Invisible Rivals

A multidisciplinary view of how our competitive and cooperative natures make us human

For centuries, people have argued about whether humans are moral animals—good or bad, cooperative or competitive, altruistic or selfish. The debates continue today, dressed up in the language of modern science. In his book, Invisible Rivals, Jonathan R. Goodman makes the case for synthesising the two sides. Drawing on insights from anthropology, evolutionary biology, and philosophy, he argues that rather than being fundamentally cooperative or competitive, we are capable of being both—and of exploiting each other when there is an opportunity to do so.

The core of invisible rivalry is how we make ourselves and others believe that we are acting cooperatively even as we manipulate those around us for our own benefit. In confronting this collective tendency towards self-interest, Goodman suggests, we can make the fundamental first step in fixing the breakdown of trust in society. Consequently, we will be better able to combat the myriad issues we face today, including widespread inequality, misinformation in a new technological environment, and climate change.