The psychology of inequality and political division | Keith Payne

Prevodilac: Milenka Okuka Lektor: Ivana Korom

You've probably heard by now

Dosad ste verovatno već čuli

that economic inequality is historically high,

da je ekonomska nejednakost na istorijskom maksimumu,

that the wealthiest one-tenth of one percent in the United States

da jedna desetina procenta najbogatijih u Sjedinjenim Državama

have as much wealth as the bottom 90 percent combined,

poseduje bogatstvo koliko 90 procenata najsiromašnijih zajedno,

or that the wealthiest eight individuals in the world

ili da osam najbogatijih pojedinaca u svetu

have as much wealth

poseduje jednako bogatstva

as the poorest 3.5 billion inhabitants of the planet.

koliko najsiromašnijih 3,5 milijardi stanovnika planete.

But did you know that economic inequality is associated with shorter lifespans,

Da li znate da je ekonomska nejednakost povezana sa kraćim životnim vekom,

less happiness,

manjim osećajem sreće,

more crime

većom stopom kriminala

and more drug abuse?

i većom stopom upotrebe droga?

Those sound like problems of poverty,

Zvuče kao problemi siromašnih,

but among wealthy, developed nations

ali među bogatim, razvijenim državama

those health and social problems

ovi zdravstveni i društveni problemi

are actually more tightly linked to inequality between incomes

su zapravo tešnje povezani sa nejednakošću u zaradi

than to absolute incomes.

nego sa apsolutnom zaradom.

And because of that,

I iz tog razloga,

the United States,

Sjedinjene Države,

the wealthiest and the most unequal of nations,

najbogatijia i najnejednakija od svih država,

actually fares worse than all other developed countries.

zapravo ima gore rezultate od svih drugih razvijenih država.

Surveys show that large majorities of Americans,

Ankete pokazuju da velika većina Amerikanaca,

both Democrats and Republicans,

i demokrate i republikanci,

believe inequality is too high and want more equal pay.

veruje da je nejednakost suviše visoka i žele uravnoteženije plate.

And yet as a society, we don't seem to be able to find the common ground,

Pa ipak, kao društvo, čini se da ne možemo da nađemo zajednički jezik,

the consensus, the political will to do anything about it.

konsenzus, političku volju da učinimo nešto po tom pitanju.

Because, as inequality has risen in recent decades,

Iz razloga što je u poslednjim decenijama zajedno sa nejednakošću

political polarization has risen along with it.

porasla i politička polarizacija.

We see those who disagree with us as idiots or as immoral.

Gledamo na one koji se ne slažu s nama kao na idiote ili nemoralne.

Nearly half of Democrats and Republicans

Skoro polovina demokrata i republikanaca

now think that the other side is not just mistaken

trenutno smatra da druga strana ne samo da nije u pravu,

but a threat to the nation.

već da je pretnja za državu.

And that animosity prevents us from finding the common ground

A taj animozitet nas sprečava da nađemo zajednički jezik

to change things.

da promenimo stvari.

I'm a social psychology professor at the University of North Carolina,

Ja sam profesor socijalne psihologije na Univerzitetu Severna Karolina

and I study the effects of inequality on people's thinking and behavior.

i izučavam uticaj nejednakosti na ljudsko razmišljanje i ponašanje.

I'm going to argue that it's not just an unfortunate coincidence

Tvrdim da se ne radi o pukom nesrećnom podudaranju

that inequality and political division have risen together.

da su nejednakost i politička podeljenost zajedno u usponu.

There are good psychological reasons

Postoje valjani psihološki razlozi

that inequality drives wedges in our politics.

zašto nejednakost pravi razdor u našoj politici.

That means there are good psychological paths

To znači da postoje dobre psihološke staze

to improve both at once.

da se oboje poprave istovremeno.

