Introduction
Michael Morris challenges the foundations of the social sciences, arguing that modern societies are not built on rational individuals, but on three deeply rooted tribal instincts: peer synchronization, theatrical giant-killing, and ritual temple visiting. These mechanisms form the hidden core of conflicts and shape legal, economic, and cultural orders. This article explores the role of artificial intelligence as a new medium of tribalization. Rather than weakening these atavisms, AI may reinforce them by manipulating signals of commonality, prestige, and precedence. Understanding these processes is crucial for building societies based on dialogue rather than toxic tribalism.
Morris’s Thesis: The Primacy of Tribalism over Rationality
According to Morris, we are not rational beings who form tribes, but tribal beings who occasionally manage to be rational. This paradigm shift strikes at the foundations of liberalism and neoclassical economics. Peer synchronization is not a weakness, but the evolutionary logic of Homo erectus, which today manifests in dress codes or viral trends, reducing uncertainty and creating a sense of normalcy.
The "Giant-Killing" Mechanism and the Ancestral Instinct
The second instinct, giant-killing, regulates the economy of prestige. Heroism is a strategy for status maximization, visible from the myth of David to the success of startups. Meanwhile, the ancestral instinct (ritual temple visiting) is responsible for the faithful replication of narratives. It is a mechanism of cultural memory that allows us to accumulate knowledge more effectively than other species, often through the over-imitation of rituals.
Prohibition and Soap Operas: Codes Stronger Than Law
The history of Prohibition in the US shows that peer codes are more powerful than statutes. The victory of the teetotalers was made possible by manipulating the perception of "normalcy," and its collapse occurred when reliable data revealed a lack of real consensus. Similarly, soap operas in Brazil changed the country's demographics not through bans, but by promoting new patterns of prestige—heroines choosing careers over large families became status figures to emulate.
Artificial Intelligence and Global Prestige Differences
AI is becoming a new medium of tribalization, precisely controlling signals of commonality. In the US, prestige is routinized within market logic; in Europe, it is based on expert competence; and in the Arab world, on genealogy and tradition. AI algorithms can sharpen these differences, undermining authority or fueling populism by managing signals of precedence and the visibility of digital heroes.
Dimensions of Tribalism and the Legitimation of Order
Toxic tribalism takes three forms: epistemic (closure in truth bubbles), ethical (exalting one's own group), and existential (obsessive defense of tradition). The ancestral instinct legitimizes law through "elevation from ancient stone"—giving new institutions the appearance of antiquity. These invented traditions are effective tools of social engineering because our brains seek coherence rather than historical truth.
AI Algorithms and Institutional Design
Modern AI algorithms act as curators of prestige, deciding which life models are rewarded with attention. To transform tribalism into cooperation, we must design institutions capable of channeling tribal energy. An example is meta-tribes—communities with dispersed loyalty (e.g., science), where identity is built around universal methods rather than exclusionary dogmas.
Summary
The foundation of a stable democracy must be communicative reason, which does not suppress instincts but subjects them to critique in open discourse. In the age of algorithms, are we doomed to polarization, or will we use AI to build meta-tribes where dialogue overcomes atavisms? The key lies in wisely directing our nature so that what united us in the past does not become a prison for the future. Conscious institutional design and algorithmic oversight can ensure that the force of the better argument triumphs over the tribal echo.
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