Bystanders extend deference and rewards based on perceived rank rather than actual merit

Evidence

In “Double Trouble,” the young protagonist Timmy takes his farm-town collie, Lassie, to the annual dog show in Capital City. There Lassie is mistaken for the national champion collie King’s Royal Lassie. As the dog-show staff takes official publicity photos of Lassie, they tell Timmy, “It means a lot to have an animal of her reputation and standing at a show like this one.” The very generous dog-show chairman then provides VIP passes to the event and puts Timmy and his guardian up in the fanciest suite of the Country Club Hotel, complete with free room service. “People are sure being nice to us,” muses Timmy. By the end of the episode, however, he realizes there’s been a big mistake. He apologizes for partaking in rewards intended for a more distinguished animal. But thanks to Lassie’s heroic acts at the dog show, the chairman forgives them. Timmy returns home to tell his mother, with his one-dollar allowance unspent in his pocket, “I had the best time of my whole life.” — W. David Marx, Status and Culture, 48

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: High-status choices carry an alibi of being exemplary regardless of actual merit — W. David Marx, Status and Culture: How Our Desire for…, 171; Students who receive higher grades implicitly reward their instructors with higher ratings — Anthony G. Greenwald and Mahzarin R. Banaji, Implicit Social Cognition: Attitudes,…, 169