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Status Seeking Behavior of the Poor: A Study on India

Author

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  • Sugata Marjit
  • Sattwik Santra
  • Koushik Kumar Hati

Abstract

This paper is the first attempt towards directly testing the existence of status seeking behavior of the poor for a developing economy, India, with the help of a large dataset. The paper empirically validates status consciousness among the relatively poor for both rural and urban areas across the states of India. The hypotheses that inequality impacts consumption patterns via status effect turns out to be statistically significant. Households in the majority of the states, under various specifications, demonstrate concern for status. We explore in detail the extent of this status effect for different sections of the population.

Suggested Citation

  • Sugata Marjit & Sattwik Santra & Koushik Kumar Hati, 2018. "Status Seeking Behavior of the Poor: A Study on India," CESifo Working Paper Series 7213, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_7213
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    Cited by:

    1. Oindrila Dey & Swapnendu Banerjee, 2022. "Incentives, Status and Thereafter: A Critical Survey," South Asian Journal of Macroeconomics and Public Finance, , vol. 11(1), pages 95-115, June.
    2. Hamid Beladi & Sugata Marjit & Reza Oladi & Lei Yang, 2021. "Malnutrition in the shadow of economic growth," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(1), pages 500-514, February.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    status; consumption pattern; inequality; poverty;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D01 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Microeconomic Behavior: Underlying Principles
    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis
    • C13 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric and Statistical Methods and Methodology: General - - - Estimation: General

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