They eliminate individuality and form a united whole. Group members do better because they look out for each other when they fall ill or need other forms of support. For example, those incarcerated in Nazi concentration camps were much more likely to survive if they were affiliated with some kind of group. Accordingly, mass movements are strongest when many people function together, forming a single unit.īecause members of a group feel empowered and supported by other members. It’s because these people act collectively. Have you ever considered what makes a mass of people – participants in a demonstration, for instance – so powerful? It’s certainly not a result of each person’s individuality, of each personal decision and doubt. People who’ve lost something will fight to get it back. Just look at the Puritan Revolution that catalyzed the English Civil War it was started by people who’d recently been driven from their property so that landlords could turn the fields into grazing land. For example, “the new poor” (people who used to have money but lost it) are the most powerful force for change, because they know what can be achieved. Knowing what it means to have something has a similar effect. By spreading this new, more upbeat vision of mankind, the revolution instilled in people a new sense of power and fueled the engine that drove democratization.īut hope isn’t the only thing that makes people desire change. Consider the French Revolution, which was sparked by the idea that man has an infinite capacity for reason and is not soaked in sin. That’s why all mass movements start by making people feel that a better future is within their grasp – to inspire hope. When you have hope – even just a shred of it – you start feeling self-efficacy. Unemployed people are more likely to follow someone who gives them hope than someone who offers them money. In fact, the biggest cause of despair among the unemployed isn’t a lack of money but a lack of hope. And it was from this fertile soil that the Nazi movement grew. In Germany after WWI, for instance, people were at the end of the line after losing the war, they felt, the future held nothing. People who are discontent or lack hope want change and so are open to messages that promise it. But what if your job was so bad that you dreaded waking up in the morning? Finding a new one would be a top priority.

If you had a job you loved with flexible hours and a good salary would you go looking for another one? Probably not.

The true believer eric hoffer summary