Most people know my views on this subject. The basic question: Which makes for a more productive/prosperous community? Deprivation of the individual or accomodation of the individual? A. Some say that deprivation of the individual makes them more productive workers. Motivation through desperation. B. Some say accomodation of the individual makes them more productive workers. A happy fulfilled individual is far more productive in fulfilling tasks. What defines the prosperity of a community? What are some of the essential characteristics that would make one community more prosperous than another? IE: Crime rate, education, lifestyle, health etc. Danke. -CS
It's pretty much accepted in psychology that reward works better than punishment if creating lasting behavioral changes. So if you want a more productive worker, punishing him/her will not work as well as rewarding him/her. Where there might be some debate is on questions of cost-effectiveness, since it may be cheaper to punish than reward. Personally I'd say it is still cost-effective to reward since punishment tends to increase other kinds of behavior (e.g., drug abuse, crime, etc.) that cost society in the long run. I realize that doesn't answer the specifics of your questions but I think it's a good basis for improving the conditions of a community rather than making them worse.
There is a trend I noticed among various incidents of corruption. Corruption of course is an aspect of practically all, but not all forms of organization; corporate, political, or otherwise. The basic standard of corruption is the manipulation of community policy for the sake of personal gain. Particularly resulting in the detriment of the community. Many would argue that corruption is unavoidable/inevitable no matter what the structure of the system. Those on top will always find a way to take advantage of their position, deceiving the lower ranks, in order to appropriate benefits for themselves or get their way. Many of them even deceive themselves, and commit acts of deception while being oblivious to their nocuous actions. Manipulating policy for their own best interest, and rationalizing in their minds that it is truly in the best interest of the populous. I myself would contend that although it may not be possible to design a completely infallible system, it might just be possible for a community to design a system that is heavily fortified against possible acts of corruption. Education is a very important factor. Understanding many of the underlying concepts behind corruption that are not very apparent at face value. High regard for individual thought. The trend that I notice regarding the increase of corruption appears to me as an increase in depravity upon the individual member of the community. Subsequently resulting in diminishing levels of what is commonly accepted as the characteristics of a prosperous thriving community. Another important factor is morale. One of the most well known traits of what makes a good leader is the leader's abilities as a provider. Humans tend to be psychologically drawn to those with strong independent personalities embodying sort of a “provider” mentality. Such individuals are taken seriously and well respected. An individual with a needy personality tends to draw a lower regard from others. Humans tend to be put off by such individuals. Often this leads to feelings of ostracism in the psychology of the individual. Now it could be true that while you might attempt to fool an individual intellectually, their emotions often get the better of them. What does this signify? Individuals being drawn to those exhibiting provider personalities while being put off by individuals exhibiting needy personalities may not necessarily be choosing these attitudes intellectually. I would probably describe the basis of such attitudes as more of an instinctual compulsion. Individuals might not hold intellectually that their leader is incompetent and corrupt, but they might feel it. Especially if (whether they notice it intellectually or not) they feel that their surroundings, opportunities, livelihoods, and purchasing powers are deteriorating. The overall lifestyle of the individual could well deteriorate at a relatively rapid rate. The more excuses authorities make for the ailing state of the community, the less respect people tend to feel towards them. I would consider these feelings of low regard to be more emotional/instinctual rather than intellectual. Intellectually, some might defend their beloved “leader” as either not being at fault or as a human who makes mistakes like everybody else. Nonetheless, the greater the deterioration of the individual’s lifestyle, the greater the deterioration of the individual’s regard for their authorities. Ultimately, the community is characterized by a state of relatively low morale. I would say that typically, low morale results in low productivity which results in even greater deterioration of lifestyle. At its worst, low morale can and has lead to outright insurrection.
