Individual and Cultural Differences On Status Differentiation

Abstract

The concept of status differentiation is introduced along with a description of the development and initial validation of an individual-difference measure called the Status Differentiation Scale (SDS). This is followed by reports of cross-cultural differences on the SDS in three countries. Study 1 used American participants and established the scoring procedure for the SDS, its internal reliability and structural relationships, and construct validity. Study 2 used American and Japanese participants and demonstrated its internal reliability, structural relationships, and construct validity with a measure of allocentrism in both countries and predictable country differences that could not be accounted for by collectivism. Study 3 used American and South Korean participants and documented its internal reliability, structural relationships, and construct validity with a measure of values in both countries and predictable country differences that could not be accounted for by values. The concept of status differentiation, and the availability of the SDS, can have important theoretical and empirical ramifications for future studies of culture.