Individuals Of Lower Status Research Articles

Group information enhances recognition of both learned and unlearned face appearances.

Are people better at recognizing individuals of more relevant groups, such as ingroup compared to outgroup members or high-status compared to low-status individuals? Previous studies that associated faces with group information found a robust effect of group on face recognition but only tested it using the same images presented during the learning phase. They therefore cannot tell whether group information enhances encoding of the specific image presented during learning or encoding of the person who appears in it, which should generalize to other images of that person. In addition, the measures used in these studies do not sufficiently distinguish between sensitivity and response bias. In this article, we addressed these limitations and examined in three experiments the effect of group membership (Experiments 1 and 2) and social status (Experiment 3) on face recognition. In all experiments, we assessed recognition of both learned and unlearned views of the learned faces. Our results show improved recognition of ingroup members compared to outgroup members and of individuals of high-status groups compared to low-status groups for both learned and unlearned views. These effects emerged also when we used measures of memory accuracy that adequately control for response bias. These findings highlight the importance of group and status information in person recognition. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Abstract 4136799: Disparities in Diagnosis and Treatment of Heterozygous Familial Hypercholesterolemia

Introduction: The prevalence of heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (HeFH) is 1:250. Untreated individuals have up to a 20-fold increased risk for premature coronary artery disease (CAD). In adults, low socioeconomic status (SES) individuals, bear a disproportionate share of the CAD burden. In this context, we sought to examine the association of social determinants of health and age at HeFH diagnosis and treatment. Methods: We performed a retrospective single-center study of children with HeFH who presented to the Lipid Heart Clinic at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (2012-2022). The primary outcome was age at HeFH diagnosis. The secondary outcome was age at statin initiation. Multivariable linear regression models were used to examine the association between the primary exposure of interest, Child Opportunity Index (COI) and the outcomes. Secondary exposures included race, ethnicity, health insurance, and primary language. To explore potential referral bias, we compared the COI of the study cohort to that of the institution’s catchment area, defined as within a two-hour drive of the primary clinic. Results: We evaluated 577 patients. The median age at presentation was 12 (9, 14) years and the median LDL-C was 199 (169, 235) mg/dL; 58% were prescribed a statin with a median age of statin initiation of 13 (10, 15) years. The median COI for the cohort was 84 (62, 95). There was no association between COI, ethnicity, health insurance, or primary language and the age at HeFH diagnosis or statin initiation. On multivariable analysis, black race was associated with older age at HeFH diagnosis compared to white race (adjusted estimate 1.2 +/- 0.49 yrs, p = 0.014). There was no difference in age at statin initiation by race. Higher LDL-C, male sex, and lower BMI percentile were associated with younger age at statin initiation. The COI distribution of the study cohort was significantly different than that of the catchment area (p < 0.001). 70% of the study cohort were of high and very high COI compared to 57% of the catchment area. Conclusion: Black race was associated with older age at HeFH diagnosis, however, there were no disparities in age at statin initiation. The COI of the cohort was significantly higher than that of the catchment area suggesting that low COI populations are under-referred for HeFH evaluation. Future efforts should focus on improving barriers to universal screening and identifying obstacles to HeFH diagnosis and referrals.

Manipulation of a social signal affects DNA methylation of a stress-related gene in a free-living bird.

Social status directly affects the health of humans and other animals. Low status individuals receive more antagonistic encounters, have fewer supportive relationships and have worse health outcomes. However, the physiological and cellular processes that mediate the relationship between the social environment and health are incompletely known. Epigenetic regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, the neuroendocrine pathway that activates in response to stressors, may be one process that is sensitive to the social environment. Here, we experimentally manipulated plumage, a key social signal in female tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) and quantified methylation of four genes in the HPA axis before and after treatment. We found that dulling the white breast plumage affected methylation in one gene, CRHR1; however, the effect depended on the original brightness of the bird. Methylation in this gene was correlated with baseline corticosterone levels, suggesting that DNA methylation of CRHR1 helps regulate glucocorticoid production in this species. Methylation in two other genes, FKBP5 and GR, changed over the course of the experiment, independent of treatment. These results show that methylation of these genes is labile into adulthood and suggest that epigenetic regulation of the HPA axis could help birds respond to current environmental conditions.

