Legislating Status: The Political Fight for Prestige

Abstract

This dissertation draws upon research in political science, psychology, and sociology to explore how inter-and intra-group social status influences political attitudes across divergent groups and issue areas, such as religion and gender. Using a variety of qualitative and quantitative methods to analyze both existing and original data, I find that concern about group status is an important force behind support for group-based policies. In other words, group members desire social esteem and adjust their policy preferences in an effort bolster both their group’s social position and their position within the group.