What did Herbert Spencer believe about the evolution of human societies?

Herbert Spencer, an influential English sociologist, proposed a general evolutionary scheme for human societies that mirrored his broader views on evolution. He believed that human cultures evolved from simple, undifferentiated "hordes" into complex civilizations through a process of increasing division of labour.312

Spencer’s theory of social Darwinism applied biological principles—including natural selection and the "survival of the fittest"—to human social development. He categorized societies into two primary types:34
* Military societies: Where cooperation is enforced through power and despotism.2
* Industrial societies: Where cooperation is voluntary, spontaneous, and characterized by individualism.2

Spencer viewed the transition toward industrial society as a move toward greater "individuation" and progress. He famously compared social structures to biological organisms, noting that government functions like a nervous system and industry like a sustaining system. While his ideas were once highly influential, his opposition to social welfare—which he viewed as an impediment to the "fittest"—was later discredited as the realities of poverty under industrial capitalism became more apparent.2