“That’s just the way it is”: bullying and harassment in STEM academia

BackgroundThe under-representation of women and other minority group members in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) academia is a problem internationally and is attributed in part to hostile workplace cultures. We draw on the social identity perspective to examine the dynamic inter and intragroup processes entailed in these experiences. In this paper, we report a reflexive thematic analysis of 219 responses to a free-text question on bullying and harassment embedded in a national survey of 40 STEM departments from across the United Kingdom. Most were women (53%) at an early, pre-lectureship career stage.Main findingsOur analysis shows who is the perpetrator and who is the victim is not arbitrary, and neither is the form that it takes; majority group members draw on discourses that warrant the exclusion of minority group members (e.g., women are not smart; incompatibility with religious identity). In this ‘othering’, minority group members learn that one is not regarded as a bona fide STEM academic ingroup member and accordingly are constrained in being able to claim and act on that identity. Thus, it is not just the acts themselves that are problematic, but the ways in which being denied a shared STEM academic identity is consequential for a range of putative benefits and leads to a range of strategies that all confer costs.Conclusions/potential implicationsThe solution must rest with senior STEM academics and with institutions. First, we need to challenge discourses and practices that narrowly define the boundaries and content of STEM academic identity. Second, all members of a community need to perceive an alignment between the purported values of an organisation for diversity, inclusion, and respect and how that organisation responds when those principles are violated. Formal processes of remedy need to recognise the dynamics entailed in status differences and remove the onus of complaint from isolated, low status individuals. In addition, there is a need to recognise the ways in which perpetrators are embedded in networks of support both within and without the university; and the importance, therefore, of widening the scope of evidence gathering and intervention.

The progressive place paradox: Status-based health inequalities are magnified in more economically progressive Swiss localities

Low socioeconomic status (measured both objectively and subjectively) is systematically associated with worse health. Amid renewed interest in contextual influences on health inequalities, we ask whether variation in the prevailing ideological climate moderates the size of the health gap between low and high status individuals. Based on the minority stress hypothesis, we expect that living in an economically progressive place within Switzerland – places where more residents endorse the need for change to the economic status quo – will reduce the magnitude of the health gap. Multilevel modelling of MOSAiCH 2015–2020 data shows the opposite: low status individuals in progressive places report markedly lower subjective health and life satisfaction than similarly low status individuals in conservative places, such that status-based health inequalities are maximised in progressive places. We interpret this apparent progressive place paradox in terms of collective inefficacy and system frustration, which we argue is the corollary of system justification.

Lower subjective socioeconomic status is associated with self-dehumanization rather than other-dehumanization: the mediating role of belief in a just world / El nivel socioeconómico subjetivo bajo no está vinculado con la deshumanización del otro sino del yo: el rol mediador de la creencia en un mundo justo

Previous studies relating socioeconomic status (SES) to dehumanization mainly focused on how low- and high-SES groups were dehumanized (i.e., as the target of dehumanization). However, studies considering the associations between perceiver’s subjective socioeconomic status (SSS) and self- as well as other-dehumanization are scarce. Furthermore, belief in a just world (BJW) is thought to be linked in these associations. Thus, the main goal of this research is to examine direct and indirect associations of individuals’ SSS and self- or other-dehumanization via BJW among 583 college students. We found SSS predicted self-dehumanization negatively. Nevertheless, the predictive effect of SSS for other-dehumanization was not significant. Additionally, BJW mediated the relationship between SSS and dehumanization. Our findings broaden the domain of dehumanization by providing evidence on the role of individuals’ SSS in the perception of their own and others’ humanity. Moreover, in light of the harm of self-dehumanization, future studies should attach importance to the role of self-dehumanization of lower-status individuals in hindering their upward social mobility.

