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Derogation of Rivals

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Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science

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Synonyms

Competition; Lack of respect

Definition

If an individual derogates another, it means to perceive or treat them as being of low worth and with no respect. If an individual behaved like this with a rival, it would be a person who seems equal or comparable to them and a potential competitor at any given task, for example, if they were applying for the same job.

Introduction

Following from the previous chapter, this entry focuses on how individuals may use manipulative communication with others via derogating rivals in order to protect or enhance their self-esteem. It will also demonstrate how the specific personality construct, narcissism, may accentuate this from an evolutionary perspective.

Competition and Derogation

The process of attracting a mate is competitive, sometimes because numerous individuals can be simultaneously attracted to the same person (Alexander 1979; Buss 1988). One way to compete with rivals in order to create better evaluations from potential mates is to...

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References

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Psychology, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK

    Victoria Blinkhorn

Authors
  1. Victoria Blinkhorn
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Victoria Blinkhorn .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Oakland Univ Dept of Psycholgy, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Viviana Weekes-Shackelford

  2. Department of Psychology, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Todd K. Shackelford

  3. Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Viviana A. Weekes-Shackelford

Section Editor information

  1. University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK

    Minna Lyons

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© 2016 Springer International Publishing AG

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Blinkhorn, V. (2016). Derogation of Rivals. In: Weekes-Shackelford, V., Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_1458-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_1458-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

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