Social Judgment: Cliquism, Classism, Discrimination, Segregation, Exclusion, Disenfranchisement, and Ostracism

This thread is for discussing all phenomena related to people looking down on others and leaving them out.

The other day, I had a talk with a Pakistani boy who did his engineering degree in the US. Of his social experiences there, he highlighted an extreme sense of social exclusion. Being introduced to people seems comparable to a series of tests, where looks, wealth, achievements, tribal identifiers are scrutinized, evaluated, and then a judgment is pronounced. And if you are unfit, you are excluded. At the top are the rich, healthy, and strong. And the caste system is enforced with extreme prejudice on those who dare to attempt social climbing, or even simple defiance and assertion.

This seems terribly stressful for everyone involved. I would guess that even the ones at the top are compelled to go to extreme lengths to maintain an image and a status. What's your experience of this in your own society? How is status measured, and what does it afford or deny you? How do people sort themselves, and how permeable are these sets?

edited 3rd Apr '16 3:55:04 AM by TheHandle