Meritocracy, unfairness, and the directions of anger

Abstract

Although researchers have focused on different aspects to explain the success of populist movements, perceptions of unfairness continue highly overlooked. Despite the difficulty in finding evidence, I intend to elucidate the growing perceptions of unfairness, the anger it causes, and its impact on the electoral success of radical left and right movements by investigating the spread of the meritocracy discourse and the ideological repositioning of political parties. I argue that the collectivization of economic grievances directs the anger caused by perceptions of unfairness exclusively to the economic elite, allowing for bottom-up mobilization and greater support for left-wing populism. However, since the meritocratic mentality encourages the individualization of grievances and social competition, the anger that the perception of unfairness creates is directed towards those seen as unfairly rewarded regardless of their income group, which increases support for right-wing populism. As populists achieve electoral success, the consolidation of the discourse and its popular support depends on the ability to reaffirm the identities of the “pure people” and the “corrupt elite”. The analyses of case studies in the Americas and Europe support the arguments.