Status thinking exposed
Acute: status panic due to understated car
Show-offs have been thrown into status panic. The reason: cars have outlived their usefulness as status symbols. Now everyone can afford a high-quality automobile. The result: fear of losing one’s status is spreading.
What is the effect on those people who previously defined themselves by their choice of car?
Exclusive interview with bestselling author Alain de Botton
"Today, status anxiety is more rampant than ever before"
Alain de Botton, born in Switzerland in 1969, studied history and philosophy at Cambridge. He is the author of numerous bestsellers …
Netzfundstück – entdeckt auf YouTube
Sylt den Reichen!
Viele Sylter können sich das Leben auf ihrer Insel kaum noch leisten. Tobias Schlegl sagt: Kein Problem - Sylt den Reichen!
Ein Cartoon von Rudi Hurzlmeier
Alles nur auf Pump?
Rudi Hurzlmeier ist ständiger Mitarbeiter beim Satiremagazin Titanic und bei der Süddeutschen Zeitung und er veröffentlichte bislang 39 Bücher. …
Found online item – discovered on ‘Der Postillon’
BMW- und Audi-Fahrer zurückgerufen
Die Automobilkonzerne BMW und Audi mussten heute über eine Million Fahrer ihrer aktuellen Modelle zurückrufen. …
Take the Status Test here
Are you susceptible to status panic?
Exhibition
Cars as objects of desire
Licking red car paint as if it were a woman’s thighs? An eight-cylinder car as a bronze sculpture? The exhibition entitled ‘Car Fetish’ in Basle, Switzerland, is dedicated to the automobile as an object of art and of desire.
A car body: elegantly curved side wings blend with shining chromium parts. Water rolls off the paint. Whom would this not remind of – sex? Especially since Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin are whispering their enchanting Je t’aime to this varied selection of pictures. …
The status symbol for all those who don’t need a status symbol
This is the anti-status car
Finally, an SUV that does without the usual bling bling. The Dacia Duster, starting from 11,990 euros*, can do everything that an SUV needs to do. But its drivers don’t need to show off in the process. The Dacia Duster impresses through understatement. And “less is more” only applies to the price. Learn what distinguishes the Dacia Duster and how it is shaking up the pricing policy of the German automotive market.
* RRP plus transport costs. Illustrated with optional equipment.
Encyclopaedia of status terms
What is… a fashion victim, exactly?
Fashion victims are people who don’t have their own style, but rigorously follow what they perceive to be trends. Frequently, fashion victims orient themselves on the lifestyles of prominent film or music stars. This behaviour becomes problematic when the copied style doesn’t suit the person.
What is… showing off, exactly?
Showing off, or overawing, as it is often termed in biology, describes a behaviour that purportedly acts as a deterrent to members of the same sex, while alluring members of the opposite sex. Humans tend to exhibit this behaviour in connection with corresponding status symbols, which are meant to embody vitality and strength.
What are… inferiority complexes?
People with inferiority complexes usually lack the necessary self-confidence. In order to compensate for this lack, they often adorn themselves with highly symbolic objects, whose value is meant to rub off on them.
What is… a conformist, exactly?
The conformist does not act out of his or her own conviction and initiative, but out of subjectively perceived peer pressure. In order to ensure group loyalty, the conformist imitates the group’s behaviour, clothing and way of life.
What is… the neighbourhood effect, exactly?
Competition among neighbours to gain higher social status – normally carried out using expensive status symbols – is what sociologists refer to as the “neighbourhood effect”. Conventional weapons here include oversized pools, intricate Christmas lighting and spacious winter gardens.
What is... image neurosis, exactly?
The exaggerated need for recognition is called image neurosis. Those afflicted try to gain the attention of their peers with a striking appearance. For this reason, image neurosis is considered to be the most important reason behind the existence of extra-large watches, snakeskin slippers and fur hats.
What is... a status symbol, exactly?
In order to clearly display their social status, some people place an emphasis on corresponding symbols. Such status symbols are worn directly on the body (designer clothes, jewellery), driven in the form of a car or inhabited (home).
Be proactive
Armutszeugnis
Does someone in your circle of friends or enemies deserve the certificate of inadequacy? You can download the diploma here. Just fill it out and ceremoniously hand it over!
Download the certificate of inadequacy here
Those affected
Status symptoms are not always easy to recognise in daily life. They express themselves in a wide range of forms. And increasing numbers of people are being affected. But fortunately there is help.
Stefan H.
