“内卷化”及其文化心理机制分析

Involution and its Cultural Psychological Mechanism

"内卷化"作为社会文化发展的一种特殊形态,有其重要的社会历史形成机制。它是一个专制封闭社会不断自我复制的结果。不仅保守的小农经济可能存在农业"内卷化"问题,本性开放的市场经济也可能"内卷化"并形成"过密化"的市场空间。当今中国社会出现的各种"内卷化"现象则需要反思我们深层的社会文化心理因素。"内卷化人格"具有的特点为,缺乏原创品质与激情,惯于模仿与跟风,缺乏主体性和主体意识,零和思维,悖论人格,以及由此而产生的群体内部社会信任的崩溃。克服"内卷化人格"需要真正尊重个体性和以人为本的文化与教育环境。

Involution, as a special form of social and cultural development, has its own appropriate mechanisms leading to its emergence. It is the result of a closed, totalitarian society＇s continuous self-replication. Conservative agricultural economies are not alone in being susceptible to the problem of involution. Even initially open market economies might suffer involution, leading to lower marginal returns. Today＇s China is showing all sorts of signs of involution, which requires some reflection on its deeper cause, which might be explained by our social and cultural psychology. Involuted personalities manifest themselves in the lack of originality and passion, in the proclivity for imitation and herd mentality, in the lack of a sense of the sovereign individual, in an easy embrace of zero-sum thinking, and in the resulted collapse of social trust within the group. To overcome a tendency toward an ＂involuted personality＂ requires respect of one＇s individuality and a cultural and educational environment that centers on the individual.