heterarchies

Noun

heterarchy (countable and uncountable, plural heterarchies)

1. (uncountable) The rule of an alien; rule from without; government by an extraterritorial power.
   • Despite installing puppet governments in the marches, the subjects of the empire’s conquered territories were still very conscious of living under heterarchy.
2. (countable) An example of this government.
   • The proposed liberation of our largely undeveloped economy goes too far — the resulting foreign dominance of our markets would make us a heterarchy.
3. A system of organization where the elements of the organization are unranked (non-hierarchical) or where they possess the potential to be ranked a number of different ways.
   • When a group operates as a heterarchy, everyone is a leader in their own domain.