Status beliefs negatively affect expected university attainment of lower class students

ABSTRACT Lower class students are less likely to attend university than their higher class counterparts, even adjusting for academic performance. I argue this is due to “status beliefs” – widely-held views that high status individuals (e.g. men, ethnic majorities, higher class) are generally more competent than low status individuals (e.g. women, ethnic minorities, lower class). Lower class students are therefore attributed, and internalise, lower expected academic competence due to their low status position, regardless of true ability. However, studying the effect of status beliefs is difficult, since it is hard to identify contexts where status beliefs vary and yet objective characteristics do not. My solution is to leverage variation in a student’s reference group. I argue that when a lower class student is placed in a (relatively) higher class classroom, they are seen, by themselves and others, as subjectively more lower class than if they were placed in a lower class classroom. Since they are seen as lower class, they internalise negative status beliefs about lower class people. I present two studies, one applying a quasi-experimental design to observational data, and the other a vignette method, that provide complementary evidence that status beliefs are a consequential factor in determining educational inequality.

Transmission of social status drives cooperation and offspring philopatry.

The evolution of cooperation depends on two crucial overarching factors: relatedness, which describes the extent to which the recipient shares genes in common with the actor; and quality, which describes the recipient's basic capacity to transmit genes into the future. While most research has focused on relatedness, there is a growing interest in understanding how quality modulates the evolution of cooperation. However, the impact of inheritance of quality on the evolution of cooperation remains largely unexplored, especially in spatially structured populations. Here, we develop a mathematical model to understand how inheritance of quality, in the form of social status, influences the evolution of helping and harming within social groups in a viscous-population setting. We find that: (1) status-reversal transmission, whereby parental and offspring status are negatively correlated, strongly inhibits the evolution of cooperation, with low-status individuals investing less in cooperation and high-status individuals being more prone to harm; (2) transmission of high status promotes offspring philopatry, with more cooperation being directed towards the higher-dispersal social class; and (3) fertility inequality and inter-generational status inheritance reduce within-group conflict. Overall, our study highlights the importance of considering different mechanisms of phenotypic inheritance, including social support, and their potential interactions in shaping animal societies.

Exercise Effects on Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL), Muscular Function, Cardiorespiratory Function, and Body Composition in Smokers: A Narrative Review.

Smoking is amongst the leading global threats with high incidences of preventable premature mortality, morbidity, and various chronic diseases. The World Health Organization (WHO) proclaims a decrease in the prevalence of daily smoking in both males and females from 1980 to 2012, however, the number of regular smokers since then has exponentially increased. The low socio-income status individuals contribute greatly towards tobacco-attributable diseases due to limited access to healthcare systems, mostly in developing countries as compared to developed countries. Smoking affects the optimal functioning of the human body, which results in altered body system processes. Although a high intake of nicotine can lead to prolonged adherence and dependence on smoking, other factors, such as an individual's level of health-related quality of life (HRQOL), stress, depression, and anxiety, can produce similar effects. Smoking has a wide impact on lifestyle factors, which explains the increase in the number of sedentary smokers with decreased health fitness levels and poor lifestyle conditions. Therefore, this study seeks to investigate the exercise effects on health-related quality of life (HRQOL), muscular function, cardiorespiratory function, and body composition in smokers. Concurrently, exercise as an intervention has been sourced as a rehabilitation strategy during smoking cessation programmes to restore the diminishing health components, however, a high rate of relapse occurs due to intolerable withdrawal symptoms.