To understand why inequality is so powerful,

Kako bismo razumeli zašto nejednakost ima toliku moć,

you have to first understand that we are constantly comparing ourselves

morate pre svega da razumete da se mi stalno poredimo

to other people,

sa drugim ljudima,

and when we do that,

a kada to radimo,

we really like to come out on top,

zaista želimo da budemo na vrhu,

and we find it painful to be on the bottom.

i za nas je bolno kada smo na dnu.

Psychologists call it the "better-than-average effect."

Psiholozi to nazivaju efektom „natprosečnosti".

Most people believe they're better than average

Većina ljudi veruje da su bolji od proseka

at just about anything they care about,

skoro u svemu do čega im je stalo,

which isn't strictly possible, because that's just what average means.

što je praktično nemoguće jer je baš to definicija prosečnosti.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

But that's the way people feel.

Međutim, ljudi se tako osećaju.

Most people think they're smarter than average,

Većina ljudi misli da su pametniji od proseka,

harder working than average

vredniji od proseka

and more socially skilled.

i da imaju bolje društvene veštine.

Most people think they're better drivers than average.

Većina ljudi misli da su bolji vozači od proseka.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

That's true even if you do the study with a sample of people

To je tačno čak iako uradite istraživanje na uzorku ljudi

currently hospitalized for a car accident that they caused.

koji su trenutno hospitalizovani zbog automobilske nesreće koju su uzrokovali.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

So we really want to see ourselves as better than average,

Dakle, mi zaista želimo da vdimo sebe kao natprosečne,

and if we find out otherwise,

a ako otkrijemo da nije tako,

it's a painful experience that we have to cope with.

radi se o bolnom iskustvu s kojim moramo da se nosimo.

And we cope with it by shifting how we see the world.

A nosimo se s tim tako što menjamo svoj pogled na svet.

To understand how this works,

Da bismo razumeli kako to deluje,

my collaborators and I ran an experiment.

moji saradnici i ja smo obavili eksperiment.

We asked participants to complete a decision-making task to earn some money,

Zatražili smo od učesnika da za novac odrade zadatak donošenja odluke,

and in reality, everyone earned the same amount of money.

a u stvarnosti, svi su zaradili istu količinu novca.

But we randomly divided them into two groups,

Međutim, nasumično smo ih podelili u dve grupe,

and we told one group that they had done better than average,

jednoj grupi smo rekli da su bili bolji od proseka,

and we told the other group they had done worse than average.

a drugoj grupi smo rekli da su bili gori od proseka.

So now we have one group that feels richer and one group that feels poorer,

Sad imamo jednu grupu koja se oseća bogatije

i drugu koja se oseća siromašnije,

but for no objective reason.

ali bez objektivnog razloga.

And then we asked them some questions.

Potom smo im postavljali neka pitanja.

When we asked them, "How good are you at making decisions?"

Kada smo ih upitali: „Koliko ste dobri u donošenju odluka?"

the better-than-average group said that they were more competent

grupa natprosečnih je rekla da su bili sposobniji

than the below-average group.

od ispodprosečne grupe.

The better-than-average group said that their success

Grupa natprosečnih je rekla kako je njihov uspeh

was a fair outcome of a meritocracy.

bio pravičan ishod meritokratije.

The below-average group thought the system was rigged,

Grupa ispodprosečnih je smatrala da je sistem namešten,

and in this case, of course, they were right.

a u ovom slučaju, naravno, bili su u pravu.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

Even though the two groups had the same amount of money,

Iako su obe grupe imale istu količinu novca,

the group that felt richer said we should cut taxes on the wealthy,

grupa koja se osećala bogatije smatrala je da treba smanjiti porez bogatima,

cut benefits to the poor.

smanjiti povlastice siromašnima.

Let them work hard and be responsible for themselves, they said.

Pustite ih da vredno rade i budu odgovorni za sebe, rekli su.

