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The social significance of subtle signals

Author

Listed:
  • Rebecca Bliege Bird

    (Pennsylvania State University)

  • Elspeth Ready

    (University of Nebraska-Lincoln)

  • Eleanor A. Power

    (London School of Economics and Political Science)

Abstract

Acts of prosociality, such as donating to charity, are often analysed in a similar way to acts of conspicuous advertising; both involve costly signals revealing hidden qualities that increase the signaller’s prestige. However, experimental work suggests that grand gestures, even if prosocial, may damage one’s reputation for trustworthiness and cooperativeness if they are perceived as prestige enhancing: individuals may gain some types of cooperative benefits only when they perform prosocial acts in particular ways. Here, we contrast subtle, less obviously costly, interpersonal forms of prosocial behaviour with high-cost displays to a large audience, drawing on the example of food sharing in subsistence economies. This contrast highlights how highly visible prosocial displays may be effective for attracting new partners, while subtle signals may be crucial for ensuring trust and commitment with long-term partners. Subtle dyadic signals may be key to understanding the long-term maintenance of interpersonal networks that function to reduce unanticipated risks.

Suggested Citation

  • Rebecca Bliege Bird & Elspeth Ready & Eleanor A. Power, 2018. "The social significance of subtle signals," Nature Human Behaviour, Nature, vol. 2(7), pages 452-457, July.
  • Handle: RePEc:nat:nathum:v:2:y:2018:i:7:d:10.1038_s41562-018-0298-3
    DOI: 10.1038/s41562-018-0298-3
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    Cited by:

    1. Jia, Z. Tingting & McMahon, Matthew J., 2020. "Being watched in an investment game setting: Behavioral changes when making risky decisions," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    2. Kenji Itao & Kunihiko Kaneko, 2023. "Transition of social organisations driven by gift relationships," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-10, December.
    3. Dhaliwal, Nathan A. & Patil, Indrajeet & Cushman, Fiery, 2021. "Reputational and cooperative benefits of third-party compensation," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 164(C), pages 27-51.
    4. Lyndsey K Craig & Peter B Gray, 2020. "Women's use of intimate apparel as subtle sexual signals in committed, heterosexual relationships," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(3), pages 1-18, March.
    5. Chen Liang & Murat Tunc & Gordon Burtch, 2024. "Market Responses to Genuine Versus Strategic Generosity: An Empirical Examination of NFT Charity Fundraisers," Papers 2401.12064, arXiv.org.
    6. Simpson, Cohen R., 2022. "Social support and network formation in a small-scale horticulturalist population," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 116694, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    7. Ge, Erhao & Cairang, Dongzhi & Mace, Ruth, 2022. "Religiosity structures social networks in a Tibetan population," OSF Preprints qpa4b, Center for Open Science.

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