Painful ambivalence: A Marxist feminist analysis of moral anxiety and gendered class consciousness in “The Garden Party”

Through the utilization of Marxist feminist literary theory, the current article analyzes Catherine Mansfield's "The Garden Party" to examine the interconnected themes of class consciousness, gender, and social injustice. With a specific focus on the protagonist, Laura Sheridan, and her gradually evolving awareness of class, the article examines the narrative's suburban New Zealand setting and the social hierarchy between the affluent Sheridans and their less fortunate neighbors. The luxurious garden party serves as a poignant reminder of the upper class's disconnection from society and their condescending attitudes towards individuals of lower status. In addition to this, the article delves into gender and its effects on the characters' experiences and expectations. Its objective is to gain an understanding of the social realities of the time through the theoretical lens of Marxist feminism and address the pressing concerns of that era. Specifically, the article examines how Laura's representation of class consciousness reflects the societal power dynamics of the time, how the intersection of gender and class influences Laura's mixed feelings about the class system in her social environment, and how "The Garden Party" demonstrates the impact of class and gender on social hierarchies and power structures in the early twentieth century. The article draws attention to the pressing social concerns of the time. It demonstrates how the theoretical lens of Marxist feminism can aid in understanding the social realities of the past.

Experiences of resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic: A qualitative study among high and low socio-economic status individuals in the Netherlands

Resilience to adverse events is increasingly recognized as important for human health. Socio-economic status (SES) is also frequently identified as a predictor of resilience. However, it is not well-understood how people define resilience in their everyday lives, and whether individuals have different experiences of resilience based on their SES. This study sought to fill these gaps, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and pandemic mitigation policies in the Netherlands.We interviewed high (n = 38) and low (n = 37) SES participants about their understanding and experiences of resilience during this period. Participants took part in individual interviews and focus groups in September 2021. Transcripts were analyzed thematically.A key theme was coping with adversity, in line with commonly-used definitions of resilience. However, we found that resilience was often defined more broadly. Resilience also encompassed aspects of self-reflection and improvement, and faith in oneself, the community and the nation. There were also key differences by SES background: elaborate and optimistic definitions and experiences of resilience were more often described by high SES individuals. For instance, high SES participants more frequently defined resilience as growing and improving. In contrast, low SES participants more commonly experienced resilience as enduring until better times arrived.Having a higher SES seemed to support resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic. This indicates that adverse events may exacerbate pre-existing financial and material difficulties among low SES individuals. This finding underscores the importance of addressing financial precarity prior to adverse events.

Join to connect? Voluntary involvement, social capital, and socioeconomic inequalities

Access to social capital is stratified by socioeconomic status and has been cross-sectionally linked to involvement in voluntary organizations. Yet, we know little about the origin and interplay of these empirical regularities. Regression analyses on German panel data (SC6-NEPS) reveal that people rich in social capital join organizations more often (selection). Furthermore, joiners access more and higher-status social capital after joining (socializing opportunities). Low-status individuals disproportionally extend their reach towards higher positions through involvement but join less often. Compared to a counterfactual situation in which nobody joins, current involvement patterns marginally reduce some socioeconomic inequalities in access to social capital.

People's Preferences for Inequality Respond Instantly to Changes in Status: A Simulated Society Experiment of Conflict Between the Rich and the Poor.

Most people in the United States agree they want some income inequality but debate exactly how much is fair. High-status people generally prefer more inequality than low-status individuals. Here we examine how much preferences for inequality are (or are not) driven by self-interest. Past work has generally investigated this idea in two ways: The first is by stratifying preferences by income, and the second is by randomly assigning financial status within lab-constructed scenarios. In this paper, we develop a method that combines both experimental control and the social experience of inequality-a simulated society experiment. Across two experiments (N = 138, observations = 690), participants voted on the distribution of rewards-first behind a veil of ignorance, and then when they were randomly assigned a status within a game of chance. Status varied repeatedly across five rounds, allowing us to measure dynamic preferences. Under the veil of ignorance, people preferred inequality favoring the top status. When the veil of ignorance disappeared, self-interest immediately influenced inequality preferences. Those who randomly landed in top positions were satisfied with the status quo established under the veil of ignorance, whereas those who randomly landed in bottom positions wanted more equality. Yet these preferences were not stable; decisions about the optimal level of inequality changed according to changes in social status. Our results also showed that, when inequality grows in a society, preferences regarding inequality become polarized by social status. Individuals in low-status positions, particularly, tend to demand more equality.

Thinking about your future self: Do better perspective-takers make more patient decisions?