These are attitudes that we normally assume are rooted in deeply held values

Te stavove obično smatramo ukorenjenim u čvrstim ubeđenjima

and a lifetime of experience,

i životnom iskustvu,

but a 10-minute exercise

ali desetominutna vežba

that made people feel richer or poorer

zbog koje su se ljudi osećali bogatijim ili siromašnijim

was enough to change those views.

je bila dovoljna za izmenu datih stavova.

This difference between being rich or poor and feeling rich or poor is important,

Ova razlika između bogatstva i siromaštva i utiska o bogatstvu i siromaštvu je važna

because the two don't always line up very well.

jer se ovo dvoje uvek ne podudaraju najsjanije.

You often hear people say with nostalgia,

Često čujete ljude kako sa nostalgijom kažu:

"We were poor, but we didn't know it."

„Bili smo siromašni, ali nismo bili svesni toga.”

That was the case for me growing up,

To je bio moj slučaj dok sam odrastao,

until one day,

dok jednog dana,

in the fourth-grade lunch line,

u redu četvrtaka za užinu,

we had a new cashier who didn't know the ropes,

nismo imali novu kasirku koja nije znala pravila,

and she asked me for 1.25 dollars.

i zatražila mi je 1,25 dolara.

I was taken aback, because I had never been asked to pay for my lunch before.

Bio sam zatečen jer mi nikad pre nije traženo da platim svoju užinu.

I didn't know what to say, because I didn't have any money.

Nisam znao šta da kažem jer nisam imao novca.

And suddenly, I realized for the first time

I iznenda sam shvatio prvi put

that we free lunch kids were the poor ones.

da su deca sa besplatnom užinom siromašna.

That awkward moment in the school lunch line

Taj nelagodni trenutak u školskom redu za užinu

changed so much for me,

je toliko toga promenio za mene

because for the first time, I felt poor.

jer sam se prvi put osećao siromašno.

We didn't have any less money than the day before,

Nismo imali manje novca nego prethodnog dana,

but for the first time,

ali sam prvi put

I started noticing things differently.

počeo da različito gledam na stvari.

It changed the way I saw the world.

Promenio se moj pogled na svet.

I started noticing how the kids who paid for their lunch

Počeo sam da primećujem kako se deca koja plaćaju užinu

seemed to dress better than the free lunch kids.

oblače bolje od dece sa besplatnom užinom.

I started noticing the big yellow blocks of government cheese

Počeo sam da primećujem velke žute kocke sira vladine pomoći

koje su se pojavljivale na našim vratima

that showed up at our door

and the food stamps my mother would pull out at the grocery store.

i bonove za hranu koje bi moja majka izvadila u piljarnici.

I was always a shy kid,

Oduvek sam bio stidljivo dete,

but I hardly talked at all after that at school.

ali nakon toga, gotovo da nisam progovarao u školi.

Who was I to speak up?

Ko sam ja da govorim?

For decades, social scientists looked for evidence

Decenijama su socijalni naučnici tragali za dokazima

that feeling deprived compared to other people

da bi osećanje nestašice u odnosu na druge ljude

would motivate political action.

motivisalo političko delanje.

They thought it would mobilize protests, strikes,

Smatrali su da bi to pokrenulo proteste, štrajkove,

maybe even revolutions.

možda čak i revolucije.

But again and again what they found was that it paralyzed people,

Međutim, iznova i iznova su otkrivali da to parališe ljude

because the truth is,

jer istina je

feeling less than other people

da osećanje manje vrednosti

brings shame.

sa sobom donosi stid.

It makes people turn away,

Zbog toga ljudi okreću leđa,

disgusted with the system.

zgađeni na sistem.

Feeling better than other people, though --

Osećanje superiornosti, pak -

now that is motivating.

e to je već podsticajno.

It motivates us to protect that position,

Podstiče nas da štitimo tu poziciju

and it has important consequences for our politics.

i ima važne posledice na našu politiku.

To see why, consider another experiment.

