There are people who inhabit our planet who are, lacking a more quaint descriptor, self-serving parasites.
While philosophers have long debated whether we ought to help ourselves over others (comparing Nietzsche to Singer or Bentham here respectively), a consistently reoccurring fact remains that without some form of semi-altruistic co-operation, human society simply will not work: Civilisations collapse, families crumble and book clubs would be laid to waste.
Likewise it is generally accepted (and I will not elucidate to as why precisely, as that would go off on incredibly elaborate tangent) that civilisation, in any form, is preferable to total anarchy. Both in a libertarian stance (ironically, it makes sense that freedom is only assured with some degree of security to pursue our desires) and a utilitarian stance (the sheer amount of suffering/ lack of fulfilment in preferences that would occur in anarchy would be deplorable – even in contrast to the most tyrannical of governments).
So going on this premise that co-operation on a global level is good – why does it so often diminish on a personal level? We all know the saying ‘think globally, act locally’, but so many choose to actively ignore it – as without individuals acting ethically – how can entire nations?
In other words, why, oh why, are there so many selfish jerks everywhere?
We all know jerks – who seem to be evenly distributed among any random sample of the world’s population (but often hidden, or clumped together in jerk-fertile environments, which I will identify in later chapters) – but rarely do we stop and consider what it means to be one (at least with pretentious terminology).
Let me list a certain amount of traits which define a jerk:
- Self-serving: given the choice between self and other – all other things being equal – they will always choose self. Jerks and narcissists are almost, but not quite, synonyms. The more suffering they will choose to tolerate inflicting on others – as opposed to the self, the bigger the jerk.
- Arrogant: Jerks usually do not like being wrong – especially when they know they are – or very likely to be so. Jerks often tend to argue for self-serving status-related reasons rather than an honest inquiry for truth. The more one will argue for one’s opinion in the face of conflicting evidence, the bigger the jerk. (Does this ring any bells? Specifically those in churches?)
- Snobbish: Usually they adhere to arbitrary social standards as if they are objective fact – and become de facto enforcers of those standards – and put social status above all other concerns (including human suffering). Snob varieties of jerks tend do everything in their power to increase personal social status – including by reducing the status (or perceived status) of those around them.
As Alain De Botton put it in his book Status Anxiety:‘The distinctive mark of snobs is not similar discrimination; it is an insistence of a flawless equation between social rank and human worth.’
Snobbism is, in essence, a variation of the ‘self-serving’ quota – the more one will place their own social status above the concerns of others, the bigger the jerk. Also – the more empathises their particular set of social values (assuming all else is equal – they have a right to place such emphasis if such social values actually have utilitarian worth – however, such instances are rare) or requirements/or the importance of social status – the bigger the jerk.
- Shallow: Many jerks fail to see the world behind its initial appearances, and tend to judge it skin-deep. Despite evidence on the contrary that skin colour, ‘ethnic groups’ (if you believe that they exist outside our minds), gender, attractiveness, culture/sub-culture, age etc have any bearing whatsoever on the value of a person, they often hold a highly bigoted worldview. That being said, not all jerks are racist, but all racists are jerks- and the same applies to many other shallow beliefs. Jerks’ bigotry tends to differ based on who the jerk is, and who the jerk is around. For example, many male jerks become misogynistic only when around other males, or racist jerks only when around those perceived to be of their fellow caste.
Even so, many tend to be ‘politically correct’, simply because it suits their needs greater, and only develop bigotry when it suits them (see self-serving).
- Superiority Complex: related to arrogance, but slightly different. Arrogance is about avoiding being perceived to be wrong (as it may cost them precious social status, also relating to snobbism). It refers to an exaggerated sense of self-worth – an unrealistic or exaggerated belief that one is superior to others (and since we have yet to see how one can be superior to others, we can assume that it is a delusion, unless they have sound evidence to the contrary). In this bare-bones analysis, we can say that the larger the gap between one’s self-worth and ones’ actual worth – the bigger the jerk.(However, it is possible that the superiority complex is “a psychological defence mechanism in which a person's feelings of superiority counter or conceal his or her feelings of inferiority.” (The American Heritage Medical Dictionary), if this is the case – and/or that the superiority complex is large enough to the point of being considered a psychological disorder – then the label ‘jerk’ is unwarranted any more than ‘evil’ is to the criminally insane.)
- Lack of Empathy: Now we tread on difficult ground – as a lack of empathy, while a trait in ‘jerks’ – is also a trait of Autism Spectrum Disorders and other neurological (as opposed to environmental) predispositions. The vital difference between the two is that environmental predispositions (such as being born into a selfish family/culture or getting away with selfish behaviour long enough until it becomes habitual) can be cured via discussion and a lot of patience – whereas neurological conditions are best dealt with by psychologists and psychiatrists. One deserves to be punishment – the other deserves treatment.That being said, a lack of empathy (or seeming lack of empathy, empathy can be perceived as a sign of weakness, and a mask of apathy can be maintained for social reasons) is often a common trait of a jerk. Assuming that there is no serious neurological disorder at hand – the less empathy one has for others, the bigger the jerk.
While the aforementioned traits are a good indication of a jerk – by no means are they all present in all of them. Exceptions almost certainly exist, but by and large, a jerk is somebody who, in classical utilitarian terms, is willing to inflict equal or greater suffering upon another than one is willing to endure to prevent it.
Most jerks are often created through a simple psychological process known as Operant Conditioning. A useful analogy would be to compare a jerk to a mouse in a ‘Skinner box’ – a cage with a button which causes food (or some other reward) to become accessible to its inhabitant when the button is pressed (or the environment is acted or operated on in some form, thus the term ‘Operant’).
Whenever the mouse presses the button – and receives food promptly – it is more likely the mouse will press it again. The food (in delicious pellet form) here is known as the ‘positive reinforcer’, or a rewarding stimulus which encourages the repetition of a certain type of behaviour – the pressing of the button.
Conversely, a ‘negative reinforcer’ is a stimulus which encourages the repetition of a certain type of behaviour by removing an undesirable stimulus (for example, the mouse receives an electric shock whenever it doesn’t press the button – thus encouraging it to press it more).
In other words, a Jerk becomes a Jerk simply because she or he has been consistently rewarded for behaving selfishly (or ‘jerkishly’ to generalize) – or punished for behaving selflessly. For example – one may reap the rewards of social status by acting in a self-interested manner, or be scolded for being ‘weak’ when showing empathy. In this case, social status acts a positive reinforcer when given, and a negative one when removed.
Given that this is a reasonable explanation for the origin of jerks, we can apply the same principle in preventing it....
Next: Removing the Jerk