Decisions involving costs and rewards materialising at different points in time (intertemporal decisions) are prevalent in everyday life and can have significant consequences for well-being across the lifespan. Recent neuroimaging research points to overlapping neural mechanisms in intertemporal decision-making and perspective-taking, suggesting they may involve common cognitive processes, but there has been limited research examining whether individual differences in these two capacities are related at a behavioural level. The present study tested the hypothesis that individuals with better perspective-taking abilities would make more future-oriented decisions. 235 participants (200 after exclusions) completed an intertemporal choice task, followed by behavioural and self-report measures of perspective-taking. Contrary to expectations, there were no overall correlations between perspective-taking measures and intertemporal decision-making. However, exploratory analysis found that perspective-taking abilities were increasingly associated with future-oriented decisions among participants who perceived themselves to be higher on the socioeconomic ladder, with some evidence indicating that among low socioeconomic status individuals, better perspective-takers may be more likely to discount future rewards. These findings suggest that rather than enabling patience, perspective-taking abilities may facilitate greater flexibility in intertemporal decision-making, potentially increasing or decreasing temporal discounting depending on the environmental context of the decision-maker.

Jolted: How task-based jolts disrupt status conferral by impacting higher and lower status individuals' generosity.

Despite growing evidence that the status conferred to individuals in organizations can change, few theoretical accounts explain when and how established patterns of status conferral are disrupted. We develop a theory of "task-based jolts"-organizational-level events that alter group tasks and goals in a way that requires employees to adjust the way they work-as a significant catalyst to disrupt status conferral in an existing hierarchy. We employed a multimethod design across two empirical studies (Study 1-quasifield experiment; Study 2-yoked experiment) and found that jolts are appraised differently by higher and lower status individuals, and as such, the jolt has contrasting implications for their generosity toward their coworkers and ultimately the status conferred to them. When employees' initial status is higher, they appraise a task-based jolt as self-threatening, undermining their concern for others and their generosity, which ultimately causes them to lose status in the immediate aftermath of the jolt. Conversely, when employees' initial status is lower, they appraise a task-based jolt as more of an opportunity, increasing their belief that they can contribute and their generosity, which ultimately causes them to gain status in the immediate aftermath of the jolt. Our findings offer valuable insights into how and why organizational-level change can indirectly influence microlevel interpersonal behaviors (generosity) that, in turn, affect status hierarchies within the organization. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Relative status and dyadic help seeking and giving: The roles of past helping history and power distance value

Employees may not always seek and give help when needed in the dyadic context because of status disparity. Drawing on the cost and benefit framework in social exchange, we examine the effects of relative status on help seeking and giving willingness and behaviors among dyads. We argue that low-status individuals tend to provide more help but seek less help from their high-status counterparts. We further consider two moderators that can help restore the balance in cross-status helping relationships: employees’ past helping history and low power distance (PD) value. Additionally, we investigate the mediating roles of perceived entitlement and perceived obligation in the relationships between relative status and help seeking and giving, respectively. We tested our hypotheses in three studies using both dyadic field studies and experiments with employee participants. Our findings consistently demonstrate that low-status employees had a disadvantage in dyadic help-seeking and help-giving relationships. We also find that past helping history mitigated the effects of relative status in predicting help giving, whereas low PD value attenuated the effects of relative status in predicting help seeking. Finally, we find support for the mediated effects of perceived entitlement and obligation in the hypothesized relationships.

