People Who Wear Designer Clothes Are More Likely To Be Considered UNCOOPERATIVE, Study Finds

If you’ve splurged on a new designer item, you might be tempted to wear it to the office.

But a new study suggests that flaunting luxury brands at work could be a bad idea.

Researchers at the University of Michigan found that people who display luxury brands and other status signs are more likely to be viewed as uncooperative.

“It is generally assumed that signage status can strategically benefit people who want to appear premium – why else would people pay a premium for products with luxury logos that have no other functional benefit?” said Dr. Shalena Srna, lead author of the study.

“But it can also backfire by making them seem more interested.”

Previous studies have shown that people who appear wealthy tend to be viewed as more intelligent, disciplined, and competent.

However, in the new study, the team set out to understand whether showing off your wealth also affects people’s perception of your willingness to collaborate.

In the study, the team performed six experiments involving a total of more than 2,800 participants.

In one experiment, 395 participants were asked to rate a range of social media profiles to find people they thought were cooperative, altruistic and generous to join their community.

The profiles either had neutral messages, such as “I saw the cutest puppy today!” #goldenretrievers’, or posts signaling high social status, such as ‘On the way to Madrid! #first class #luxury’.

The results revealed that participants were less likely to recommend a profile to join their community if they had posts signaling high social status.

They also rated these profiles as wealthier, more concerned with status, and less likely to care about others.

In another experiment, 1,345 participants were asked to imagine that they were creating their own social media profile and had to choose what to wear for their profile picture.

Participants were informed that they were selected for an online group. However, only half were told that the group they hoped to join was looking for a cooperative person.

Clothing options included luxury brands such as Prada or Gucci, non-luxury brands such as Sketchers, or unbranded clothing.

The results revealed that participants who tried to come across as a cooperative team player were significantly less likely to choose luxury clothing for their profile picture.

However, participants were also likely to choose to wear a non-luxury brand, whether or not cooperation was promoted.

People who wear more modest clothes to the office (stock image) are more likely to be seen as cooperative

“This experiment shows that people are aware of when the value of luxury logos shifts from positive to negative,” Dr. Srna said.

“Not only are people strategic about when to signal their status, but they’re also strategic about modesty.”

While modesty appears to be key when cooperation is essential, the researchers point out that luxury brands can be beneficial when selecting group members based on other characteristics.

For example, participants were more likely to choose someone reporting their wealth when looking for a competitive team member.

The results suggest that people can change the way they present themselves based on their social purpose.

“Posting about your luxury purchases and expensive vacations on Instagram or TikTok can help you persuade others, intimidate competitors, and succeed in the dating market — at least for men.

“But it could also signal to potential friends or future employers that you’re unlikely to think about the needs of others,” Dr. Srna said.

“It becomes a tricky balancing act for people who want to impress others while demonstrating that they can be a ‘team player’.