Powerarchy: Understanding the Psychology of Oppression for Social Transformation

Harvard-educated psychologist and bestselling author Melanie Joy exposes the psychology that underlies all forms of oppression and abuse and the belief system that gives rise to this psychology—which she calls powerarchy.

Melanie Joy had long been curious as to why people who were opposed to one or more forms of oppression—such as racism, sexism, speciesism, and so forth—often stayed mired in many others. She also wondered why people who were working toward social justice sometimes engaged in interpersonal dynamics that were unjust. Or why people who valued freedom and democracy might nevertheless vote and act against these values. Where was the disconnect?

In this thought-provoking analysis, Joy explains how we've all been deeply conditioned by the invisible system of powerarchy to believe in a hierarchy of moral worth—to view some individuals and groups as either more or less worthy of moral consideration—and to treat them accordingly.

Powerarchy conditions us to engage in power dynamics that violate integrity and harm dignity, and it creates unjust power imbalances among social groups and between individuals. Joy describes how powerarchies—both social and interpersonal—perpetuate themselves through cognitive distortions, such as denial and justification; narratives that reinforce the belief in a hierarchy of moral worth; and privileges that are granted to some and not others. She also provides tools for transformation.

By illuminating powerarchy and the psychology it creates, Joy helps us to work more fully toward transformation for ourselves, others, and our world.

About the Authors

MELANIE JOY, PhD, EdM, is a Harvard-educated psychologist, international speaker, and organizational and relationship coach. She was a lecturer at the University of Massachusetts Boston for eleven years, where she taught courses on priv-ilege and oppression, feminist psychology, and animal rights. She has given talks and train-ings on six continents and in over forty-five countries, and her work has been featured in major media outlets around the world. She is the eighth recipient of the Ahimsa Award―previously given to the Dalai Lama and Nelson Mandela―for her work on global non-violence. She is also the author of three other books. You can learn more about her work at powerarchy.org.

Anna Crowe is a voiceover artist and an audiobook narrator. Although her professional career includes co-owning a successful advertising and marketing agency that caters to television studios and networks, she has always been a storyteller and communicator first and foremost. She provides voiceover for a number of commercial clients and audiobook publishers around the country and lives with her husband, Ron, and their dog, Samantha, in Burbank, California.