The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #43543

Pauline Vaillancourt Rosenau, PhD, Department of Management and Policy Sciences, School of Public Health - University of Texas - Health Science Center, 1200 Herman Pressler, P.O. Box 20186, Houston, TX 77225, (713) 500-9491, prosenau@sph.uth.tmc.edu

The objective of this paper is to review existing research and specify the known impact of various types of competition for human health and productivity. The results of such a review suggest that competition is not as benign as has been commonly assumed. Certain forms of competition may have quite serious negative effects on health. The dynamic by which they do so are known and have been extensively studied - for example, they increase stress at the individual level. Destructive competition may also exacerbate already existing inequality among individuals, within societies, and between countries. Increased inequality is one of several social determinants of health. While commonly assumed to generate incentives for increased productivity, scholars in several academic disciplines have called the evidence for such an effect into question. Organizations that restrict the level of internal competition are more productive and appear to have a more stable, more highly motivated workforce. A substantial portion of the population has been found to be more likely to function to full capacity where the level of competition is moderated. To assure that all individuals are provided the opportunity to lead healthy lives and produce to their full capacity requires reconsidering common educational practices and workplace organizational structures. Similarly at the global level limiting destructive, winner-take-all forms of competition may be necessary if all nations are to develop to full capacity in the long term and contribute to a healthy and productive international environment. There is little evidence that the current forms of unrestricted global competition maximize the health of populations or improve productivity.

Learning Objectives:

• At the conclusion of the session, the participant will be able to distinguish between those forms of competition that are harmful to human health and productivity from those that are not. They will have developed a full understanding of how research results in several disciplines, going back more than a century, suggest caution and lead to the conclusion that competition is not as benign as is commonly assumed. They will obtain the information required to critically examine the extent to which competition plays a role in their own home,work environment, and community, and assess the extent to which it is positive or negative. They will be able to propose changes at the individual and societal level that could reduce the negative effects of the most destructive forms of competition and why this is advisable.

Keywords: Competition,

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: none
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.