Price of Prestige

Angebote / Angebote:

Some people buy expensive things just because they re expensive, not because they re higher quality, but because they offer social status and prestige. Lilach Gilady takes this idea, conspicuous consumption, to an international level, arguing that instead of ridiculously expensive watches, countries have their own bling from expensive weapons systems they don t need and can t maintain to foreign aid programs of little benefit to recipients and for similar reasons. In "The Price of Prestige" Gilady demonstrates how a state s motivation for embarking on costly but useless policies can be to establish that country s place in an international social hierarchy. Exploring in depth numerous fascinating examples including the Chinese space program, Brazil buying an aircraft carrier, and the story of how no one would buy a cheap fighter plane Gilady uses Veblenian analysis to explore how countries struggle to define their positions in the social hierarchy through conspicuous consumption, and shows how policy decisions are not only a means for achieving specific material goals but are also a gesture to be observed by other peers.