# Status symbol

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A **status symbol** is a visible, external symbol of one's social position, an indicator of [economic](/source/Wealth) or [social status](/source/Social_status).[1] Many [luxury goods](/source/Luxury_goods) are often considered status symbols. *Status symbol* is also a [sociological](/source/Sociology) term – as part of social and sociological [symbolic interactionism](/source/Symbolic_interactionism) – relating to how individuals and groups interact and interpret various cultural symbols.[2]

## Etymology

The term "status symbol" was first written in English in 1955,[3] but from 1959 with the publication of the bestseller "The Status Seekers" greater distribution. There, journalist [Vance Packard](/source/Vance_Packard) describes the social strategy and behavior in the USA.[4]

## By region and time

As people aspire to high status, they often seek also its symbols. As with other [symbols](/source/Symbol), status symbols may change in value or meaning over time, and will differ among countries and cultural regions, based on their economy and technology.

For example, before the invention of the [printing press](/source/Printing_press), possession of a large collection of laboriously hand-copied [books](/source/Book) was a symbol of wealth and scholarship. In later centuries, books (and literacy) became more common, so a [private library](/source/Private_library) became less-rarefied as a status symbol, though a sizable collection still commands respect.[5]

In some past cultures of East Asia, [pearls](/source/Pearl) and [jade](/source/Jade) were major status symbols, reserved exclusively for royalty. Similar legal exclusions applied to the [toga](/source/Toga) and its variants in [ancient Rome](/source/Ancient_Rome), and to [cotton](/source/Cotton) in the [Aztec Empire](/source/Aztec_Empire). Special colors, such as [imperial yellow](/source/Imperial_yellow_jacket) (in China) or [royal purple](/source/Royal_purple) (in ancient Rome) were reserved for royalty, with severe penalties for unauthorized display. Another common status symbol of the European medieval past was [heraldry](/source/Heraldry), a display of one's family name and history.

## Societal recognition

See also: [Achieved status](/source/Achieved_status), [Status attainment](/source/Status_attainment) and [Social status](/source/Social_status)

Status symbols also indicate the cultural values of a society or a subculture. For example, in a [commercial](/source/Commerce) society, having money or wealth and things that can be bought by wealth, such as cars, houses, or fine clothing, are considered status symbols. Where warriors are respected, a [scar](/source/Scar) can represent honor or courage.[6] Among [intellectuals](/source/Intellectual) being able to think in an intelligent and educated way is an important status symbol regardless of material possessions. In academic circles, a long list of publications and a securely [tenured](/source/Tenure) position at a prestigious university or research institute are a mark of high status. It has been speculated that the earliest foods to be domesticated were luxury feast foods used to cement one's place as a "rich person".[7]

A [uniform](/source/Uniform) symbolizes membership in an organization, and may display additional insignia of rank, specialty, tenure and other details of the wearer's status within the organization. A state may confer [decorations](/source/Award), medals or [badges](/source/Badge) that can show that the wearer has heroic or official status. Elaborate [color-coded](/source/Color-coded) [academic regalia](/source/Academic_regalia) is often worn during [commencement](/source/Graduation) ceremonies, indicating [academic rank](/source/Academic_rank) and specialty.

In many cultures around the world, diverse [visual markers of marital status](/source/Visual_markers_of_marital_status) are widely used. [Coming of age](/source/Coming_of_age) rituals and other [rites of passage](/source/Rites_of_passage) may involve granting and display of symbols of a new status. [Dress codes](/source/Dress_code) may specify who ought to wear particular kinds or styles of clothing, and when and where specific items of clothing are displayed.

## Body modifications

The condition and appearance of one's body can be a status symbol. In times past, when most workers did physical labor outdoors under the sun and often had little food, being pale and fat was a status symbol, indicating wealth and prosperity (through having more than enough food and not having to do manual labor). Now that workers usually do less-physical work indoors and find little time for exercise, being tanned and thin is often a status symbol in modern cultures.

[Dieting](/source/Dieting) to reduce excess body fat is widely practiced in Western society, while some traditional societies still value [obesity](/source/Obesity) as a sign of prosperity. Development of [muscles](/source/Muscle) through [exercise](/source/Exercise), previously disdained as a stigma of doing heavy [manual labor](/source/Manual_labor), is now valued as a sign of personal achievement. Some groups, such as extreme [bodybuilders](/source/Bodybuilder) and [sumo wrestlers](/source/Sumo_wrestler) use special exercise and diet to "bulk up" into an impressive appearance.

