Theories of Social Honor

The approaches used in studying status systems (or systems of prestige or social honor) can be classified as either materialist or nonmaterialist, and the essential differences between them reflect differences in assumptions about human motivations. It is argued that the materialist approach is untenable. The nonmaterialist approaches also differ among themselves in motivational assumptions, and these differences in turn lead to very different views about the nature of status systems. Three nonmaterialist approaches are analyzed, and it is suggested that one of them is more compelling than the others.