Crab mentality, also known as crab theory, crabs in a bucket mentality,
or the crab-bucket effect, describes the mindset of people who try to
prevent others from gaining a favorable position, even if attaining such
position would not directly impact those trying to stop them. Examples of
crab mentality include a workplace where colleagues spread rumors about a
high-achieving coworker, friends who use peer pressure to sabotage a
healthy lifestyle, or a family member who discourages someone from pursuing
a career or relationship outside of the family's expectations. These
actions often stem from jealousy or envy, with individuals trying to pull
others down to their own level rather than working on their own success.
In humans, this instinct stems from deep stirrings of insecurity and fear
that cause people to feel like others shouldn't be allowed to have
something if they can't also have it. It springs up in families,
workplaces, social circles, and romantic relationships.
In cases where you can’t change people’s mindset and behavior
directly, you can focus on your own mindset and actions instead, in a way
that reduces the impact that their crab mentality has on you. For example,
you can:
Ignore them.
Realize that their crab mentality is driven mostly by their own issues,
rather than by anything that you did, even if their behavior is directed at
you.
Accept that because people’s crab mentality is generally their own issue,
there might not be anything that you can do to solve it.
Forgive other people for engaging in crab mentality, not necessarily
because they deserve it, but because that’s the best thing you can do for
yourself.
Focus on your own progress and accomplishments, rather than on other
people’s negativity.
Refuse to engage in crab mentality yourself, and even do the opposite, by
actively celebrating the achievement of others.
Some of these techniques can also help reduce people’s crab mentality over
time.
Finally, in some cases, the best long-term solution is to simply
distance yourself from people who display crab mentality. This isn’t always
an option, for example if your colleagues are the ones displaying crab
mentality and changing jobs isn’t currently an option, but it is something
that you can do in some cases, such as when it comes to your circle of
friends.
Overall, to deal with crab mentality in others, you can either
try to reduce this mentality directly, by using similar methods as you
would use to avoid crab mentality in yourself, or you can focus on your own
mindset and actions instead, for example by realizing that people’s crab
mentality is driven primarily by their own issues, rather than by anything
that you did.
There are some concepts that are closely associated with crab
mentality, such as:
The tall poppy syndrome, which describes a phenomenon where people
disparage those who do well, similarly to crabs mentality. This phenomenon
is based on a story in Livy’s “The History of Rome” (Book I). In the story,
Sextus Tarquinius, who was the son of the Roman King Lucius Tarquinius
Superbus, had become beloved and powerful in the city of Gabii, and sent a
messenger to his father asking what to do next. The king, instead of
replying in words, walked out to the garden together with the messenger,
and used his cane to strike off the heads of the tallest poppies. Upon
returning, the messenger shared the story of what happened, and the King’s
son understood his father’s intentions, and proceeded to remove all the
principal people of Gabii, through various methods, such as prosecution,
banishment, and assassination.
The allegory of the long spoons, which describes a situation where
people are seated at a table with food that they’re unable to eat because
the spoons that they have are too long for them to feed themselves. The
solution is for people to use the long spoons to feed each other, showing
how, in certain situations, cooperation is crucial, and can benefit all
those who are involved.
Schadenfreude, which is satisfaction that’s derived from someone
else’s misfortune.
The mentality of “if I can’t have it, neither can you”.
Various idioms, such as “misery loves company”.
Crab mentality in specific cultures
Crab mentality is often described as being particularly characteristic of
certain cultures, and especially Philippine culture. In this context, it’s
sometimes also referred to using similar terms, that are based on the
Filipino Tagalog language, such as kanya-kanya syndrome, *talangka [crab]
mentality, isip talangka [thinking like a crab], and utak talangka [crab
brain].*
However, the fact that this phenomenon is often discussed in the context
of Philippine culture does not mean that Filipinos are the only ones that
display this behavior, or that they display it more frequently or to a
greater degree than others.
Furthermore, this term and similar ones have often been used to
describe members of other cultures. As one book on the topic states:
“Hawaiians are said to be afflicted with a psychological disorder
known as the ‘‘Alamihi Syndrome.’ An ‘alamihi is a common black crab that
lives among the rocks along Hawaiian shores. Crab catchers trap them in
nets, and then dump them into buckets until the time comes to take them
home for cooking*. Critics of uncooperative Hawaiians love to compare them
with the ‘alamihi, which always manage to pull down the ones who are trying
to climb up and over the sides of a bucket.* This analogy has been repeated
so often that now it is a part of the standard lore about Hawaiians’
behavior to other Hawaiians. By now even Hawaiians themselves believe it.
Incidentally, the same analogy is used against the Maoris in New
Zealand, against coastal Indians in Canada and the United States, Chamorros
in Guam, and the natives of many another place.”
— From “Ku Kanaka—Stand Tall: A Search for Hawaiian Values” (1986)
Furthermore, as one study states: “…even if you call it talangka
mentality, indigenizing the animal does not make the expression indigenous.”
