
- ↑ Manuel Castells: The Internet Galaxy. Internet, economy and society . VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, 2005; ISBN 3-8100-3593-9 ; Google Books ; P. 49 ff.
- ^ "Comment 167 for bug 532633" - Mark Shuttleworth (2010) on Democracy and Meritocracy in the Development of Ubuntu
- ^ [1] Homepage of the Document Foundation
- ^ Florian Effenberger: Six Months of Freedom and Community. The Document Foundation, March 28, 2011, accessed on March 30, 2011 (English): "From the very first day, openness, transparency and meritocracy have been shaping the framework we want to work in."
- ↑ [2] Homepage of the Apache Software Foundation
- ↑ Example: Speech by the ambassador in France ( Memento of the original from March 2, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , August 28, 2008 "The second basic principle of the Singapore is meritocracy. Everyone is judged on the basis of their individual merit and individual talent. "
