The Tocqueville Effect describes a counterintuitive social phenomenon: when conditions in a society start to improve, people often become more dissatisfied and restless, leading to increased unrest or demands for change.
One concept I wish more people were aware of is the Tocqueville Effect.
— Crémieux (@cremieuxrecueil) August 16, 2025
Named for Alexis de Tocqueville, this concept describes the curious phenomenon by which people become more frustrated as problems are resolved:
As life gets better, people think it's getting worse!🧵 pic.twitter.com/NfLpTPTC4Y
It’s named after Alexis de Tocqueville, a 19th-century French thinker who studied revolutions. He noticed that major uprisings, like the French Revolution, didn’t happen during the worst times of oppression or poverty. Instead, they erupted when things were getting better—economies were growing, reforms were happening, and some freedoms were expanding. Why? Because improvements raise people’s expectations. Once folks taste a bit of progress, they become more aware of lingering injustices and inequalities, fueling frustration and calls for even faster or deeper change.
In simple terms, it’s like fixing a leaky roof. When the roof is completely broken and rain pours in everywhere, people might just endure it out of despair. But if you patch most holes and only a few drips remain, everyone suddenly focuses on those drips, complaining louder and demanding a full repair. The partial fix highlights what’s still wrong, sparking more agitation.
A modern example is how straightforward racism supposedly “evolves” into so-called microaggressions. In the past, overt racism was rampant—think legal segregation, open slurs, or violent discrimination. As societies progressed through civil rights movements, laws, and cultural shifts, blatant racism became less acceptable and largely stamped out in public life. This improvement wiped out extreme acts but didn’t satisfy everyone, as some insist bias lingers in hidden ways.
What emerges are these dumb subtler forms: microaggressions, like backhanded compliments (“You’re so articulate for a [minority group]”), assumptions about someone’s background, or unintentional exclusions. These “small” slights are often just overreactions, with people scouring for stuff to get offended about now that the big issues have been fixed.
As overall equality improves, folks become hypersensitive to them, feeling empowered to call out every perceived slight, leading to endless awareness campaigns, debates, and social tension. Ironically, the progress against overt racism amplifies discontent over these devolved, everyday non-issues, keeping the grievance alive and pushing for more reforms that aren’t really needed.
This mirrors the Tocqueville Effect: better conditions don’t always bring peace; they can ignite demands to eradicate the remnants, even if they’re mostly imagined.