title: The influence of status on satisfaction with relative rewards.
abstract: This study investigates how induced relative status affects satisfaction with different relative payoffs. We find that participants with lower status are more satisfied with disadvantageous payoff inequalities than equal or higher status participants. In contrast, when receiving an advantageous payoff, status does not affect satisfaction. Our findings suggest that relative social status has important implications for the acceptance of income inequalities.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Institute of Psychology, RWTH Aachen University Aachen, Germany.
authors.forename: Konstanze
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Albrecht
authors.forename: Emma
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: von Essen
authors.forename: Klaus
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Fliessbach
authors.forename: Armin
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Falk
keywords: fairness; relative reward; satisfaction; social comparison; status