People signal status by using symbols associated with top groups

Evidence

How do we choose which status symbols to use? The social psychologists Dale T. Miller and Deborah A. Prentice have found in their research that “individuals generally try to present themselves in the most favorable possible light.” In signaling, this translates into brandishing symbols associated with the highest possible status groups and tiers. As we saw in chapter 2, individuals know the positions of certain conventions within a social hierarchy and thus can interpret certain objects and practices as markers of status position. In the eighteenth century, economist Adam Smith noted the principle of associativity: “When two objects have frequently been seen together, the imagination requires a habit of passing easily from one to the other. If the first is to appear, we lay our account that the second is to follow.” Status symbols rely on these associations. Harvestores became symbols of farming success, because the most successful farmers owned them. Playing squash suggests relations with the high-status people who play it. — W. David Marx, Status and Culture, 210

Categorization

• DEFINE: Adams Smith’s principle of associativity is offered as the conceptual mechanism underpinning status-symbol meaning.
• XREF: connects to: People display originality within group conventions to signal difference safely — W. David Marx, Status and Culture: How Our Desire for…, 178; Status seekers choose symbols for their audience and adjust them based on feedback. — W. David Marx, Status and Culture: How Our Desire for…, 229; Status appraisal works by triangulating a whole package of signals against hard-to-fake cues — W. David Marx, Status and Culture: How Our Desire for…, 236 (+10 more)

Broader Connections

• Attracting and commanding attention signals significance and quality in status systems. #expands (0.88) — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, 230
• Social media platforms reward visibility and attention as measures of social status #exemplifies (0.82) — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, 39
• Status hierarchies can emerge purely from individuals’ belonging, distinctiveness, and esteem needs #expands (0.80) — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 855
• Status symbols create a tradeoff between exclusivity and legibility to outsiders #complicates (0.78) — W. David Marx, Status and Culture, 224
• People verify group traits they lack to stay included yet distinct #complicates (0.76) — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 917
• Visible group distinctions make people link personal needs to group status #expands (0.75) — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 1473
• Group visibility depends on physical markers or formal institutions #qualifies (0.74)