Book contents
- The Cambridge Handbook of Consumer Psychology
- Cambridge Handbooks in Psychology
- The Cambridge Handbook of Consumer Psychology
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors
- Introduction
- 1 Consumer Psychology of Individuals
- 2 Consumer Psychology of Groups and Society
- 10 Interpersonal Influences in Consumer Psychology
- 11 The Psychology of Consumer Social Hierarchy and Rank Signaling
- 12 Political Ideology and Consumer Psychology
- 13 Religion and Consumer Psychology
- 14 The Psychology of Consumer Dignity
- 15 The Psychology of Shared Consumption
- 16 The Psychology of Access-Based Consumption
- 17 Word-of-Mouth and Consumer Psychology
- 18 Consumer Culture
- 3 Methods for Understanding Consumer Psychology
- Index
- References
11 - The Psychology of Consumer Social Hierarchy and Rank Signaling
from 2 - Consumer Psychology of Groups and Society
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 30 March 2023
Book contents
- The Cambridge Handbook of Consumer Psychology
- Cambridge Handbooks in Psychology
- The Cambridge Handbook of Consumer Psychology
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors
- Introduction
- 1 Consumer Psychology of Individuals
- 2 Consumer Psychology of Groups and Society
- 10 Interpersonal Influences in Consumer Psychology
- 11 The Psychology of Consumer Social Hierarchy and Rank Signaling
- 12 Political Ideology and Consumer Psychology
- 13 Religion and Consumer Psychology
- 14 The Psychology of Consumer Dignity
- 15 The Psychology of Shared Consumption
- 16 The Psychology of Access-Based Consumption
- 17 Word-of-Mouth and Consumer Psychology
- 18 Consumer Culture
- 3 Methods for Understanding Consumer Psychology
- Index
- References
Summary
This chapter discusses and delineates how consumption can act as a rank-signaling system. Specifically, we offer three propositions regarding the mechanics of rank-signaling systems as they relate to consumption. Our first proposition is that people use consumption – the purchase and display of goods and services – as a means to encode (i.e., signal) their social rank. Our second proposition is that consumers use others’ consumption as a means of decoding their social rank. Our third proposition is that people can learn, adjust, and update the signals they use – that is, recoding how they signal their social rank. We both review evidence in support of these propositions and introduce results from two recent studies that examine people’s awareness and use of these rank-signaling mechanics. Finally, we close with a discussion of directions we see as fruitful for future research at the intersection of consumption and rank signaling.
Keywords
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Cambridge Handbook of Consumer Psychology , pp. 309 - 330Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2023
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