Competition is glorified in today’s world.  Companies are incited to compete in the global economy, to make competitive products and services and to have a competitive workforce.  Similarly, every aspect of schooling trains children to compete — if not in formal contests and exams, then for grades, ranks, labels, teacher approval, etc.  But just as only a few employees are given bonuses, so do only a few children receive prizes, certificates or other rewards.  The rest are declared losers; their failure is explained by either a lack of hard work or a lack of ability.  Although the situation may seem unfair, we are all told that, in the ‘survival of the fittest’, competition is the only way to motivate us to be productive and to do our best.

In No Contest: The Case Against Competition (1992), Alfie Kohn refutes this myth, as well as three additional myths about competition: that it is part of human nature; that it is the only/best way to have fun; and that it builds character and confidence.  He explains that those who are pro-competition subscribe to a win-lose view of the world. Both the dominant economic structure and the school deliberately make ‘success’ scarce, by creating unnatural situations where only a few can win and the rest must lose.  They then use these ‘successes’ as evidence to promote more cutthroat competition.  Kohn cleverly elaborates, “Capitalism works on the same principle as a glass company, whose employees spend their nights breaking people’s windows and their days boasting of the public service they provide.”

And far from making us do our best, competition actually inhibits us.  Kohn cites multiple studies that show that in competitive atmospheres, people produce less spontaneous, less complex, less diverse, and less creative products; while the reverse holds true in cooperative atmospheres.  This ‘paradox’ happens for several reasons. First, competition restricts our vision; it makes us narrowly focus on ‘winning’ the reward, so that we neither use our time or our resources well.  At the same time, it breeds hostility, anxiety, fear of failure, and fear of risk-taking/exploring, which further constrains our creativity and performance.  Lastly, competition results in a “loss of community and sociability and a heightening of selfishness.”  It prevents us from working together or caring about each other.  These outcomes of competition not only affect the losers, but also the winners.

Those who advocate competition fail to see the fundamental difference between ‘learning’ and ‘competing’.  With learning, we give attention to accomplishing the task, the skill, or the goal, because we value the effort itself. With competition, we focus on defeating others; the quality of our work is only important insofar as it wins us the reward.

Kohn makes strong recommendations to abandon this competitive ethic and adopt a vision of cooperative learning, so each of us can achieve our full potential in ways that are beneficial to the whole community.  The “enormous potential of mutual benefit (cooperative) strategies will not be tapped — or even understood — until we broaden our perspective beyond the narrow prejudice that we always do best by trying to beat others.” 

Please discuss with your family, friends and colleagues:

How is competition promoted in your community?

 What are spaces/opportunities for promoting cooperation instead?

What are some strategies for challenging competition and ensuring everyone’s success in learning and growing?