The Red Queen Principle

In 1973, evolutionary biologist, Leigh Van Valen of the University of Chicago, devised the Red Queen Principle (also called the Red Queen Effect or Red Queen Hypothesis). Based on the reflection by the Red Queen in Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass that "in this place it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place," the Red Queen Principle is thus:

"For an evolutionary system, continuing development is needed just in order to maintain its fitness relative to the systems it is co-evolving with"

Every improvement in a given system creates a selective advantage for that system. Normally, variation leads to increases in fitness of one system over another. However, since different systems are coevolving, improvement in one implies that it will get a competitive advantage on the others, and thus be able to capture a larger share of the resources available to all. This means that fitness increases in one evolutionary system tends to result in fitness decreases in another system. In this form of competition, the only way to maintain relative fitness is by similar improvement.

Additional Resources

Applying The Red Queen Principle

For example, the Internet gold rush of the late 1990's has immeasurably improved the world we live in. The early adopters of online bookselling increased the level of service and convenience that consumers expect. Brick and mortar booksellers felt the punch, and eventually started providing online options, but enhanced the appeal of their physical premises through features unique to brick and mortar establishments, such as adding a coffee bar and café to the bookstore.

Capitalizing on early successes, the early online retailers added more features and more products to their online product repertoire. Newly affected brick and mortar stores, those that didn't shut their doors as a result, augmented their physical premises with online alternatives as well. Now, some years later, nearly every retailer offers both the convenience of shopping from home over the Internet and the alternative of visiting the store when that is more appropriate. All affected retailers are better than before, and all consumers benefit from this competition.

However, the example of the spam war shows that in some cases the net effect of an "arms race" may also be an absolute fitness decrease. Undeniably, everyone is trying to stop spam, block spam, or kill spam. Every time we get rid of a few pieces of spam, through the introduction of content filters or blacklists, innovative spammers adapt with tricks to circumvent those new tools or techniques. Unfortunately, the net effect is that we receive the same amount of spam in our inboxes, while increasing sums are spent by both sides to attain superiority. Overall, the diminished performance of networks, hosts, and email servers harms all parties involved.

To summarize, in a competitive world, relative progress ("running") is necessary just for maintenance ("to keep in the same place").

Management

Project Management

Leadership

Work Motivation

Biography