Rugged terrain and rigid hierarchy

Abstract

Human societies differ markedly in their endorsement of hierarchical authority, ranging from strict obedience to powerful leaders and militaries to more decentralized and egalitarian governance. Although cultural values have traditionally been used to explain this diversity, socioecological perspectives suggest that physical environments also shape collective orientations toward authority. The current research examines whether terrain ruggedness—the degree of elevational variability—predicts hierarchical preferences across large-scale contexts. In Study 1 (78 countries; N = 156,658), we combined cross-national survey data from the European Values Study/World Values Survey with digital elevation models. Results demonstrated that national preferences for military rule and for a strong leader (who bypasses democratic processes) were higher in countries with more rugged terrain, even after controlling for economic factors, demographic indices, and spatial autocorrelation. Study 2 (50 U.S. states; N = 336,491), using Gallup Poll data, replicated and extended these findings within the United States, revealing that states with greater terrain ruggedness exhibited a higher proportion of vertical (“boss-like”) supervisory relations, rather than egalitarian, collaborative (“partner-like”) styles. These convergent findings bolster socioecological models of person–environment fit and extend prior research linking geography and social cognition. By identifying terrain ruggedness as a robust predictor of hierarchical orientation at both national and subnational scales, this research highlights how ecological constraints can legitimize dominance-oriented leadership, while also suggesting that socioeconomic and cultural developments may moderate terrain’s influence on social dynamics. Future longitudinal and historical research is needed to clarify how environments and governance structures co-evolve, further illuminating the interplay between ecology, hierarchy, and social organization.