The American Dream celebrates the self-made person, applauding those who rise from humble beginnings. This cultural narrative implies that people who have experienced and overcome similar challenges understand and care more about those who are still struggling. But is this true?
A series of studies explored perceptions of self-made wealthy individuals (the Became Rich) versus those born into wealth (the Born Rich) and how their own experiences of wealth acquisition influence their attitudes toward the poor. Contrary to lay expectations, individuals from humble origins were less sensitive to the plights of the poor. This research, conducted by Hyunjin J. Koo and colleagues, was published in Social Psychological and Personality Science.
Participants were recruited from online crowdsourcing platforms, including Prolific Academic and Turkprime. Studies 1a and 1b gauged the public’s perceptions of two distinct wealthy groups: the Became Rich versus the Born Rich. In Study 1a, 289 participants were presented with descriptions of these groups and asked to assess which group they believed would exhibit greater empathy and understanding towards the poor (e.g., “More likely to attribute poverty to external circumstances”). A majority perceived the Became Rich as more empathetic and understanding.
Study 1b, with 447 participants, replicated this experiment, but this time both groups were portrayed as equally hardworking, challenging the notion that hard work alone shaped public perceptions. Even when both groups were described as “working very hard” and having “a great work ethic’’ the Became Rich were still perceived as more empathetic, suggesting that their background of personal struggle played an important role in public perception.
Studies 2a and 2b, with 479 and 553 participants respectively, shifted focus to the sociopolitical attitudes of the wealthy (e.g., “In the United States, it is difficult to improve one’s socioeconomic conditions’’). Study 2a surveyed participants with household incomes over $80,000, while Study 2b targeted those earning over $142,501. Participants were categorized into Became Rich or Born Rich based on their past socioeconomic status. Contrary to public perception, the Became Rich viewed upward mobility as less challenging and displayed less empathetic attitudes towards the poor. This finding was consistent across both studies, suggesting a disconnect between public perception and the actual attitudes of the wealthy.
Study 3 utilized a simulation scenario to causally test these observations. In this experiment, 492 participants were randomly assigned to imagine themselves in scenarios of upward mobility or remaining stationary at a high status within a hypothetical company. They responded to measures parallel to those administered in Studies 1-2. Participants in the upward mobility condition perceived climbing the corporate ladder as less challenging and showed reduced empathy towards others struggling within the company.
Combined, the findings from these studies indicate that public expectations about the attitudes of wealthy individuals towards the poor are often mistaken. Studies 1a and 1b revealed that people generally perceive those who became rich to be more sympathetic to the poor than those born into wealth. However, subsequent studies contradicted this belief, showing that the Became Rich actually perceive socio-economic improvement as less difficult and exhibit less empathy and support for wealth redistribution compared to the Born Rich.
A limitation the researchers note is that this study focused on affluent individuals in the United States, but did not recruit multimillionaires and billionaires. Future research can consider involving the “super wealthy” due to their significant sociopolitical influence.
The authors conclude, “Ultimately, people’s social views are not only shaped by their current class position but also by the confluence of life forces that led them there.”
The research, “If I Could Do It, So Can They: Among the Rich, Those With Humbler Origins are Less Sensitive to the Difficulties of the Poor”, was authored by Hyunjin J. Koo, Paul K. Piff, and Azim F. Shariff.