The Role of Human Agency--The Difference Individuals Can Make

 

During a conversation during a recent P&G Alumni Reunion, I was asked for my perspective on the developments that have occurred in Russia and China over the past three decades.

 

My answer was that my reaction was one of great disappointment.  I had never expected Russia to mirror  Western culture or way of life.  It was equally clear that this would not happen in China, though I did believe that as China continued to open up economically, it would gravitate to a more open society with more individual rights to choose. How wrong I was.

The two most surprising geo-political events in my lifetime have both involved Russia:

 

1.     The peaceful dissolution of the Soviet empire in 1989-90, and

2.     The reversion of Russia to a position of outright antagonism to the West, once again feeling surrounded, now proclaiming its own way of life, radically different from what President Putin cites as the corrosive evolution of  Western culture.

 

In the cases of both Russia and China, it’s clear to me looking back, I underestimated the determinative impact of history, culture, political dynamics,  geography, and economic development.

 

Over the course of history, there have been on-going debates among historians, social scientists and philosophers about the relative importance of individual action compared to structural forces, cultural factors and other determinative factors in shaping the course of human history. 

 

Some have argued for what is called be the “Great Man Theory.”-- that history is driven significantly by influential leaders and  thinkers who shape events and drive historical progress. 

 

Other schools fostering a historical perspective driven by“determinism” argue that human history is primarily shaped by external forces and by history.  They believe that individuals have limited agency and that it is broader structural forces  which drive change.

 

Going back to my reflections on Russia and China, there is no doubt that the deterministic factors of history,  environment and culture have provided a defined scope with which individuals can operate.  But there is also no doubt in my mind that individual agency has been massively at play in the development of the history of those two countries over the course of the last half-century.

 

I would argue that the peaceful dissolution of the Soviet empire never would have happened if it were not for the vision, courage and determination of Mikhail Gorbachev.  And his vision and determination were enabled and amplified on an individual basis by the wisdom of George H.W. Bush and James Baker. 

 

I would go on to argue that, while it was certain that Russia was going to redefine its place in the world as a major power, having been brought to its knees in the 1990s, the turn it has taken has been highly influenced by the person of Vladimir Putin.  And also by the complex of political decisions that contributed to the current divide,  most importantly in my view the decision to expand NATO to the borders of Russia. 

That, too, was a function of human agency. 

 

In China’s case, the  speed and direction of the evolution of China was greatly  influenced by the person of Deng Xiaoping and Zhu Rongji, with whom I worked personally.  They had a distinct vision of working together with the West,  albeit certainly with the goal of maximizing China’s economic development and the strength that would come from it.

 

President Xi comes from a different school. He has set out to establish China as a unique power in the world. He would claim China is only seeking coexistence with the United States , but clearly China today is laying claim to be the the dominant power in Southeast Asia, much as they see the United States having done in the Caribbean. This has produced a conflict with the United States which has led to our increasing viewing each other as existential enemies, which we need not and should not be.

 

*****

 

This question of human agency goes beyond geo-political issues.  The role of human agency comes down to the relationships within our families; it comes down to the impact we have on those organizations we are part of.  Organizations, too, are affected by structural and cultural forces that will shape their future. However,  within that determined framework, the individual can and does make an enormous difference.  To be sure, it’s often an  individual working with other individuals.  But the individual makes the difference. 

 

How else do you explain that some companies, a very few like Procter & Gamble, can exist and succeed for over 180 years while maintaining leadership, while others, once leaders, fall by the wayside.  There were common forces affecting all these companies.  Some made it through successfully.  Some didn’t.  Individual agency at different point of history made the difference.

 

Closer to home, there is the role of individual agency in one’s family.  The impact one has in ones family is also influenced  by certain constraints, historical roots, the economic exigencies of the moment  But they still leave all life-determining room for the agency of a parent. 

Take my own life.  My  mother made an irrepaceable difference in my life.  Her belief in me, the confidence she bred in me, her willingness to make every personal sacrifice for my success, had everything to do with my success.  It was not inevitable that I’d have a parent like my mother, not at all.  

 

And when I read about the success stories of individuals who have risen from challenging circumstances to achieve success, there is always the influence provided by individual agency. 

 

For me, this reality provides enormous encouragement to do our best in positively impacting the lives of other people whom we meet and taking proactive steps to meet more people whose lives we can in some way benefit. And it also gives me hope that the brutal and  seemingly hopeless situations currently prevailing in Russia and Ukraine and in Israel and Palestine will some day turn for the better as a result of wise and courageous human agency. We have seen it happen before.

 

When you reach the age of 85, as I have, you realize even more that we have been placed on this earth for a very small amount of time.  The scope of our opportunities will be more or less limited.  But  whatever they are, each of us has the opportunity to play a role of positive human agency in contributing to the lives of others. I will continue to try to make the most of it.