Original scientific paper
Social Status and the Adoption of Machiavellian Beliefs Among Youths
Goran Milas
; Institu za društvena istraživanja, Zagreb
Ivan Rimac
; Institu za društvena istraživanja, Zagreb
Željko Buzov
; Institu za društvena istraživanja, Zagreb
Abstract
In this work an attempt has been made to explore the interdependence of youth status determinants and their beliefs connected to Machiavellian (manipulative) strategies of achieving personal goals. The survey was conducted on a sample of 675 people aged from 14 to 27, studying as students or working as employees in the Zagreb Centre Community. By means of canonic analysis, three statistically relevant but comparatively low canonic correlations between the sets of latent variables of social status and Machiavellianism have been established. The results indicate that the children of more educated and professionally more successful parents are more prone to adopting the Machiavellian viewpoint, wherefore it is not possible to discern whether this com-plex of attitudes is the cause or consequence of higher status. It has also been pointed out that the respondents of urban provenance display a tendency toward adopting general attitudes on manipulation, while those from settlements of a lower degree of urbanization (in other words — migrants) are more prone to accepting attitudes closely connected to manipulative behaviour, which, according to the authors’ judgement, reflects their different position on the social scale. The results indicate, in general, that the overlapping of indicators of social status and Machiavellian beliefs, although interpretable, is markedly low, which tells us that their determinants are not to be found in the same plane
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
155041
URI
Publication date:
31.12.1991.
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