Efficacy of mindfulness and goal setting interventions for increasing resilience and reducing smoking in lower socio-economic groups: randomised controlled trial protocol

BackgroundSmoking and resulting health problems disproportionately impact low socioeconomic status (SES) individuals. Building resilience presents an approach to ‘closing the gap’. Mindfulness-based interventions and setting realistic goals are preferred in low socioeconomic communities. We aim to test if these interventions, delivered online and consolidated with peer support offered via ex-smokers, are successful in promoting smoking cessation and resilience. Our conceptualisation of resilience encompasses the inner capacity/skills and external resources (e.g., social support) which smokers utilise to bounce back from adversity. We include a process evaluation of barriers/facilitators to interventions and cost-effectiveness analysis (from health system perspective).MethodsWe plan a four-arm parallel 12-month RCT with a 6-month follow-up to test the efficacy of three group-based interventions each followed by peer support. Arm 1: mindfulness-integrated cognitive behavioural therapy; Arm 2: mindfulness training; Arm 3: setting realistic goals; Arm 4: active control group directed to quit services. All interventions will be administered online. Participants are adult smokers in Australia (N = 812) who have an average weekly household income less than $457AUD or receive welfare benefits. Group-based interventions will occur over 6 months, followed by 6 months of forum-based peer support. Primary outcome: self-reported 14-day period prevalence of smoking abstinence at 6 months, with remote biochemical verification of saliva cotinine (< 30 ng/mL). Secondary outcomes include: internal resilience (Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale-25); external resilience (ENRICHD social support tool); quality adjusted life years (EQ-5D-5L); self-efficacy for smoking abstinence (Smoking-Abstinence Self-Efficacy Questionnaire); motivation to quit smoking (Biener and Abrams Contemplation Ladder); nicotine dependence (Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependency); equanimity (Equanimity Scale-16); stress (Perceived Stress Scale-10); goal assessment/attainment (Problems and Goals Assessment Scale).DiscussionThis study is the first to compare resilience interventions for low SES smokers which have been identified by them as acceptable. Our various repeated measures and process evaluation will facilitate exploration of mechanisms of impact. We intervene within the novel framework of the Psychosocial Model of Resilience, applying a promising paradigm to address a critical and inequitable public health problem.Trial registration Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ID: ACTRN12621000445875, registered 19 April 2021 (https://anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=381007&isReview=true). The Universal Trial Number is U1111-1261–8951

Reduced injury risk links sociality to survival in a group-living primate

Sociality has been linked to a longer lifespan in many mammals, including humans. Yet, how sociality results in survival benefits remains unclear. Using 10 years of data and over 1,000 recorded injuries in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta), we tested two injury-related mechanisms by which social status and affiliative partners might influence survival. Injuries increased individual risk of death by 3-fold in this dataset. We found that sociality can affect individuals' survival by reducing their risk of injury but had no effect on the probability of injured individuals dying. Both males and females of high social status (measured as female matrilineal rank and male group tenure) and females with more affiliative partners (estimated using the number of female relatives) experienced fewer injuries and thus were less likely to die. Collectively, our results offer rare insights into one mechanism that can mediate the well-known benefits of sociality on an individual's fitness.

Supplemental Material for Jolted: How Task-Based Jolts Disrupt Status Conferral by Impacting Higher and Lower Status Individuals’ Generosity

Supplemental Material for Jolted: How Task-Based Jolts Disrupt Status Conferral by Impacting Higher and Lower Status Individuals’ Generosity

Socioeconomic status and social anxiety: attentional control as a key missing variable?

ABSTRACT Background and Objectives The aim was to examine the role of attentional control as a psychological factor involved in socioeconomic status-related mental health differences, and specifically in social anxiety. Based on the literature on socioeconomic status differences in cognitive abilities and attentional control theory, we hypothesized that attentional control would account for the relation between socioeconomic status and social anxiety. We tested this hypothesis in an integrative model also including trait anxiety and subjective socioeconomic status. Design Cross-sectional. Method Online, 439 French adults were recruited via social media. They completed self-reported measures of attentional control, objective socioeconomic status, subjective socioeconomic status, social anxiety, and trait anxiety. Results Using Structural Equation Modelling, findings showed a positive association between objective (but not subjective) socioeconomic status and attentional control, which in turn was related to social anxiety. Exploratory analyses showed that only income, as objective socioeconomic status indicator, was associated with attentional control. Conclusions The current study is the first to support that low socioeconomic status individuals report less attentional control and more social anxiety symptoms. This suggests that attentional control is a psychological factor involved in social anxiety inequalities.