Politics as explained by psychology
The mandate of evolution is to project one’s genes into the next generation. To successfully accomplish this, one must survive into maturity, have access to a mate or mates, and have the resources necessary to bring the next generation into maturity.
Evolutionary psychology posits that much of human behavior can be explained because of this evolutionary impetus. For males, this means accumulating the resources, sustenance, safety and shelter necessary to bring the next generation into maturity and to attract females by flaunting these resources. Alpha males are constantly, relentlessly engaged in seeking money and power.
For females, this means seeking mates with the resources to raise their progeny. The more resources, the more attractive the mate. This explains the fact that rich women almost never marry poor men, while rich men will marry a poor woman if she is sufficiently attractive and fertile. This explains why alpha males spend their entire lives trying to acquire power and resources, why rich and powerful men will very frequently have multiple wives, multiple mistresses and may even engage in sexual assault. Rape is explained as a poor man’s opportunity to project his genes.
How does evolutionary psychology explain political behavior? Politics at its most basic level is about power and access to resources. Alpha-male types are attracted to politics for this very reason because power and resources are related to sexual opportunities. Jane Goodall, primatologist and expert on chimpanzee behavior, has documented chimpanzee politics, and it is dominated by competition for resources and sexual opportunities. The alpha male has complete sexual access to all fertile females and first dibs on the distribution of resources. He will form political coalitions of subordinate troop members who will act on behalf of and protect the alpha. He will use this coalition to attack neighboring troops to gain access to additional territories and resources. He will demand complete submission from his coalition and in return, will offer access to resources and sexual opportunities.
Recently, Goodall commented on how recent politics she observed in the United States reminded her of chimpanzee politics. She saw a political leader acting out chimpanzee political power dynamics, completely demanding and receiving submission from party members, threatening rival politicians with retribution, seeking unconstrained, unlimited power, in a very similar manner to an alpha male chimpanzee.
This leads an observer of politics to ask: Does this political leader realize the evolutionary impetus behind his behavior, that he has almost surely had or reverted to an animal level of consciousness? Does the major political party of which this politician is a member realize in their submission and promotion of this individual that they are reverting to the power dynamics of animal politics?
We see around the world political leaders engaged in primitive animal-level power politics with disastrous results. It should seem obvious that acting out the evolutionary power dynamics of animal politics not only have no place in the situation of humanity in the 21st century, but they are profoundly dangerous to our existence on this planet. Understanding the evolutionary psychology behind politics is crucial so we do not fall for and follow a leader whose only interest is his own domination and power.