The Theory of Decoherence in Society and Individuals

by -Yuval-

Decoherence, as a framework, posits that societal and individual stability is constantly disrupted by the deterministic forces of reality clashing with constructed illusions. These illusions—be they ideological, cultural, or economic—serve as adaptive mechanisms but ultimately fail when the data they exclude or distort becomes undeniable. The theory draws on Sapolsky’s insights into stress and human behavior, particularly how societies construct systems to reduce perceived chaos but often create long-term systemic stress. Harari’s work highlights how myths and narratives are essential to human cohesion, yet inherently fragile because they are abstractions that oversimplify reality. Turchin’s cyclical model of societal rise and fall aligns with Decoherence’s emphasis on elite overproduction and societal delusion as triggers for instability. Diamond’s exploration of societal collapse provides empirical evidence that ignoring environmental and systemic data accelerates Decoherence. Together, these thinkers support the idea that societies resist coherence with reality until forced by systemic failures, leading to cycles of crisis and reorganization. Decoherence rejects the notion of free will, seeing human actions as predictable outcomes of available data and systemic constraints, and emphasizes that chaos is merely the result of insufficient data resolution.

Decoherence operates as a cyclical process where societies oscillate between states of coherence and collapse. Coherence is a period where systems and ideologies align with the prevailing deterministic forces, creating stability and order. However, over time, these systems resist adaptation, ignoring or distorting new data. This leads to Decoherence, where the cracks in societal illusions become evident, resulting in systemic stress and instability. Elite competition during this phase further exacerbates the issue, as competing groups create increasingly complex and divergent narratives to legitimize their dominance. These narratives deviate further from reality, deepening the societal impedance and accelerating the approach to collapse. When Decoherence reaches its peak, collapse occurs—a dramatic realignment where the old structures are dismantled. In the aftermath of collapse, a new period of coherence emerges, often led by a replacement of one elite group with another. These new elites repackage power structures and ideologies, which, while appearing novel, fundamentally replicate the same dynamics of control and resource allocation. Thus, the cycle begins anew, with each iteration reinforcing the inevitability of deterministic forces, the transient nature of societal constructs, and the absence of true personal agency.

Principles of Decoherence

Determinism: Reality is deterministic, and human behavior can be predicted with sufficient data.
Illusions: Societal constructs are necessary illusions that simplify complexity but are inherently unstable.
Data and Chaos: Chaos emerges from a lack of data resolution, not from true randomness.
Crisis as Catalyst: Systems resist change until they are forced to confront ignored or missing data, triggering crises.
Elite Overproduction: Overproduction of elites and their corruption accelerates Decoherence by increasing societal impedance.
Narrative Deviation: Elite competition leads to increasingly divergent narratives, further detaching societies from reality.
Adaptation and Collapse: Societies adapt by creating new illusions or collapse into Decoherence when adaptation fails.
Cyclicality: Societies transition from coherence to Decoherence, collapse, and back to coherence in an endless cycle.
Elite Replacement: Collapse replaces one elite group with another, perpetuating similar power dynamics under rebranded ideologies.
Neutral Outcomes: Decoherence is not inherently good or bad; it is a measure of systemic alignment with deterministic forces.
Individual and Societal Parallels: Decoherence applies both to societies and individuals, as both are subject to the same deterministic forces.
Absence of Agency: Human actions and societal changes are determined by systemic constraints and data, making personal agency an illusion.

Glossary of Terms

Decoherence: The process by which deterministic forces expose the instability of societal or individual illusions.
Illusions: Constructs or narratives that simplify complexity but distort reality.
Determinism: The philosophy that all events, including human actions, are determined by preceding events and conditions.
Data Resolution: The granularity and accuracy of data available to understand and predict behavior.
Impedance: Opposition to systemic change caused by entrenched interests or ideologies.
Elite Overproduction: The proliferation of elites competing for limited resources, leading to systemic instability.
Narrative Deviation: The creation of increasingly divergent and unrealistic narratives by competing elites to justify their dominance.
Crisis: A point where ignored data or systemic stress forces abrupt realignment.
Coherence: A state where societal systems align with deterministic forces, creating stability.
Collapse: A dramatic phase of Decoherence where old systems are dismantled, paving the way for new coherence.
Elite Replacement: The process during collapse where one elite group supplants another, maintaining similar structures under different guises.
Absence of Agency: The concept that individual and collective actions are determined by systemic and deterministic forces, not free will.

Citations

Sapolsky, Robert M. Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst. Penguin Books, 2017.
Harari, Yuval Noah. Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind. Harper, 2015.
Turchin, Peter. Ages of Discord: A Structural-Demographic Analysis of American History. Beresta Books, 2016.
Diamond, Jared. Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed. Penguin Books, 2011.

-Yuval-

© 2025 Yuval. Unauthorized use or duplication of this material without express and written permission from the author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Yuval with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.