''Status Anxiety'' is a

nonfiction Non-fiction (or nonfiction) is any document or media content that attempts, in good faith, to convey information only about the real world, rather than being grounded in imagination. Non-fiction typically aims to present topics objectively ...

book by

Alain de Botton Alain de Botton (; born 20 December 1969) is a Swiss-born British author and public speaker. His books discuss various contemporary subjects and themes, emphasizing philosophy's relevance to everyday life. He published ''Essays in Love'' (1993) ...

. It was first published in 2004 by

Hamish Hamilton Hamish Hamilton Limited is a publishing imprint and originally a British publishing house, founded in 1931 eponymously by the half- Scot half- American Jamie Hamilton (''Hamish'' is the vocative form of the Gaelic Seumas eaning James ''Jame ...

; subsequent publications have been by

Penguin Books Penguin Books Limited is a Germany, German-owned English publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers the Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the ...

Central thesis

According to De Botton, "status anxiety" is a 21st-century phenomenon which is a result of

capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their use for the purpose of obtaining profit. This socioeconomic system has developed historically through several stages and is defined by ...

democracy Democracy (from , ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which political power is vested in the people or the population of a state. Under a minimalist definition of democracy, rulers are elected through competitiv ...

, and an ostensibly egalitarian society, and is prevalent in countries where an inequality in income is evident. Status anxiety can be defined as the constant tension or fear of being perceived as "unsuccessful" by the society in materialistic terms. Today, every individual constantly tries to outsmart the others to climb up the social ladder. The effects of status anxiety can be

impulse buying In the field of consumer behavior, an impulse purchase or impulse buying is an unplanned decision by a consumer to buy a product or service, made just before a purchase. One who tends to make such purchases is referred to as an impulse purchas ...

, status consumption etc.

Meritocracy Meritocracy (''merit'', from Latin , and ''-cracy'', from Ancient Greek 'strength, power') is the notion of a political system in which economic goods or political power are vested in individual people based on ability and talent, rather than ...

is a primary cause of status anxiety. Meritocracy is a society that believes that only the talented and the meritorious will end up at the top of the social ladder. Snobbery, envy, lovelessness are some other causes of status anxiety. De Botton first noticed this phenomenon among the wealthy families of America. The Americans had a lavish lifestyle and most of it was just to make the "neighbours" envious. America had also witnessed the trend of "

Famous for being famous ''Famous for being famous'' is a paradoxical term, often used pejoratively, for someone who attains celebrity status for no clearly identifiable reason—as opposed to fame based on achievement, skill, or talent—and appears to generate their ...

". Botton even met the American motivational speaker Les Brown to know how motivational speaking works. He concluded that motivational speakers conducted their speeches to induce status anxiety among individuals. Motivational speaking is based on the fact that "No one is living up to their true potential and everyone has scope for improvement". De Botton challenged this and asked "What about those who want to achieve but lack the opportunities to do so?" De Botton lays out the causes of and solutions to status anxiety as follows: Causes: *

Love Love is a feeling of strong attraction and emotional attachment (psychology), attachment to a person, animal, or thing. It is expressed in many forms, encompassing a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most su ...

lessness * Expectation *

Snobbery ''Snob'' is a pejorative term for a person who feels superior due to their social class, education level, or social status in general;De Botton, A. (2004), ''Status Anxiety''. London: Hamish Hamilton it is sometimes used especially when they pr ...

* Dependence Solutions: *

Philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

Art Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...

Politics Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

Religion Religion is a range of social system, social-cultural systems, including designated religious behaviour, behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, religious text, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics in religion, ethics, or ...

Bohemianism Bohemianism is a social and cultural movement that has, at its core, a way of life away from society's conventional norms and expectations. The term originates from the French ''bohème'' and spread to the English-speaking world. It was used to ...

Film

A two-hour

documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

about this

thesis A thesis (: theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: D ...

, also called ''Status Anxiety'' and written by Alain de Botton, was released in 2004. A version of it was shown in 2008 on

Public Broadcasting Service The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the ...

channels like

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

WGBH-TV WGBH-TV (channel 2), branded GBH or GBH 2 since 2020, is the primary PBS List of PBS member stations, member television station in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Affiliated stations and facilities WGBH-TV is the Flagship (broadcasting), ...

's digital channel

WGBX-TV WGBX-TV (channel 44), branded GBH 44, is the secondary PBS member television station in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It is owned by the WGBH Educational Foundation alongside WGBH-TV (channel 2) and originates from studios on Guest St ...

in the United States.

Earlier uses of the term

Historian

Richard Hofstadter Richard Hofstadter (August 6, 1916October 24, 1970) was an American historian and public intellectual of the mid-20th century. Hofstadter was the DeWitt Clinton Professor of American History at Columbia University. Rejecting his earlier historic ...

in his 1965 book ''

The Paranoid Style in American Politics ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

'' used the term "status anxiety" to help explain the origins of the

Progressive Movement Progressivism is a left-leaning political philosophy and reform movement that seeks to advance the human condition through social reform. Adherents hold that progressivism has universal application and endeavor to spread this idea to huma ...

, following earlier usage by others. Alain de Botton's use of the term is different.

References

External links

Status Anxiety
- Alain de Botton website Sociology books 2004 non-fiction books Hamish Hamilton books Books by Alain de Botton Non-fiction books adapted into films Social status Anxiety Conformity {{sociology-book-stub

Central thesis

Film

Earlier uses of the term

See also

References

External links