Ancient Central American [Maya](/source/Maya_society) cultures artificially induced [crosseyedness](/source/Strabismus) and [flattened the foreheads](/source/Head_binding) of high-born infants as a permanent, lifetime sign of noble status.[8] The Mayans also [filed their teeth to sharp points](/source/Tooth_filing) to look fierce, or inset [precious stones](/source/Precious_stone) into their teeth as decoration.[8]

## Material possessions

The ownership of luxury residences in exclusive locations has historically been considered one of the ultimate status symbols worldwide. Among the most coveted and recognized destinations globally are [Portofino](/source/Portofino), a renowned location on the [Italian Riviera](/source/Italian_Riviera), characterized by prestigious properties overlooking one of [Europe](/source/Europe)'s most exclusive natural harbors; [Lierna](/source/Lierna), offering a privileged view of [Lake Como](/source/Lake_Como), historically associated with high aristocracy and international economic elites; and [Monte Carlo](/source/Monte_Carlo), in the [Principality of Monaco](/source/Principality_of_Monaco), a key hub for [finance](/source/Finance), [luxury](/source/Luxury_goods), and global high society.

These residences, in addition to providing a high level of [privacy](/source/Privacy) and [security](/source/Security), serve as genuine symbols of power and prestige, often linked to [noble dynasties](/source/Noble_dynasties), prominent [entrepreneurs](/source/Entrepreneurs), [financial leaders](/source/Financial_leaders), and influential figures on the international stage. The value of such properties is not merely determined by their strategic location or [architectural](/source/Architectural) features but, more importantly, by their function as instruments of [social representation](/source/Social_representation) and [status assertion](/source/Status_assertion), as access to them is often restricted even for those with immense [wealth](/source/Wealth).

[Luxury goods](/source/Luxury_goods) are often perceived as status symbols. Examples may include a [mansion](/source/Mansion) or [penthouse apartment](/source/Penthouse_apartment),[9] a "[trophy wife](/source/Trophy_wife)",[10] [haute couture](/source/Haute_couture) [fashionable](/source/Fashion) clothes,[11] [jewellery](/source/Jewellery),[12] or a [luxury vehicle](/source/Luxury_vehicle).[13] A sizeable collection of high-priced artworks or antiques may be displayed, sometimes in multiple seasonally occupied residences located around the world. [Privately owned aircraft](/source/Private_aviation) and luxury [yachts](/source/Yacht) are movable status symbols that can be taken from one glamorous location to another; the "[jet set](/source/Jet_set)" refers to wealthy individuals who travel by [private jet](/source/Business_jet) and who frequent fashionable resorts.[14]

Status symbols are also used by persons of much more modest means. In the [Soviet Union](/source/Soviet_Union) before the fall of the [Berlin Wall](/source/Berlin_Wall), possession of American-style [blue jeans](/source/Jeans) or [rock music](/source/Rock_music) recordings (even pirated or bootlegged copies) was an important status symbol among rebellious teenagers. In the 1990s, foreign [cigarettes](/source/Cigarette) in [China](/source/China), where a pack of [Marlboro](/source/Marlboro) could cost one day's salary for some workers, were seen as a status symbol.[15] [Mobile phone](/source/Mobile_phone) usage had been considered a status symbol (for example in [Turkey](/source/Turkey) in the early 1990s),[16] but is less distinctive today, because of the spread of inexpensive mobile phones. Nonetheless, [Apple](/source/Apple_Inc.) products such as [iPhone](/source/IPhone) are common status symbols among modern teenagers.[17][18]

A common type of modern status symbol is a prestigious [luxury branded](/source/Luxury_brand) item, whether apparel or other type of a good.[11] The brand name or logo is often prominently displayed, or featured as a [graphic design](/source/Graphic_design) element of decoration. Certain brands are so highly valued that cheap [counterfeit goods](/source/Counterfeit_good) or knock-off copies are purchased and displayed by those who do not want to, or are unable to, pay for the genuine item.

## See also

- [Badge of shame](/source/Badge_of_shame)
- [Belongingness](/source/Belongingness)
- [Conspicuous consumption](/source/Conspicuous_consumption)
- [Fashion accessory](/source/Fashion_accessory)
- [Identity performance](/source/Identity_performance)
- [Narcissistic supply](/source/Narcissistic_supply)
- [Occupational prestige](/source/Occupational_prestige)
- [Positional good](/source/Positional_good)
- [Relative deprivation](/source/Relative_deprivation)
- [Social stratification](/source/Social_stratification)
- [Veblen good](/source/Veblen_good)

## References

1. Cherrington, David J. (1994). [*Organizational Behavior*](https://archive.org/details/organizationalbe02edcher/page/384). Allyn and Bacon. p. [384](https://archive.org/details/organizationalbe02edcher/page/384). ISBN 0-205-15550-2.

