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Competition and Cooperation

Nowadays we can hardly avoid competition and cooperation in our life. Some people think that they are antithetic, others reckon they are closely connected with each other. I prefer the latter opinion. In this paper I am going to elaborate on the various relationships existing between competition and cooperation in three aspects.

Key words: compete, cooperation, mutual purpose, teamwork.

Introduction:

To compete or to cooperate? That is a question. From our daily life to international affairs, there is no denying that competition and cooperation are ubiquitous. I reckon that there is no definite answer about which one is better. Both competition and cooperation play important roles in specific situations. What matters is that to choose wisely. Sometimes competition can facilitate one’s development, and it is a way to guarantee social equity. However, competition may also contribute to a “a zero-sum game”, which does little benefit to our society. On the other hand, cooperation seems as a win-win solution in most circumstances. All in all, I hold the opinion that although the two concepts seem to be opposite, competition and cooperation will never be separated. Where there is a competition, there is a cooperation. I will demonstrate my perspective in three aspects.

1       Competition is the basis of cooperation

Competition is a common phenomenon in social life, ranging from people competing for jobs to two countries competing for resources. Competition seems so ruthless, because the weak side will always be defeated. However, without competition, there will be no progress and no motive force to move forward. Therefore, it is very necessary to compete in the whole society and the whole universe.

On the other hand, sometimes we cooperate in order to be stronger so that we can improve our competitiveness. So we can see, whether to compete or to cooperate, our purpose is to seek the optimum solution to a specific affair. That is the reason why I reckon that competition is the basis of cooperation. Now let me make a further analysis about my point of view.

1.1   Competition is inescapable

As human beings, from womb to tomb, competition and cooperation are throughout our daily life. As a kindergarten child, we were already cultivated to have the spirit of cooperation. We were also expected to be ambitious, although at that time we hardly understood the meaning of “ambition”. When we stepped into the primary school, we began to get involved into a fiercer competition. The destination of this competition is to be matriculated. When we graduate from university, we still need to compete with others in the workplace…

Competition among countries is more common. In the financial field, some nations may launch a Currency war; in the scientific field, there might be a Science and Technology context; in the military field, armament races are quotidian…

1.2 Cooperate in competition

From these evidences we can conclude that competition is a life-long struggle, whether for individual or social groups, even nations. But competition and cooperation often coexist. As long as you observe carefully, you will find that there is always some connection between cooperation and competition. There is a saying that "there is no eternal enemy, only eternal interests". Competition can certainly gain benefits, but cooperation is an excellent way to achieve a win-win situation. Competition and cooperation have never been right or wrong. We advocate competition, but we should not ignore the importance of cooperation. We firmly believe that the combination of cooperation and competition can go a long way.

For example, when we are in a debate, we have to cooperate with other teammates, to compete with the other side. Likewise, sport games also share this complex, and seemingly paradoxical structure: They are both competitive and cooperative, and the competitive element is required for the cooperative element to work out. In most sport games, this cooperate-compete phenomenon is quite common: Basketball, baseball, soccer and so on. Athletes play two roles at the same time: As competitors, and cooperators. It’s not individuals who are being competitive, it’s teams which are competing against each other, and the teams that are going to do best will be those with the highest degree of cooperation. A team with coaches who get along and who get along with the players, who themselves all get along, is going to do better than a team where there is internal conflict. Even a team with superstars won’t do as well against a team without any superstars if the internal conflict is high enough in the superstar team and the cooperation is very high in the other one. Internal cooperation makes the team do better when it comes time for competition.

 For countries, this rule still applies. Nowadays the number of international and regional organizations is surging. Each of the organization has play a significant role in a specific field：The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation is the important economic cooperation forum in the Asia-Pacific region and the highest-level intergovernmental economic cooperation mechanism in the Asia-Pacific region. Through this organization, nations in Asia-Pacific region will become much more competitive. Another example is the European Union, which is built to promote the balanced economic and social development of member countries by establishing a space without internal boundaries, strengthening coordinated economic and social development and establishing an economic and monetary union that will eventually implement a unified currency.

2.Both Cooperation and Competition can Contribute to a Better World

2.1 Cooperation leads to harmony

Cooperation leads to harmony to our society, and its power is stronger. Just as the old saying goes: More hands produce a stronger flame. Almost all great innovations are inseparable from cooperation.

In workplace, teamwork can make the difference between success and failure for many businesses. In a cooperation-rich workplace, individuals voluntarily engage in open communication. Management and lower-level employees work together and try to keep arguments to a minimum. Workers are proactive in the sense that they try to prevent problems before they have a chance to occur. Cooperation is not always an easy thing to achieve in the workplace, but it is worth the effort because it leads to a more harmonious and productive operation. What’s more, it can also improve the work efficiency.

Cooperation can also stimulate new ideas. When you work with different people, you are exposed to an environment where people may hold different opinions with you. This will provide you a chance to think things in a different way, and then you may have a new outlook and gain a lot that will benefit you.

Nowadays, the COVID-19 is rampant and the ecological environment is deteriorating. These all call for a stronger cooperation among countries. However, not all countries are willing to work together to fight with our mutual “enemy”. Some countries deal with the epidemic with a negative attitude. That makes global epidemic prevention and control more difficult. It is high time that countries cooperated with each other to fight together. I believe this is the most effective way to eliminate the virus. Fortunately, many countries have reached a consensus on environmental protection. These nations formed the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, which has played a signification role in protecting environment. 

