Blind versus Constructive Patriotism: Moving from Embeddedness in the Group to Critical Loyalty and Action

We constantly see in the world what may be called blind patriotism: an intense alignment by people with their nation or group and uncritical acceptance of and support for its policies and practices, with an absence of moral consideration of their consequences or disregard of their impact on the welfare of human beings who are outside the group or are members of its subgroups. There is celebration of any apparent gain by the group regardless of the means by which it is achieved, a tendency to act in the spirit of the dictum “my country right or wrong.” Blind patriotism often has destructive consequences not only for other groups, but ultimately for one's own group as well. What are its origins, and might there be desirable, ideal, or “constructive” forms of patriotism? When a government or a dominant group in society embarks on a destructive course of action that may ultimately lead to mass killing, genocide, or war, reactions by the population have the potential to inhibit the evolution of greater destructiveness (Staub, 1989). But usually the “bystanders,” members of the population who are not directly involved as either perpetrators or victims, remain passive. In part, this is due to blind patriotism, which leads to loyalty to the group regardless of the nature of its conduct, or at least creates an embeddedness in the group that makes it difficult to oppose its direction.