1. [The Three Sociological Paradigms](http://learning.swc.hccs.edu/members/ruth.dunn/Three%20Paradigms.pdf)[dead link], from [The HCC-Southwest College](http://learning.swc.hccs.edu/) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20040805065141/http://learning.swc.hccs.edu/) 5 August 2004 at the Wayback Machine, December 2008.

1. ["status seeking – Search Online Etymology Dictionary"](https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=status+seeking). *etymonline.com*. Retrieved 12 August 2023.

1. ["The status seekers; an exploration of class behavior in America, Longmans, 1959"](https://www.worldcat.org/de/title/2125250). *worldcat.org*. Retrieved 12 August 2023.

1. ["Are book collectors real readers, or just cultural snobs? – Aeon Essays"](https://aeon.co/essays/are-book-collectors-real-readers-or-just-cultural-snobs). *aeon.co*. 20 October 2016. Retrieved 12 August 2023.

1. ["Real Men Have Dueling Scars"](https://www.missedinhistory.com/blogs/real-men-have-dueling-scars.htm). *Stuff You Missed in History Class*. 4 May 2009. Retrieved 18 December 2017.

1. Hayden B 2003. Were luxury foods the first domesticates? Ethnoarchaeological perspectives from Southeast Asia. World Archaeology 34(3)

1. ["Maya Culture"](https://web.archive.org/web/20120507011502/http://www.authenticmaya.com/maya_culture.htm). *Guatemala: Cradle of the Mayan Civilization*. authenticmaya.com. Archived from [the original](http://www.authenticmaya.com/maya_culture.htm) on 7 May 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2012.

1. Winter, Ian C. (1995). *The Radical Home Owner*. Taylor & Francis. p. 47. ISBN 2-88449-028-0.

1. Hill, Marcia & Esther D. Rothblum (1996). *Classism and Feminist Therapy: Counting Costs*. Haworth Press. p. 79. ISBN 1-56024-801-7.

1. Donna D. Heckler & Brian D. Till (10 October 2008). [*The Truth About Creating Brands People Love*](https://books.google.com/books?id=6DhNprFiz6UC&pg=PA23). FT Press. p. 23. ISBN 978-0-13-270118-1. Retrieved 10 September 2013.

1. Rebecca Ross Russell (5 June 2010). [*Gender and Jewelry: A Feminist Analysis*](https://books.google.com/books?id=Wx11yQK3J3QC&pg=PA89). Rebecca Ross Russell. p. 89. ISBN 978-1-4528-8253-6. Retrieved 10 September 2013.

1. Murray, Geoffrey (1994). *Doing Business in China: The Last Great Market*. China Library. ISBN 1-873410-28-X.

1. Merriam-Webster. [Jet set](http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jet%20set). Accessed 2 October 2013.

1. J Brooks. [American cigarettes have become a status symbol in smoke-saturated China.](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1337922/) 1995.

1. Yusuf Ziya Özcan, Abdullah Koçak. [Research Note: A Need or a Status Symbol?](http://ejc.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/18/2/241) 2003

1. Alexander Greyling. [*Face your brand! The visual language of branding explained*](https://books.google.com/books?id=mWa_Z7B-nnoC&pg=PA94). Alex Greyling. p. 94. ISBN 978-0-620-44310-4. Retrieved 10 September 2013.

1. Said Baaghil (9 January 2013). [*Glamour Globals: Trends Over Brands*](https://books.google.com/books?id=0QHfxZO5AGkC&pg=PA50). iUniverse. p. 50. ISBN 978-1-4759-7167-5. Retrieved 10 September 2013.

## Further reading

- Vance Oakley Packard: *The status seekers: an exploration of class behaviour in Amerika.* Harmondsworth, Pelican books, 1963. OCLC [762112945](https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/762112945)
- [Samuel I. Hayakawa](/source/S._I._Hayakawa): *Symbol, status, and personality*. New York, Harcourt, Brace & World, 1963. ISBN 9780156876117
- [Pierre Bourdieu](/source/Pierre_Bourdieu): *Distinction: a social critique of the judgement of taste.* London/New York, Routledge, 1984. ISBN 9780674212800

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Status symbol](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Status_symbol) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Status_symbol?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.