Kako biste videli zašto, razmotrite sledeći eksperiment.

Again, we asked participants to make decisions to earn some money,

Ponovo smo tražili od učesnika da za novac donesu neke odluke,

and we told one group that they had done better than average

jednoj grupi smo rekli da su bili bolji od proseka,

and the other group that they had done worse than average.

a drugoj grupi smo rekli da su bili gori od proseka.

And again, the better-than-average group said it's a fair meritocracy,

I ponovo je grupa natprosečnih rekla da se radi o pravednoj meritokratiji,

cut taxes on the wealthy,

smanjite porez bogatima,

cut benefits on the poor.

smanjite povlastice siromašnima.

But this time, we also asked them what did they think

Međutim, ovaj put smo takođe pitali šta misle

about other participants who disagree with them

o drugim učesnicima koji se ne slažu s njima

on those issues.

po datim pitanjima.

Are they smart or incompetent?

Da li su pametni ili nesposobni?

Are they reasonable or are they biased?

Da li su razumni ili pristrasni?

The better-than-average group said anybody who disagrees with them

Grupa natprosečnih je rekla da svako ko se ne slaže s njima

must be incompetent, biased,

mora da je nesposoban, pristrasan,

blinded by self-interest.

zaslepljen ličnim interesima.

The below-average group

Grupa ispodprosečnih

didn't assume that about their opponents.

nije slično pretpostavljala o svojim protivnicima.

Now, there are lots of psychology studies

Postoje mnoga psihološka istraživanja

showing that when people agree with us,

koja pokazuju da kada se ljudi slažu s nama,

we think they're brilliant,

smatramo ih bistrim,

and when people disagree with us,

a kada se ne slažu s nama,

we tend to think they're idiots.

smatramo da su idioti.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

But this is new because we found it was driven entirely by the group

Međutim, novina je što smo otkrili da to u potpunosti pokreće grupa

that felt better than average,

koja se osećala boljom od proseka,

who felt entitled to dismiss those people who disagree with them.

koja je osećala da ima pravo da odbaci sve te ljude koji se ne slažu s njima.

So think about what this is doing to our politics,

Zato razmislite kako ovo utiče na našu politiku,

as the haves and have-nots spread further and further apart.

dok se situirani i nesituirani sve više udaljavaju.

Yes, a lot of us think that people on the other side are idiots,

Da, mnogi od nas smatraju da su ljudi na drugoj strani idioti,

but the people politically engaged enough to be yelling at each other about politics

ali ljudi koji su dovoljno politički angažovani

da viču jedni na druge zbog politike

are actually mostly the well-off.

su zapravo uglavnom dobrostojeći.

In fact, as inequality has grown in recent decades,

Zapravo, kako je nejednakost rasla u skorašnjim decenijama,

political interest and participation among the poor has plummeted.

zainteresovanost i učešće u politici među siromašnima je dotaklo dno.

Again, we see that people who feel left behind

Iznova vidimo da ljudi koji se osećaju zapostavljeno

aren't taking to the streets to protest or organize voter registration drives.

ne izlaze na ulice da protestuju

i ne organizuju kampanje za registraciju glasača.

Often, they aren't even voting.

Često čak i ne glasaju.

Instead, they're turning away and dropping out.

Umesto toga, okreću leđa i odustaju.

So if we want to do something about extreme inequality,

Stoga, ako želimo da uradimo nešto po pitanju ekstremne nejednakosti,

we have to fix our politics.

moramo da popravimo politiku.

And if we want to fix our politics,

A ako želimo da popravimo našu politiku,

we have to do something about inequality.

moramo da učinimo nešto po pitanju nejednakosti.

So what do we do?

Dake, šta da radimo?

The wonderful thing about spirals

Divna stvar kod spirala

is that you can interrupt at any point in the cycle.

je što možete da prekinete ciklus u bilo kojoj tački.

