Social Dominance Orientation in a Motivational Framework: A Focus on Organizational Settings

This theoretical paper adopts a perspective on human motivation to examine the system of needs, motivated social cognitions, goals, and strategies associated with individuals exhibiting higher or lower levels of social dominance orientation. Drawing on research conducted in organizational settings, it examines how the endorsement of harsh or soft power strategies serves hierarchy-enhancing or hierarchy-attenuating goals. Furthermore, the paper examines how different organizational cultures—characterized by hierarchy-enhancing or hierarchy-attenuating social norms—may shape social dominance orientation-related goals. Particular attention is given to the person-environment misfit condition that arises when individuals with higher social dominance orientation operate in organizational contexts where hierarchy-attenuating norms prevail. Consistent with the literature, several social-psychological responses to misfit have been identified, including dropout, endorsement of power strategies, self-regulation strategies, and socialization into the organizational culture—each serving as a means to reduce the dissonance elicited by person-environment misfit. Finally, the paper offers directions for future research on social dominance orientation in organizational contexts and discusses practical implications, emphasizing the pivotal role of motives that support group-based dominance or equality in these settings.