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For the various types of hierarchy, see Hierarchy (disambiguation) A hierarchy (in Greek : '''Ιεραρχία''', it is derived from ''ιερός''-hieros, sacred, and ''άρχω''-arkho, rule) is a system of ranking and organizing things or people, where each element of the system (except for the top element) is subordinate to a single other element. The first use of the word "hierarchy" cited by the s". Since hierarchical Church es, such as the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches, had tables of organization that were "hierarchical" in the modern sense of the word (traditionally with God as the pinnacle of the hierarchy), the term came to refer to similar organizational methods in more general settings. A hierarchy can link entities either directly or indirectly, and either vertically or horizontally. The only direct links in a hierarchy are to one's immediate superior, or to one of one's subordinates. However, indirect links can extend "vertically" upwards or downwards via multiple links in the same direction. All parts of the hierarchy which are not vertically linked to one another can nevertheless be "horizontally" linked by travelling up the hierarchy to find a common direct or indirect superior, and then down again. This is akin to two co-workers, neither of whom is the other's boss, but both of whose chains of command will eventually meet. These relationships can be formalized mathematically; see Hierarchy (mathematics) . Diverse examples of reasoning with hierarchies
In all of these examples, there is an asymmetry of 'compositional' significance between levels of structure, so that small parts of the whole hierarchical array depend, for their meaning, on their membership in larger parts. In the work of diverse theorists such as William James (1842-1910), Michel Foucault (1926-1984) and Hayden White , important critiques of hierarchical Epistemology are advanced. James famously asserts in his work "Radical Empiricism" that clear distinctions of type and category are a constant but unwritten goal of scientific reasoning, so that when they are discovered, success is declared. But if aspects of the world are organized differently, involving inherent and intractable ambiguities, then scientific questions are often considered unresolved. A hesitation to declare success upon the discovery of ambiguities leaves Heterarchy at an artificial and subjective disadvantage in the scope of human knowledge. This bias is an artifact of an aesthetic or pedagogical preference for hierarchy, and not necessarily an expression of objective observation. Hierarchies in programming The concept of hierarchies plays a large part in Object Oriented Programming . For more information see Hierarchy (object-oriented Programming) and Memory Hierarchy . Hierarchies in animation Node oriented animation. Containment hierarchy See Also: containment hierarchy A containment hierarchy is a collection of strictly nested sets. Each entry in the hierarchy designates a set such that the previous entry is a strict superset, and the next entry is a strict subset. For example, all rectangles are quadrilaterals, but not all quadrilaterals are rectangles, and all squares are rectangles, but not all rectangles are squares. (See also: Taxonomy .)
Social hierarchies See Also: Social hierarchy Many human Organization s, such as Business es, churches, armies and political movements are Hierarchical Organization s, at least officially; commonly superiors, called "bosses", have more Power than their subordinates. Thus the relationship defining this hierarchy is "commands" or "has power over". (Some analysts question whether power "really" works as the traditional organizational chart indicates, however.) See also Chain Of Command . Some social insect species (bees, ants, termites) depend on matrilineal hierarchies centred on a queen with undeveloped female insects as attendants and workers. Many social criticisms include a questioning of social hierarchies seen as being unjust. Feminism , for instance, often discusses a hierarchy of gender, in which a culture sees males or masculine traits as superior to females or feminine traits. In the terms above, some feminism criticizes a hierarchy of only two nodes, "masculine" and "feminine", connected by the asymmetrical relationship "is more valuable to society", for example: :The hierarchical nature of the dualism - the systematic devaluation of females and whatever is metaphorically understood as "feminine" - is what I identify as sexism. (Nelson 1902p. 106) Note that in this context and in other social criticisms, the word ''hierarchy'' usually is used as meaning ''power hierarchy'' or ''power structure.'' Feminists may not take issue with inanimate objects being organized in a hierarchical fashion, but rather with the specific asymmetrical organization of unequal value and power between men and women and, usually, other social hierarchies such as in Racism and Anti-gay Bias . Anarchism , and other Anti-authoritarian social movements, seek to destory all hierarchal relationships. Legal and banking terminology Subordination is the process by which a debt, typically owed by a Company or corporate group to a financial institution, is Charged (secured) against the assets of the borrowing company in precedence to an existing debt. The existing debt is said to be subordinated. Alternatives Hierarchies and hierarchical thinking has been criticized by some, as shown above in Social Hierarchies and Hierarchical Nomenclatures In The Arts And Sciences . Possible hierarchy alternatives include:
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