# 53. Social manipulation ## 53.5. Methodology/Refinements/Sub-species ### 53.5.14. System justification This is the inclination to defend and bolster the status quo. Existing social, economic, and political arrangements tend to be preferred and alternatives disparaged, sometimes even at the expense of individual and collective self-interest. Manipulators constantly use this bias to maintain the status quo by appealing to the victim's fears of change in the current social, economic and political position.