Egocentric victimhood v. Systemic Victimhood

[Adelaide]

Egocentric victimhood was assessed by asking participants how much they agreed with statements such as “I rarely get what I deserve in life” and “I usually have to settle for less.”

Systemic victimhood, on the other hand, was assessed by asking participants how much they agreed with statements such as “The system works against people like me” and “The world is ‘doing it’ to me and there’s nothing I can do about it.”

The researchers found that those who scored higher on the measure of victimhood tended to be less emotionally stable, more narcissistic, more conspiratorial, and more distrustful of government. Men were slightly more likely than women to feel victimized.

There was no significant difference between the level of victimhood between Democrats and Republicans overall. However, Armaly and Enders observed that increased egocentric victimhood was associated with increased support for Trump, while increased systemic victimhood was associated with reduced support for Trump.

This was true even after controlling for partisanship, ideological self-identification, religiosity, education, age, gender, race/ethnicity, and residence in the political South.

Egocentric victimhood is linked to support for Trump, study finds

And here is the link to the actual study: "Why me?" The Role of Perceived Victimhood in American Politics

This is very interesting, although not surprising. Trump himself constantly claimed to be a victim of quite a bit in his speeches. I think it is interesting that the actual journal article states that politics is often very focused on victimhood and that it is how politicians appeal to voters - someone has to be the victim of something, it doesn't matter which portion of the spectrum is being appealed to. Manipulative, but a good strategy. From the Nazis to William Jennings Bryan or FDR or Trump, you see the ability of the politician to say, "Hey, you are a victim because of X" and it gets votes.

Anyway, a good read, but obviously the research has issues/limitations. Interesting to think about, though.

[Rationalist]

That's interesting, because I supported Trump but I distrust the government and believe more in systemic "victimhood", so to speak. I just don't believe the system victimizes people according to race. It's according to class.

[Chris]

In this article, we develop a theory about, and use unique nationally-representative survey data to estimate, two manifestations of victimhood: an egocentric one entailing only perceptions of one’s own victimhood, and one focused on blaming “the system.”

That seems odd categorically. The first concerns the effect of victimhood while the second concerns the cause.

[countryboy]

That seems odd categorically. The first concerns the effect of victimhood while the second concerns the cause.

Just another left wing "study" with a preconceived outcome, achieved by asking leading questions. Dismissed out of hand.

[Adelaide]

That seems odd categorically. The first concerns the effect of victimhood while the second concerns the cause.

I think the best way to understand the difference is to think of it in an extreme. Egocentric victimhood is more about narcissism and the world revolving around a person - "I deserve more than I get." Systemic victimhood is more about paranoia and the world around that person - "The system is rigged against me."

It's murky in some places and likely overlaps in reality, but it's as much about personality as worldview. Some people are very self-aware, and some people are not. Some people are extroverts and some people are introverts. Some people have an open mind, some people do not. In this case, the egocentric victim is focused far more internally on their own experience and the systemic victim is focused more on external factors in relation to their own experience. It's about perception, not reality.

[Chris]

Seems to me if you're looking for "Egocentric victimhood is more about narcissism and the world revolving around a person" you will find it.

Just having trouble understanding the study.

[Safety]

So, you mean the very people that accuse others of being "victims" or having a "victim mentality" are actually the ones displaying microaggression due to the victimhood syndrome?

Yep, I'm totally shocked, I tell ya.

[Adelaide]

So, you mean the very people that accuse others of being "victims" or having a "victim mentality" are actually the ones displaying microaggression due to the victimhood syndrome?

Yep, I'm totally shocked, I tell ya.

The study addressed this in their conclusion as speculation, and they make sense - it's not surprising to anyone with a shred of self-awareness.

Relatedly, there may also be another “flavor” of perceived victimhood worth considering: an other-oriented, or accusatory one. ... Modern right-wing rhetoric, for instance, decries liberal “snowflakes,” “safe spaces,” and political correctness culture. In each of these instances, victimhood is projected onto others. This mobilizes the projectors because the “victims” are illegitimate—they are not deserving of victim status in the eyes of those doing the projecting.

[Standing Wolf]

People will always find ways to justify their own feelings of oppression and victimization, while claiming that those feelings are inherently different from, i.e. more valid than, the expressed feelings of certain other individuals or groups - that their own feelings are legitimate, while those of someone else are clearly bogus. It is interesting that very often, as seen on this forum and elsewhere, many of those most dismissive of the claims of oppression made by others are themselves quite involved with making their own claims - sometimes to the point of lunacy.

[The Xl]

Egocentric victimhood is usually entitled narcissistic nonsense, but systemic victimhood can be a real thing in many different ways.