The current research presents and tests a new model: The Vicious Cycle of Status Insecurity. We define status insecurity as doubting whether one is respected and admired by others. Status insecurity leads people to view status as a limited and zero-sum resource, where a boost in the status of one individual inherently decreases that of other individuals. As a result, the insecure become reluctant to share status in the form of highlighting the contributions of others. However, we suggest this reluctance to give others credit is often counterproductive. In contrast to the zero-sum beliefs of the insecure, we propose that giving credit to others boosts the status of both the sharer and the recipient, expanding the overall status pie. Because the insecure miss opportunities to gain status by not elevating others, they reinforce their initial insecurity. We provide evidence for this vicious cycle across 17 studies, including a content analysis of people's personal experiences with status insecurity, an archival analysis of the final speeches held on the reality TV show Survivor (using ChatGPT), and more than a dozen experimental studies. To enhance generalizability and external validity, our experimental contexts include consulting pitches, venture capital competitions, and idea generation contests. To demonstrate discriminant validity, we differentiate status insecurity from self-esteem insecurity. Across the studies, status insecurity consistently decreased status sharing while status sharing reliably increased one's status. Ultimately, status insecurity paradoxically lowers one's status because it reduces the propensity to elevate and celebrate others. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

中文翻译：

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状态不安全的恶性循环。


目前的研究提出并测试了一种新模型：状态不安全的恶性循环。我们将地位不安全定义为怀疑自己是否受到他人的尊重和钦佩。地位不安全感导致人们将地位视为一种有限的零和资源，一个人地位的提升本质上会降低其他个体的地位。因此，没有安全感的人变得不愿意以突出他人贡献的形式分享地位。然而，我们认为这种不愿意给予他人荣誉往往会适得其反。与不安全感的零和信念相反，我们提出将功劳给予他人可以提高分享者和接受者的地位，从而扩大整体地位蛋糕。因为不安全感错过了通过不提升他人来获得地位的机会，所以他们强化了最初的不安全感。我们在 17 项研究中为这种恶性循环提供了证据，包括对人们个人状态不安全经历的内容分析、对真人秀节目 Survivor 上举行的最终演讲的档案分析（使用 ChatGPT），以及十几项实验研究。为了提高可推广性和外部效度，我们的实验环境包括咨询推介、风险投资竞赛和创意生成竞赛。为了证明判别效度，我们将状态不安全感与自尊不安全感区分开来。在研究中，状态不安全感始终降低了状态共享，而状态共享可靠地提高了一个人的状态。归根结底，地位不安全自相矛盾地降低了一个人的地位，因为它降低了提升和赞美他人的倾向。（PsycInfo 数据库记录 （c） 2024 APA，保留所有权利）。