preview

The Attainment Of Wealth And Social Status

Decent Essays

The attainment of wealth and social status has been the goal for human beings since the beginning of civilizations. Socioeconomic status [SES] is defined “as a measure of one’s level of education and income” (Friedman, H., & Schustack, 2012, pg.420). The factors that contribute to one’s success have dumbfounded the masses. What makes a person more successful? Some may say the combination of hard work and hint of luck is the key to success. However, it recent years psychologists have questioned whether there is a correlation between socioeconomic status and personality. Researchers have just recently begun to explore questions relating to status and individual characteristics. It is a new emerging research topic, but they have begun to test many different aspects of the correlation to find statistically significant relationships. Low socioeconomic status has been linked to poor health. A possible explanation for this association may be characteristics of personality that influence health. A 2009 study conducted by the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience at Duke University sought to assess the relationship between occupational status and individual characteristics. In this particular study, 233 African American and Caucasian, male and female individuals volunteered to participate and their parent 's education, current SES (education and income), and personality were assessed. Participants filled out the NEO PI-R [10], a 240-item questionnaire measure of the five-factor

Get Access