don't call it a comeback

(Image caption: 30 January 1995: Residents of Arcen and Velden working on constructing an emergency dike. Fear of something or some people within the group can cause people within a group to work better together. Credit: ANP photo)

Greed and fear hamper cooperation

Everyone benefits when cooperation runs smoothly. However, people often act obstructively. Why do they do that? Professor of Social Psychology Carsten de Dreu researches this issue using a wide variety of methods, from brain scans to the role of religion.

Fear of being exploited

From winning a complex war to developing a life-saving drug: there are so many things that can only be achieved if people work together in harmony. They can then achieve impressive performances that also benefit the individual. So, why do colleagues or others so often make things difficult for one another? Empirical research carried out by De Dreu has shown that greed and fear are the basic reasons underlying problems with teamwork. ‘People are afraid that their contribution will mainly benefit those people who themselves contribute nothing. That’s why people hold back and invest in self-protection rather than cooperation.’  

Experiments

De Dreu examined the strategies people use to maximise the benefits for themselves and to reduce the risk of being exploited. He conducts experiments where the participants can invest in self-protection or attacks on others, or they can choose to do nothing. When motivated by greed, people seem to invest mainly in self-protection and less in attacks on others. 'Fear is almost always present as a brake on cooperation, but it’s more difficult to predict when greed will crop up.’ The paradox is that fear among rival groups tends to result in people working better together. 'It seems to happen almost automatically, often without it even being discussed.’

What does our brain look like?

As Professor of Employment and Organisation Psychology at the University of Amsterdam, De Dreu has conducted a lot of research on cooperation within organisations. In Leiden he intends to approach the subject at a higher level of abstraction. 'We know a lot about what makes the best kind of leaders. Now I want to examine what our brain looks like when we are working together. I’m interested in that because cooperating with one another relies on very basic systems that we also use for other tasks, such as child-rearing.’

Oxytocin, the cuddle hormone

He intends to use brain scans to look at which neurohormones play a role in cooperation, such as the 'cuddle hormone’ oxytocin. Is more oxytocin produced when people are working together successfully? And can you influence cooperation by administering a dose of this hormone? 'This neurobiological approach has only really been used by psychologists in the past five years, and there are a lot of important research questions that have to be answered.’

The effect of religion and rules

De Dreu draws attention to his multidisciplinary approach. He is also interested in the effect of such 'institutions’ as religion and legislation because these have an obvious influence on our behaviour. He will be working together with fellow scientists from other disciplines: sociologists, political scientists, legal specialists, religious experts and also biologists who will be examining the behaviour of rats, for example.

Managers in the scanner

“Tinashe” -  Means “God is with us” in Shona ( An African language spoken by nearly 80 percent of people in Zimbabwe.)

“Lakeisha” - A Swahili name meaning “favorite one.”

“Ashanti” -  Name of a powerful African empire in West Africa.

“Tanisha” - Hausa of West Africa name meaning “born on Monday.”

“Zola” - Means “quiet, tranquil” in Zulu.    

“Amandla” -  Zulu and Xhosa word meaning “power”. The word was a popular rallying cry in the days of resistance against Apartheid.

“Zendaya” - Means “ To Give Thanks” in Shona

“Latonia” -  A Latin name. Latonia was the mother of Diana in Roman mythology.

“Lulu” - Swahili and Muslim name meaning “pearl” or “precious.”

“Ciara” -  Means “dark-haired” in Irish Gaelic

“Lateefah” - A North African name meaning “gentle and pleasant.”

“Mercedes” - Means “Gracious gifts/Benefits) in Spanish

“Kaya” -  Ghanaian name meaning “stay and don’t go back.”

“Amara” -  The Swahili word amara, meaning “urgent business.” Also the Hindu name meaning “immortal.”

“Shanika” - African Bantu name, meaning “young one from the wilderness.

“Zuri” - Means “beautiful” in Swahili.

“Onika” - Word of African origin meaning “warrior.”

JUST BECAUSE A NAME SOUNDS DIFFERENT DOES NOT MEAN IT’S “RATCHET” OR “GHETTO” THEY HAVE BEAUTIFUL MEANINGS.