I think our best bet starts with those of us

Smatram da najviše šansi imamo započinjući sa onima od nas

who have benefited the most from inequality's rise,

koji su imali najviše koristi od uspona nejednakosti,

those of us who have done better than average.

onima od nas koji su bolji od proseka.

If you've been successful,

Ako ste uspešni,

it's natural to chalk up your success to your own hard work.

prirodno je da pripišete uspeh svom vrednom radu.

But, like the studies I showed you,

Međutim, kao i u istraživanjima koja sam vam pokazao, svi to rade,

everybody does that,

whether or not it really was the hard work that mattered most.

bilo da je vredan rad uistinu bio najviše bitan ili ne.

Every successful person I know

Svaka uspešna osoba koju znam

can think of times when they worked hard and struggled to succeed.

može da se seti vremena kad su vredno radili i nije im išlo.

They can also think of times

Takođe mogu da se sete vremena

when they benefited from good luck or a helping hand

kada su imali korist od dobre sreće ili pomoći,

but that part is harder.

ali taj deo je teži.

Psychologists Shai Davidai and Tom Gilovich

Psiholozi Šaj Dejvidaj i Tom Gilovič

call it the "headwind-tailwind asymmetry."

to nazivaju „asimetrijom vetra u lice i vetra u leđa".

When you're struggling against headwinds,

Kada se borite s vetrom u lice,

those obstacles are all you can see.

sve što vidite su prepreke.

It's what you notice and remember.

To primećujete i pamtite.

But when the wind's at your back and everything's going your way,

Međutim, s vetrom u leđa i kada vam sve ide po volji,

all you notice is yourself

sve što primećujete ste vi sami

and our own amazing talents.

i vaši neverovatni talenti.

So we have to stop and think for a minute

Stoga moramo da zastanemo i razmislimo na trenutak

to recognize those tailwinds helping us along.

kako bismo prepoznali sve vetrove u leđa koji su nam pomogli.

It's so easy to see what's wrong with people

Lako je zapaziti šta nije u redu s ljudima

who disagree with you.

koji se ne slažu s vama.

Some of you decided that I was an idiot in the first two minutes,

Neki od vas su odlučili da sam idiot u prva dva minuta

because I said inequality was harmful.

jer sam rekao da je nejednakost štetna.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

The hard part is to recognize

Teži deo je uvideti da

that if you were in a different position,

da ste u različitoj poziciji,

you might see things differently,

možda biste stvari posmatrali drugačije,

just like the subjects in our experiments.

baš kao učesnici u našim eksperimentima.

So if you're in the above-average group in life --

Dakle, ako ste u životu u grupi natprosečnih -

and if you're watching a TED talk, you most likely are --

a ako gledate TED govor, najverovatnije jeste -

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

then I leave you with this challenge:

ostavljam vam sledeći izazov:

the next time you're tempted to dismiss someone who disagrees with you

sledeći put kad poželite da odbacite nekoga ko se ne slaže s vama

as an idiot,

kao idiota,

think about the tailwinds that helped you get where you are.

razmislite o vetrovima u leđa koji su vam pomogli da budete tu gde jeste.

What lucky breaks did you get

Koje ste srećne olakšice imali

that might have turned out differently?

koje su mogle da imaju drugačiji ishod?

What helping hands are you grateful for?

Za koje pomoći ste zahvalni?

Recognizing those tailwinds gives us the humility we need

Prepoznavanje vetrova u leđa nam pruža nužnu skromnost

to see that disagreeing with us doesn't make people idiots.

da uvidimo da neslaganje s nama ne čini ljude idiotima.

The real hard work is in finding common ground,

Istinski težak posao počiva u traženju zajedničkog jezika

because it's the well-off who have the power

jer su dobrostojeći ti koji imaju moć

and the responsibility to change things.

i odgovornost da promene stvari.

Thank you.

Hvala vam.

(Applause)

(Aplauz)