Social distance is functionally required wherever authority or stratification exists

Evidence

As van den Berghe (1970) has noted, some form of distance is a “functional prerequisite in any social situation involving authority, hierarchy or stratification.” Where distance is not maintained socially, through etiquette or sumptory laws, for example, it can be maintained spatially, through segregation. — Lyn H. Lofland, World of Strangers_ Order and Action in…, 1118

Categorization

• DEFINE: Clarifies that social distance is a functional requirement of hierarchy, with two interchangeable maintenance modes—social (etiquette, sumptuary law) or spatial (segregation).