Need for Social Status

What it measures

Measures the strength of a person's current motivation to advance their position in the social hierarchy relative to others. Items tap desire for upward social mobility, improved social standing, and higher rank compared to peers. Administered as a state measure ('at this moment') rather than a stable trait disposition. Slightly adapted from a scale by Dubois, Rucker, and Galinsky (2012) and used in research examining how power distance beliefs and social comparisons shape status-driven consumption. Suitable for priming studies where situational status motivation is manipulated.

Response format

7-point Likert (1=definitely false, 7=definitely true)

Scale items

• I have a desire to increase my position in the social hierarchy.
• I want to improve my social standing as compared to others
• Getting to climb the social ladder is a priority for me.
• I would like to have higher social standing than others.

Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.

Usage notes & scoring

Response scale uses 'definitely false/true' anchors rather than 'disagree/agree'. Temporal framing ('at this moment') makes this a state-level motivation measure. Useful in experimental designs where status motivation is situationally activated.

Recommended companion scales

Citation

Gao, H., Winterich, K.P., & Zhang, Y. (2016). All that glitters is not gold: How others' status influences the effect of power distance belief on status consumption. Journal of Consumer Research, 43(2), 265–281.

Keywords