 Besides, in the extraordinary circumstances of the COVID-19 crisis,

As we have mentioned, for individuals, competition can spur one’s ambition. It encourages us to challenge ourselves and achieve a brighter future. Meanwhile, competition also serves as a true text to your skills. In order to learn a skill, you’ve attended countless classes, drilled for hours at a time, perfected your techniques—why not put all that to the test? A little text can gauge your ability. It is a great way to learn where your weaknesses lie so that you can begin working to improve them. When you compete, you’ll meet other competitors who have the same interest. Take advantage of meeting new people and making new friends, you can learn a lot from them. If you win, or get great marks, you will gain self-confidence. If unfortunately, you lost, you can also learn from your losses, find your shortcomings, and

What’s more, competition is also used as a method to distinguish elites from normal people. We all know that the social resources are limited, but people’s demands are infinite. How to allocate social resources reasonably and equally? The answer is: Through competition. It is similar to Darwin’s theory of Biological evolution: Natural selection, survival of the fittest. It may sound cruel, but it does apply to human society to some extent. Further, as the economist F. A. Hayek observes, competition is a discovery process. With competition, you are more likely to find new and better and cheaper and more efficient ways of doing things. This is why competition among firms is so important. Many administrators understand that this is what competition does, so they think competition will be advantageous to promote within the company. Surely competition among salespeople will result in more sales, right?

In addition to this, competition is also influential in other fields. Competition between companies is beneficial to the country's economy. By competing with each other, companies become more competitive, innovative, and efficient. In order to beat their competitors in the rivalry, enterprises must spare no effort to improve their competition edge. It can translate into a greater quantity of products and services, a better quality of goods, and lower prices. In the end, this is what the consumer is looking for — the best quality at the best possible price. People’s desire to consume increases, the market will be more prosperous. This market dynamic makes the economy grow, creating jobs and well-being for society.

If there is no competition, the whole world will lose its vigor, and there will not have any innovation and development. So don’t consider competition stressful and cruel, it is essential to our society.

3．Cooperation and Competition share the identical purpose

3.1 cooperation and competition complement each other

    Whether to cooperate or to compete, our purpose is always the same: To maximize the benefits. The difference lies in the way they choose to achieve this goal. There is a famous saying in American business: If you can’t defeat your opponent, then join him. This seemingly ridiculous sentence demonstrates the dialectical relationship between cooperation and competition vividly.

The merger among companies is a good example. A world-famous company has an advantage in quality and production scale, others can hardly compete with it. A small firm is good at design and innovate, but for want of brand benefit, its business is gloomy. Under this circumstance, the big one can acquire the small one, to enlarge its scale and improve their competitiveness. And the small one can also benefit from it. This is a win-win situation.

Competition cannot be separated from cooperation, or it would be like a stagnant water. Only when we cooperate in the competition can we better achieve our goals. On the other hand, a competition without any cooperation is sure to be lonely and weak. When we cooperate in the competition, our cooperation will be more effective.

Another example is our “Road and Belt” policy. It connects China with Western Asia, Southeast Asian countries, Africa and Europe. It was welcomed by the Silk Road countries. In the past years, over sixty countries have participated in the program. It will help to realize the peace and development of this area and will make these countries more competitive in the world stage.

3.2 Competition and cooperation can’t substitute each other

Some people always pay more emphasis to cooperation. That is a prejudice. A healthy attitude toward competition — which includes an understanding of how it fosters cooperation, a sense of community — could help us overcome many of our social problems that have emerged in recent decades. Eliminating competition in favor of cooperation won’t do it. If you lose competition, you lose cooperation. At the same time, fostering competition within organizations undermines cooperation, and fostering cooperation across organizations results in social and economic stagnation. Knowing when to cooperate and when to compete means neither is undermined. We need to know when each is appropriate in order to foster the strengths of both.

Conclusion:

All in all, cooperation and competition are both important. We cannot refuse to cooperate, because no one is an island. And we cannot avoid competing with others, as competition boosts our society. We cooperate with others to be more competitive; we compete to earn a better environment for cooperation. Thus, we are able to make progress continuously. Only competition together with cooperation leads us to realize our goals and

satisfy our needs. So in today’s society, we should pay equal emphasis to cooperation and competition. They both lead ourselves, our society, our nation, to a more dynamic and brighter future.

Reference:

1.      Robert Axelrod. The evolution of cooperation. New York: The New American Library, 2007.

2.       Bruce C. Greenwald. Competition Demystified: A Radically Simplified Approach to Business Strategy. New York: Portfolio Trade, 2007

3.      Michael Doebeli, “The joint evolution of cooperation and competition”. Journal of Theoretical Biology,2013, p34-37

4.      Bauer Wolfgang Rudolf, “Cooperation and Healthy Competition”. Strategic Management Journal,2020, p27-33

5.      Mead Margaret , “Cooperation and Competition in the Asia-Pacific.” Horizons: Journal of International Relations and Sustainable Development, 2017, p54-59

6.      Aris Stephen, “Inter-organizational Relations in International Security: Cooperation and Competition”. CSS Studies in Security and International Relations, 2015, p98-102