why do management think they are better then the employees?

Answer 1

If they are good managers they don't. If they are successful, competetant and confident they know they are only as good as their employees. That's why good managers realize they actually work for you _ to be a point of escalation, to help resolve a problem, to get you on a good career path. Lousy Managers, are threatened by good employees and that's where you get that disconnect. They want an escalation to make you look bad, or take over a problem because youcouldn't handle it.