Nothing but logical speculation (what else) from this source
Collectivism
Collectivism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology, or social outlook that emphasizes the significance of groups—their identities, goals, rights, outcomes, etc.—and tends to analyze issues in those terms.
It appears both authors took a least a bit of credence from this idea.
"The Foundation series and the Robots stories, along with Arthur C. Clarke's Childhood's End, will probably be remembered as the last great and most eloquent arguments put forth for the idea of collectivism in the literature of science fiction."
In fact later on Mr. Asimov appears to have borrowed from Mr. Clarke
Many years after Asimov created the Foundation Trilogy, he extended his Foundation stories to include the idea that telepathic robots were guiding humanity towards the formation of a vast group mind, Galaxia.
An interesting bit about Mr. Clarke in Publishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly wrote "the narrative leaps about too much to develop characters, but Clarke has never been as interested in individuals as in humanity's ability to accept change as a species.
They are not the only ones, Frank Herbert's Dune is also a study in collectivism, wherein over huge swaths of time the story traces the pros and cons of treating all of humanity as a 'collection'.