Overall, although the concept of “crab mentality” is sometimes
associated with certain cultures, these associations are often dubious, and
you should be wary of them. In addition, even if crab mentality is
associated with certain cultures more than others, that doesn’t necessarily
mean that all members of such cultures display crab mentality, or that
members of other cultures never display this mentality.
Summary and conclusions
Crab mentality is a phenomenon where people react negatively when others
get ahead.
For example, crab mentality can cause someone to mock a friend who does
well at school, because they’re upset about struggling with their own
studies.
People display crab mentality for various reasons, like wanting to feel
better about themselves, viewing others’ success as coming at their
expense, or emulating others.
Signs of crab mentality include frequently trying to discourage or sabotage
others, reacting negatively to others’ accomplishments, and expressing
satisfaction toward others’ misfortunes.
To handle crab mentality, you can call it out, and try to either address
its root causes if possible, or prevent the negative actions that it leads
to if not.
No, expressing counter thoughts is not necessarily tantamount to "crab
culture"; the two are distinct concepts.
Crab culture (or crab mentality) describes a destructive mindset where
individuals try to pull down those who are succeeding, motivated by envy,
resentment, or a zero-sum bias (the belief that one person's gain is
another's loss). The core characteristic is the intent to hinder another
person's progress for no personal gain, simply to level the playing field
through negativity or sabotage.
Expressing counter thoughts, on the other hand, can be a vital part of
healthy communication, critical thinking, and collaboration.
The key difference lies in the motivation and intent:
Feature Counter Thoughts (Healthy) Crab Culture (Toxic)
Motivation To improve an idea, explore different perspectives, or solve a
problem collaboratively. To diminish another's success, driven by
jealousy or insecurity.
Goal Collective or individual growth, innovation, and better
decision-making. Preventing someone from gaining a favorable
position, even if it harms the group's overall progress.
Impact Fosters innovation and thoughtful discussion. Creates a toxic
environment, discourages risk-taking, and leads to stagnation.
Therefore, expressing counter thoughts only becomes "crab culture" when the
intent is malicious and aimed at tearing others down rather than engaging
in constructive dialogue or healthy competition.
The crab mentality is a selfish and narrow-minded way of
thinking, characterized by egocentrism, jealousy, and inequity. The
opposite of the crab mentality approach is lifting others, virtually all
the crabs in the bucket could escape. The opposite of "crab mentality" is
an approach of "lifting others," where a group works together for
collective success instead of pulling each other down, allowing more
members to escape a negative situation. While crab mentality is a mindset
of jealousy and insecurity that prevents individual or group progress,
lifting others promotes a collaborative environment where success is
celebrated, and support is given to help everyone rise. This collaborative
approach is often summarized as a "if I can have it, so can you" attitude,
in contrast to the crabs-in-a-bucket mentality of "if I can't have it,
neither can you".
Tesser's self-evaluation maintenance theory (SEM) suggests that
individuals engage in self-evaluation not only through introspection but
also through comparison to others, especially those within their close
social circles. When someone close to an individual excels in areas they
value, they may feel threatened and act in ways that downplay their
achievements. This mechanism can partly explain why individuals may attempt
to pull down those who achieve more than themselves as a way to protect
their own self-esteem and social standing. Emotions such as envy may be
generated when individuals feel threatened during self-evaluation. This can
lead to a desire to diminish the well-being of others, particularly when
their success highlights the individual's own failures or inadequacies
Relative deprivation theory proposes that feelings of
dissatisfaction and injustice arise when people compare their situation
unfavorably with others' situations. This sense of inequality, rooted in
subjective perceptions rather than objective measures, can deeply influence
social behavior, including the phenomenon of crab mentality. When
individuals see their peers achieving success or receiving the recognition
they feel is undeserved or unattainable for themselves, it can trigger
actions aimed at undermining these peers' accomplishments. The concept
emerged from a study of American soldiers by Stouffer. Soldiers in units
with more promotions were paradoxically less satisfied, feeling left out if
not promoted themselves, despite better odds of advancement. This reflects
how relative deprivation fuels dissatisfaction by comparing one's situation
to others. By "dragging" others down to a similar level, individuals might
feel a sense of satisfaction. Thus, crab mentality can be viewed as a
response to perceived social inequality, where pulling others down becomes
a strategy to cope with feelings of inadequacy or injustice.
THUS, GENERALLY ONLY INFERIORITY COMPLEX FLOAT THIS THEORY
AGAINST WHOM, THEIR MERITS APPEARED TO THEM AS NOT BALANCEABLE. THOSE WHO
ACCUSE OTHERS WITHOUT BASIS AND ONLY FOR EXPRESSIONS, HAVE THIS THEORY AS
FAVOURABLE TO THEM BUT ALAS, THEIR MIND REFUSE TO ACCEPT THE TRUTH
K RAJARAM IRS 141125
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