CREATING STATUS CHARACTERISTICS

Status characteristics constitute significant elements of small group and societal stratification systems, and understanding their creation has theoretical and practical importance. We generalize Ridgeway's pat hbreaking theory of status construction in three stages. First, we sho w that a conceptual change, using goal objects instead of exchangeable resources, permits us to explain the creation of many more status cha racteristics. Second, we explicate an interaction mechanism, behavior interchange patterns, that can transform other characteristics into st atus characteristics, even creating status differences where no charac teristic is salient. Third, we show how new characteristics themselves can be created and given status value from deviance and personality a ttribution processes. We briefly note some parallels with other theori sts' work, suggest some independent tests, and consider theoretical an d applied implications of this work.