User:Jimmysoc/sandbox

Foundations
Status is rooted in socially constructed cultural beliefs about who and what is relatively valuable. [Lynn et al. 2009 cite]. In the case of individuals, the purpose of status is to quickly and easily identify who is most capable of contributing effectively to the group (e.g., leading). In the case of economics and organizations, status “signals” to decision-makers which products and organizations are of higher quality. Researchers generally agree that actual skill and product quality are hard to observe and measure directly. Status beliefs about what kinds of people tend to be better or the kinds of products that tend to be superior become an easy mental shortcut and are repeatedly used even when they are inaccurate.